Olympics day 12 as it happened: Rhasidat Adeleke through to 400m final

Jack Woolley beaten in taekwondo repechage as Sarah Lavin and Mark English qualify for Friday’s semi-finals

Ireland’s Rhasidat Adeleke. Photograph: Morgan Treacy/Inpho

08:00

Irish in action at the Olympics today:

  • 8am: Stephanie Meadow (Golf – women’s tournament first round). Shot round of 78, six over par.
  • 9.15am: Sarah Lavin (Athletics – women’s 100m hurdles heats). Second in heat four, qualified for Friday’s semi-final.
  • 10.10am: Brian Fay (Athletics – men’s 5,000m heats). 13th in heat two, failed to qualify for Saturday’s final.
  • 10.48am: Jack Woolley (Taekwondo – men’s -58kg qualifying). Lost to Gashim Magomedov, lost in repechage by Adrian Vicent Yunta.
  • 10.55am: Mark English (Athletics – men’s 800m heats). Second in heat two, qualified for Friday’s semi-final.
  • 11.17am: Leona Maguire (Golf – women’s individual first round). Shot round of 78, six over par.
  • 11.45am: Sophie O’Sullivan (Athletics – women’s 1,500m repechage). Fourth in heat one, failed to qualify for Thursday’s semi-finals.
  • 11.57am: Sarah Healy (Athletics – women’s 1,500m repechage). Fourth in heat one, failed to qualify for Thursday’s semi-finals.
  • 12.13pm: Finn Lynch (Sailing – rescheduled men’s dinghy medal race). Eighth in race, 10th overall
  • 7.45pm: Rhasidat Adeleke (Athletics – women’s 400m semi-finals). Second in semi-final and through to final after time of 49.95.

21:27

Here is Ian O’Riordan’s report from Paris of Adeleke’s semi-final:

“Coming into the homestretch, right where the stagger unwinds, Rhasidat Adekele still had an Olympic 400 metres final at her beckoning, but the warning signs were already there.

Salwa Eid Naser from Bahrain had got a clear run on her, and suddenly Adeleke was struggling, losing her form and it seemed hope too, before crossing the line in second place.

Her time of 49.95 seconds appeared laboured, and something clearly was off. No way should it have taken such a physical toll, left her almost out on her feet like this.

With that she became the first Irish woman to make an Olympic sprint final, but the 21-year-old from Dublin clearly knew herself at that point too that her race had not gone to plan. Without any hint of celebration, she made her way up the exit ramp, repeatedly stopping to sit down along the way.

Nothing more than exhaustion from her effort, still an obvious concern going into Friday’s final.”

Rhasidat Adeleke labours to 400m Olympics final after ‘messy’ semi-final where she did just enoughOpens in new window ]

That’s all from me for tonight, tune in tomorrow for more Olympics action on the Irish Times website.


20:45

Adeleke will be in lane 4 for the final. The final line-up on Friday will be as follows:

Lane 2: Sada Williams

Lane 3: Henriette Jaeger

Lane 4: Rhasidat Adeleke

Lane 5: Amber Anning

Lane 6: Marileidy Paulino

Lane 7: Natalia Kaczmarek

Lane 8: Salwa Eid Naser

Lane 9: Alexis Holmes

Final is 7pm on Friday. Appointment viewing.


20:36

Here is that interview with Adeleke:

Jamaican Roje Stona surprised to win the discus gold with a throw of 70 metres, an Olympic record.

Lithuanian Mykolas Alekna had previously broke the record with a throw of 69.97 metres and gets the silver.

In the women’s pole vault, Australia’s Nina Kennedy climbs 4.9 metres and beats Katie Moon.


20:22

In the men’s 400m final, Quincy Hall puts in an unbelievable last 50 metres to steal the gold from Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith. 43.40 a brilliant time beats Hudson-Smith who led for most of the way. Hudson-Smith’s British and European record not enough. Muzala Samukonga gets the bronze.


20:17

Rhasidat Adeleke calls it a “messy” race.

“I felt that I was thinking about it too much and I didn’t execute the first 100 as I should have. I panicked a little bit which made me break form really early. But I’m excited, I’ve made the final and now I can give it my best shot.

