Hero's welcome for world champion Heffernan

Ireland's new athletics world champion has arrived back on Irish soil.

Ireland's latest World Champion Rob Heffernan touched down on Irish soil shortly after 5pm this evening, with his 50k walk Gold medal en tow, to a rapturous welcome at Dublin Airport.

Hundreds of supporters, including Minister for Children Francis Fitzgerald T.D. representing the Irish Government greeted Rob and his coach and wife Marian as they emerged through the Arrivals gate of Terminal 2.

Heffernan became the first Irish person since Sonia O'Sullivan in 1995 to pick up a World Athletics Championship Gold medal after he finished over a minute clear of second-placed Mikhail Ryzhov in a time of 3:37.56 in Moscow on Wednesday morning.

This put to bed years of heartbreak in search of a medal, with Heffernan claiming fourth spot at the London Olympics last Summer.

"The support has been massive. I knew after the Olympics last year the effect it had on people and I only finished fourth.

"I knew everybody was tuned in back home and I knew the goodwill among my family and friends and just the whole country, and I saw the lift that it gave everybody.

"That definitely drove me on in the last 10k 100 percent and it is great to see this happening."

Heffernan received his gold medal over 24 hours ago at the Presentation Ceremony in Moscow. He confessed that he has been giving his prodigy Brendan Boyce (who finished 25th in a PB of 3:54:24) a taste of his medal.

"I put it on Brendan and he was getting kisses off all of the Russian women, when I was saying he was the World Champion!

"It's surreal, it's great and it's all the sweeter after all of the heartbreak of the past. I've had a better year again. It's been brilliant. I don't have a silver or a bronze medal, so to go straight to winning Gold and being World Champion is brilliant!"

And the 35-year old says the best is still yet to come from him.

"I think so, I can improve next year again and I still have areas to improve upon. I still think there was more in me the last day, if I was challenged more in the final 10K."

The Cork man already has his sights set on the Olympics in Rio in 2016.

"I'm going onto Rio and there's no reason why I can't be the new Korzeniowski (three time World Champion) of the sport," he said.

"Wednesday is just going to make me grow in confidence again and I am looking forward to competing again next year."

Rob's Dad Rob Snr was thrilled by his sons Gold medal after years of hard work.

"I'm over the moon, it's a dream come true alright," he said.

"He's a wonder-kid. It certainly is the happiest moment of my life. The day of the race you just couldn't compare it, when he got over the line it was brilliant."

"A lot of Cork people travelled up here today, and Neil Prenderville from Cork radio provided a bus and we are grateful for that also."

Rob Snr felt that his late wife Maureen was also proud of her sons accolade after years of hard work.

"If she was here words can't describe it really, because she loved him so much. He was very close to her and he idolised her. She's certainly looking down on him. She always had a big smile on her face for him."

Rob's wife Marian was also delighted by her husband's achievements.

"It's fantastic. It's something we have been working on all year and that Rob has been focussed on and never got out of his mind throughout all his training," she said.

And the Heffernan's are looking to one hell of a party Lee-side tonight.

"It's just brilliant that it all came off and it is brilliant that we can celebrate here in Dublin Airport, but it's going to be even better in Cork I think. It's just going to be unbelievable," Marian said.

"There was a great support here at the Airport and I knew a lot of the faces. Rob is really well known in the sport and it is just fantastic that everybody came and can take some bit from it, so it is fantastic."