Greatness with a gentlemanly grace, Ronnie Delany left a legacy that will live forever
THE NEXT GENERATION: In 2018, Ronnie Delany was guest of honour at his alma mater, CUS Sports Day at College Park, Trinity College. Teachers and children also joined to celebrate the 62nd anniversary of when Ronnie Delany became the first Irish man to break 4 minutes for the mile in Compton, USA, running 3:59.0 on June 1st, 1956, the same year he won gold over 1500m at the Olympic Games in Melbourne. Pic: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile
On the track, few athletes could run with the alarming speed of Ronnie Delany, while away from it, few carried themselves with such gentlemanly grace. As such, the legacy of the 1956 Olympic 1500m champion, who has died at the age of 91, is one that will live forever.
Delany will be remembered as one of the greatest Irish sportspeople of all time – and he remains the last Irish athlete to have won Olympic gold on the track, taking 1500m glory in Melbourne at the age of just 21.
A graduate of Villanova University in Pennsylvania, Delany also won four individual NCAA outdoor titles and in 1958 he won bronze over 1500m at the European Championships in Stockholm. In 1961, he won gold over 800m at the World University Games in Sofia.
Born in Arklow, Co Wicklow, Delany moved to Dublin at the age of five, growing up in Sandymount, and when he later went on to become one of the world’s best middle-distance runners, both counties were keen to claim him as their own.
“I can claim dual citizenship,” he said in 2016. “I had a dilemma back in the 50s. Dublin decided to make me the Dublin Man of the Year, while Wicklow decided to make me Wicklow Man of the Year. It required a solemn decision, so I decided I’d take both!”
At the age of 19, Delany left Ireland to attend Villanova University, where under the guidance of coach Jumbo Elliotl he developed into one of world’s best middle distance runners.
“I never felt a sense of loneliness,” he said of his time in the US. “My life was extraordinarily full. I took the academic side seriously and the running seriously, and I also had to work.”
At a time when he was one of the world’s best athletes – but also an amateur who was unable to take any earnings from the sport – Delany worked a number of different jobs to get by during his college years.
His profile exploded in 1956, when Delany unleashed a devastating kick to circle the field on the final lap and take glory in the Olympic 1500m final, the Irishman dropping to his knees in prayer, a celebration that’s immortalised in Irish Olympic history.
“I often wonder why other, equally talented runners haven’t won the Olympics, Irish among them, and I think there’s a degree of destiny,” he said. “I was 21 years of age, I’d hardly run any miles until the year before. It must have been my destiny to be Olympic champion.”
Following that win, Delany didn’t get to return to Ireland along with the rest of the Irish team but had to return to Villanova for his end-of-term exams. It was weeks later before he made it back home, landing at Shannon Airport and being brought to Dublin by motorcade to be received by the Lord Mayor. Only then did he realise the effect his achievement had on the psyche of the Irish people.
“It was celebration after celebration,” he said. “We Irish are great for celebrating; give us an excuse and we’ll do it.”
Ronnie Delany turns 90 today.
— Cathal Dennehy (@Cathal_Dennehy) March 6, 2025
A good time to look back at the last lap of the 1500m final in 1956 - from 11th at the bell to 1st at the finish.
From the official Olympic film of the Melbourne Games: pic.twitter.com/XOAbkeAJlr
Delany lowered the world indoor mile record three times in 1958-59 and he was prolific on the US indoor circuit, winning the Wanamaker Mile four times from 1956-59.
He retired from athletics at a youthful 26 and later built a successful career in property. But through each of the seven decades that followed his victory in Melbourne, Delany was continually brought back to that day.
“When you have the honour and distinction, when your fate says you’ll be an Olympic gold medallist, there’s never a day you’re not reminded of it,” he said in 2016. “I still get correspondence from all over the world, requests for autographs. The impact on your life is ongoing.
“You don’t look at yourself in the mirror every day and say it to yourself, but you have a deeper sense of being part of history of the Olympic Games, part of the inspiring inspiration of the Olympic Games.”
Despite all he accomplished in sport, Delany said it didn’t compare to the sense of contentment he gleaned from his family life.
“That’s way above the Olympics, the happiness I’ve enjoyed,” he said. “The gift of my children, the gift of my grandchildren.” The ripple effects of his sporting achievements continued deep into his latter years. In 2021, a statue of Delany was unveiled in Arklow and he attended the ceremony along with his wife Joan, his children and 14 of his grandchildren.
He remained active into his 80s, exercising several times a week by swimming or playing tennis, while he would later stay fit by using a stationary bike at home.
“God has gifted me, along with the talent of being a great athlete, with very good health, which I appreciate,” he said.
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