“We will go again. I’ve been in a place before where the semi-final didn’t go how I wanted to but the final went great so I’m not too worried about it.”

Ireland’s Rhasidat Adeleke on her way to finishing 2nd. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho

20:11

How they qualified for the 400m final:

1. Salwa Eid Naser 49.08

2. Mariledy Paulino 49.21

3. Natalia Kaczmarek 49.45

4. Amber Anning 49.47

5. Sada Williams 49.89

6. Rhasidat Adeleke 49.95

7. Alexis Holmes 50.00

8. Henriette Jaeger 50.17


20:08

Natalia Kaczmarek, who beat Adeleke in the European Championships makes a strong run, but Amber Anning goes with her and they both qualify. Kaczmarek 49.45, British runner Amber Anning 49.47. Barbados’s Sada Williams runs 49.89, faster than Adeleke, to finish third and will make the final as one of the fastest losers.


19:59

Another false start in the second semi-final, Paulino strides away by a big, big distance and then stops 20 metres from the line and still runs 49.21. Alexis Holmes finishes second in 50 seconds, the big news is Nickisha Pryce is out after only running 50.77.

Very impressive run by the world champion Marileidy Paulino from Dominica, who was the most impressive runner so far. Could have run mid-48 seconds there.


19:50

Adeleke did what she needed to do but Eid Naser was way ahead and set down a marker. 49.08 for Naser, 49.95 for Adeleke, ahead of Henriette Jaeger in third in 50.17. Top two qualify automatically. Klaver fourth is unlikely to qualify.

Adeleke will have to go faster than that in the final if she wants to medal.


19:48

It goes this time. Adeleke is ran down by Eid Naser in the first 100 metres but she bursts through. Naser is well ahead of Adeleke but she is comfortably in second. Adeleke makes it!

Adeleke finishes second and qualifies!


19:46

There’s a false start, Lieke Klaver sat in the blocks, unusual. She gets a yellow card, lucky to get away with that.


19:44

Adeleke called out to great applause on the track. All set to go.


19:37

Here is the line-up for Adeleke’s semi-final:

2. Gabby Scott (Puerto Rico)

3. Victoria Ohuruogu (Great Britain)

4. Henriette Jaeger (Norway)

5. Aaliyah Butler (USA)

6. Lieke Klaver (Netherlands)

7. Salwa Eid Naser (Bahrain)

8. Rhasidat Adeleke (Ireland)

9. Junelle Bromfield (Jamaica)


19:30

In the men’s 200m semi-finals, Bednarek wins the first semi-final in 20 seconds. The 100m champion is safely through in his favoured 200m event, but Letsile Tebogo wins the semi-final. Andre de Grasse is out. Knighton wins the final semi-final.


19:25

At 7.45pm is Ireland’s star of the track Rhasidat Adeleke in action. Can she make the Olympic final? She is expected to and with some of her main rivals in other semi-finals, she will hope to win it to get an ideal leg for the final and set up the best possible medal chance.


19:13

Round 2: Yunta gets in an early kick to the body and then a cagey round with Yunta defending. Two ganjoms given against Yunta and tie puts Woolley out.

Woolley 2 Yunta 2

Yunta wins!

Good performance by Woolley, so close, losing by one point over the two rounds. Fine margins.


19:07

Jack Woolley is out and ready to go against Yunta.

Round 1: Good kick by Woolley to the body gives him a two-point lead. Yunta gets in a punch to the body and then a kick to the head gives him the lead. Another kick to the body for Yunta before a great flurry of kicks by Woolley and he concedes a few more. Just loses the round unfortunately!

Woolley 9 Yunta 10


18:21

A report on the golf from myself:

Ireland’s Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow had nightmare starts to the Olympics golf tournament at Le Golf National to leave them well adrift of leader and home favourite Céline Boutier.

The duo shot six-over-par rounds of 78 to lie 13 shots behind Boutier and are tied 50th of 60 participants, with only four players in the field shooting a worse score on a frustrating day in Paris.

Maguire went out in 43 shots for her first nine holes, a double bogey on the first hole and a triple bogey on the ninth hole proving particularly costly on an error-strewn day. Birdies at the 12th, the 16th, where she holed a 28 foot putt for birdie, and the 18th, where she made the green in two on the par 5, were mixed in with bogeys on the 15th and 17th.

