Watch an elated Thomas Barr: ‘There’s nothing like an Olympics’

Irish athlete Thomas Barr came within a fraction of a second of an Olympics medal this afternoon but said afterwards that he had a fantastic experience at the Games.

The Waterford runner was just five hundredths of a second behind Turkey's Yasmani Copello in third and joked: “Fourth is the worst place to come!”

Thomas Barr crosses the line in 4th place with a new Irish record of 47.97 during the Men's 400m hurdles final! pic.twitter.com/TfcMeZ8AHP

— sportsfile (@sportsfile) August 18, 2016

“If I had 405 meters you’d never know what could have happened!” he said on RTÉ. “But unfortunately it’s a 400 metre hurdles race.

“But to be anywhere close to a medal, I’m absolutely thrilled."

Thomas Barr talks to RTÉ Sport after his fourth placed finish in the Olympic men's 400m hurdles final #rterio2016 https://t.co/C62RQKlZht

— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 18, 2016

He was keen to acknowledge the massive support behind him, both in the stadium and at home in Ireland.

“The first thing I noticed when I got to the stadium was the Irish flags, not just buried in the crowd but right on the line. I had to thank all the fans for coming out.”

He added thanks to his coaches Hayley and Drew Harrison and said hello to all his supporters in UL, where he trains, and in Waterford.

“I’ve enjoyed every second of the lead-up into this; the year was stressful but it was brilliant. There’s nothing like an Olympics - this is the biggest sporting stage.”