It seems the race is run for Ciarán Ó Lionáird (28), one of the most promising Irish athletes of recent times. He grew up on a dairy farm near Macroom, Co Cork, and left these shores at 18 to take up a scholarship in America. He reached a World Championships final in 2011 and claimed a bronze medal at the 2013 European indoors. Unfortunately those highs were blips on what has been an injury-blighted career and after multiple surgeries on a troublesome Achilles, Ó Lionáird has admitted his Olympic dream is over.

His immediate future sees him working with Nike in the US but hopefully we haven’t seen the last of the Bullet with the Mullet.