Meanwhile, Meadow’s only birdie of the day was on the 18th on a day without major disasters but seven bogeys left her with a mountain of work to do to get into medal contention.

“It’s just one of those courses where you’ve got to be in the short stuff,” Meadow said. “That hurt me today but I did some good things too, so hopefully I can take those positives and move it on to the next three days.”

Maguire and Meadow are at least only eight shots behind a bronze medal on a difficult day where only 12 players were under par. That made French Major winner Boutier’s round extra special in front of a buoyant home crowd, the 30-year-old’s seven-under-par 65 including eight birdies and a single drop shot. She is three shots clear of South Africa’s Ashleigh Buhai on four under, while Mexico’s Gaby Lopez, Switzerland’s Morgane Metraux, Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe and United States’s Lilia Vu are on two under. World number one Nelly Korda is on level par.


17:20

David Gorman here, logging on for updates on the Olympics for the evening. It will be quiet for a few hours before the two main Irish interests, Woolley will fight Spanish fighter Adrian Vicent Yunta at 7.06pm in the taekwondo, before Adeleke races in the 400 metres semi-final at 7.45pm.


16:55

That’s all from me for today. David Gorman will be taking you through this evening’s events, including Jack Woolley in the men’s taekwondo -58kg repechage and Rhasidat Adeleke in the women’s 400m semi-finals.

Bonsoir!


16:51

Golf: It was a tough day in the golf for Team Ireland with both Stephanie Meadow and Leona Maguire getting off to a slow start at Le Golf National.

First to tee off this morning, Meadow shot a round of 78 to leave her on six over, as did Maguire after she set off just over two hours later.

The pair are now joint 50th with three round to go over the coming three days.

The leader is France’s Céline Boutier on seven under.


16:34

Malachy Clerkin’s back to explain how Woolley could yet find himself in the mix for a bronze medal:

Lo and behold, Jack Woolley gets his reprieve in the taekwondo competition.

Thanks to the sterling work of Gashim Magomedov, the Azerbaijani fighter who beat Woolley this morning, Tallaght’s finest gets to go in the repechage and can set his sights on a bronze medal.

He will need to win two fights in Le Grand Palais to get there. The first will be at around 7pm Irish time and will be against Spain’s Adrian Vincente Yunda. If he wins that, Woolley will face off against Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi just after 8pm.

It’s by no means a straightforward task – Yunta and Jendoubi were the top two seeds coming into the competition. But Woolley more or less presumed he was done when we talked to him earlier so it’s not nothing.


16:18

And we’ve good news from the men’s -58kg taekwondo.

Azerbaijan’s Gashim Magomedov has made the final, meaning Ireland’s Jack Woolley will compete in the repechage this evening.

The Dubliner will take on Spaniard Adrian Vicente Yunta just after 7pm Irish time.


16:13

I’m sure we’ve all heard about Kellie Harrington’s rendition of Grace at Roland-Garros after she won gold last night, but for those who haven’t got a chance to see it yet, here you go...


16:02

After a busy start to the day for Team Ireland, let’s do a quick recap.

Sarah Lavin earned a spot in Friday’s semi-finals in the women’s 100m hurdles before Mark English qualified for Friday’s men’s 800m semi-finals.

There was no such joy for Sophie O’Sullivan and Sarah Healy, who each took fourth in their respective women’s 1,500m repechage heats, outside the qualification. And in the men’s 5,000m, Brian Fay was 13th in the second of the heats which wasn’t enough to see him through to Saturday’s final.

At Le Golf National, Stephanie Meadow finished her opening round in the women’s individual stroke play on six over par. Still on the greens, Leona Maguire is thru 16, currently six over.

Later, Rhasidat Adeleke runs in the first of three semi-finals in the women’s 400m, and we’re still waiting to learn whether Jack Woolley will be in the repechage of the men’s -58kg taekwondo event. He needs Azerbaijan’s Gashim Magomedov, who beat him in their round of 16 bout this morning, to make the final to give him a chance in the repechage.


15:35

Sailing: In Marseille, Ireland’s Finn Lynch has finished the men’s dinghy medal race in eighth, taking 10th overall.

