Ryan vows to return and scale great heights

Highjumper Deirdre Ryan has vowed to learn from her Olympic experience as a miserable week of track and field for Irish competitors continued yesterday.

Ryan, sixth in the World Championship last year, failed to clear the 1.90m required in the opening heats, jumping 1.80m and 1.85m. Her national record is 1.95m.

Against the backdrop of boxing and show-jumping medal success many of the Irish athletes have struggled to produce their top form. Ryan was the latest casualty and admitted she’s been struggling with her technique in the lead-up to the Games.

“High jump is one of those sports that, like, everything can be right but some little timing is off (and everything goes wrong). I even see it with some of the other jumpers: some years they can’t do anything wrong and then other years their timing is out a bit.”

But Ryan has vowed to iron out the problems and return to jumping the heights she knows she is capable of attaining.