BRENDAN BOYCE’S sixth-place finish in the men’s 50km race walk at the 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships is even more impressive when weighed up in the history of Irish athletics.
Boyce turned in the performance of his life on the Corniche waterfront in Doha to finish inside the top six in a time of 4:07:46.
The searing heat of over 30 degrees made for testing conditions, but the Finn Valley AC man – who is already looking forward to the 2020 Olympic Games – came through.
Boyce’s finish was only the 20th time that an Irish athlete has finished in the top eight of the World Athletics Championship and the 13th time for an Irish singlet to place in the top six.
His coach, Rob Heffernan, the 2013 50km walk world champion, features on the list four times, as does Sonia O’Sullivan, the 1995 5000m champion
Boyce is already thinking of the 2020 Olympic Games and at this point seems Ireland’s sole genuine hope of an athletics medal in Tokyo.