Australia’s Matt Wearn finished today’s race first and wins the gold medal, while Cypriot Pavlos Kontides was second, taking silver.

Although Hungary’s Jonatan Vadnai finished the medal race in third, his overall points tally puts him behind Peru’s Stefano Peschiera, who takes bronze.

Can’t say I’m sorry to see the back of that event. I don’t think I could have managed another delay.


15:28

Malachy Clerkin has an update for us from the Grand Palais in Paris where Jack Woolley is still waiting to see if he’ll make it into this evening’s repechage:

Jack Woolley’s Olympic challenge still has a pulse in it. An admittedly faint pulse but a pulse all the same.

Gashim Magomedov, the Azerbaijani who beat Woolley in his first round match, has won his quarter-final. The wildly convoluted nature of the taekwondo competition means that if Magomedov wins his semi-final (set for around 4pm Irish time), Woolley gets back in to contest the repechage phase.

If that happens – and in fairness to Magomedov, he was very impressive in his quarter-final match – Woolley would return to Le Grand Palais tonight around 7pm Irish time and be just two fights away from bronze. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.


15:18

Sailing: The men’s dinghy medal race is thankfully back underway and Hungary’s Jonatan Vadnai has found himself out in front again.

As things stand, Australian Matt Wearn is on track to win gold with Pavlos Kontides in the silver-medal spot.

Ireland’s Finn Lynch is currently 7th. They’ve just rounded mark two.


14:48

Anyone for a lift to Skibbereen?

After touching down at Dublin Airport on Tuesday, gold medallists Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy found a typically Irish way back to Cork – they took a lift from someone they just met on the plane.

Prior to the offer, the pair had planned to get the bus back to Cork. Olympic champions, but no notions here.


14:24

We’ll have to wait and see what’s decided regarding the men’s dinghy medal race, so let’s get an update on the golf.

Stephanie Meadow improved to finish her first round in the women’s individual stroke play on six over par.

Leona Maguire’s round is still ongoing, currently thru 10 holes and she’s on seven over.

France’s Céline Boutier leads on five under, with India’s Diksha Dagar and USA’s Lilia Vu in joint second on three under.


14:16

Sailing: RACE ABANDONED.

Light winds so officials are saying its making for unfair racing conditions.

Ireland's Finn Lynch on the water in Marseille in the men's dinghy ILCA medal race. Photograph: Clive Mason/Getty

14:10

Sailing: The leader, Hungarian Jonatan Vadnai has capsized, putting Finn Lynch up into first in the men’s dinghy medal race.

Remember, Lynch can’t claim a medal because of his points tally to this point, but he can improve his overall finishing position with a good result today.


14:05

Sailing: They’ve reached the first mark and Ireland’s Finn Lynch is around in third.

Hungarian Jonatan Vadnai was first to round the marker, followed by Italian Lorenzo Brando Chiavarini.


14:01

Sailing: Finn Lynch is currently leading. The boats are quite spread out as they make their way towards the first mark.


13:57

Sailing: And we’re off! Let’s hope we can see this out without any more stoppages. Good start from Finn Lynch.


13:56

Sailing: One minute to the start now after another brief delay.

Biggest takeaway from all this is that Marseille probably wasn’t the wisest choice to host the sailing events.


13:49

Sailing: The men’s dinghy medal race has started in Marseille.

Well actually they’ve just been called back for a restart. The patience of these sailors is unmatched.


13:43

News on Finn Lynch’s medal race in the men’s dinghy event – they’re FINALLY ready to get started.

The women’s medal race wrapped up a short time ago, with the Netherlands’ Marit Bouwmeester taking gold ahead of Anne-Marie Rindom (Denmark) who got silver and Line Flem (Norway) who secured bronze.

In the men’s event, Lynch unfortunately can’t medal due to the points he’s already accrued from the earlier racing.

Australian Matt Wearn is the leader with 38 points ahead of the final race, 14 ahead of second-placed Pavlos Kontides of Cyprus.


13:30

For any venue connoisseur’s out there, here’s a look at the Grand Palais in Paris which is hosting the day’s taekwondo events.

Sitting just around the corner from the Arc de Triomphe on the northern bank of the Seine, the venue is quite the stunner.


13:02

Giz a look at that – two-time Olympic gold medallist Kellie Harrington paid a visit to a care home near the Olympic Village in Paris this morning to show off her latest addition.

Harrington last night said the victory will take a while to sink in, adding that she’ll have to take some time to herself when she gets back to Ireland to wrap her head around the achievement.

But before she gets that well-deserved respite, her community in Dublin 1 will undoubtedly be out in force to welcome her home.

“In Diamond Park, all they wanted was gold. And Kellie Harrington delivered, because she’s an absolute gem,” Miriam Lord writes of the crowd that gathered on Tuesday night to watch their girl go for Olympic glory.

“From this little green oasis off Seán McDermott Street, the inner-city crowd roared on their local hero with a passion to match Irish intensity in the soaring stands of Roland Garros in Paris.”

Kellie Harrington the gem of Diamond Park as crowd roars on their double Olympic championOpens in new window ]


12:54

Earlier, Mark English qualified for the men’s 800m semi-finals, very nearly taking the heat two win from Gabriel Tual.

Here’s the closing stages if you didn’t catch it live...


12:39

Golf: At Le Golf National, Céline Boutier leads the opening round of the women’s individual stroke play for the host nation.

The French woman is on three under par after six holes, but has just been joined in the top-spot by Team USA’s Lilia Vu.

France's Celine Boutier tees off in the women's individual stroke play event at Le Golf National. Photograph: Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP via Getty

Leona Maguire is sharing 35th position on two over, while Stephanie Meadow is back the field on seven over as she takes on 18th.

The event follows the same format as the men’s, with 60 golfers taking part in all four rounds, no half-way cut.


12:23

The women’s 1,500m repechage forced us away from the taekwondo very quickly, so let’s take another look at how that panned out for Jack Woolley.

Malachy Clerkin has this from from Grand Palais in Paris:

Jack Woolley isn’t gone, exactly. But there wasn’t much to cheer in the Grand Palais this morning as he lost to his Azerbaijan opponent Gashim Magomedov in the first round of the taekwondo competition.

Woolley lost 7-4 in the first round and 12-6 in the second and now has to wait for the convoluted vagaries of the taekwondo competition to play out. If Magomedov makes it through to the final, Woolley will enter the bronze medal repechage. But he won’t know his fate on that score until mid-afternoon at the earliest and possibly until later this evening.

“I don’t think anybody comes to the Olympics to not get a medal. I’ve obviously very devastated but if you’d told me six months ago that I’d be here in the first place, I would have laughed at you,” Woolley said after the result.

“That’s the third time we’ve fought each other and the score was 1-1 coming in here. Unfortunately today didn’t go to plan. The fact that he is a good opponent is good for me because if he gets to the final, I can get back in and go for a bronze medal. But that’s out of my hands now. I don’t want to dwell on it too much – I’ll be ready to go back into the ring if I have to.”


12:17

Sailing: Finn Lynch is in the men’s dingy medal race today. The race, which was due to start at 12.13pm, has been – all together now – delayed.

We’ll keep you posted on that front.


12:13

While we’re on athletics, the drama in the first heat of the men’s 5,000m earlier has resulted in four athletes being reinstated for Saturday’s final.

A fall in the pack brought down a number of runners, and four of those affected have been advanced by the referee.

The four added to the final line-up, which will now see 20 athletes take their marks, are George Mills (GB), Mike Foppen (Netherlands), Thierry Ndikumwenayo (Spain) and Dominic Lokinyomo Lobalu (Olympic refugee team).


12:02

Athletics: Sarah Healy pushed hard from the final bend but it’s another cruel fourth-place finish for Ireland.

She crossed the line in 4:07.60, behind Sintayehu Vissa of Italy in first, GB’s Revee Walcott-Nolan in second, and Agueda Marques of Spain in third.


12:01

Athletics: The pack is starting to straighten out. Australia’s Linden Hall leads as they take the bell.

Healy’s in fifth, needs third or better to qualify for the semi-finals.


11:58

Athletics: Heat two is off. Healy positioning herself at the front of the pack.


11:51

Athletics: Heartbreak for Sophie O’Sullivan. She misses out on qualification by just one spot.

The 22-year-old takes fourth. Her last push to the line couldn’t see her past Esther Guerrero.

Birke Haylom was home in first, followed by Italy’s Ludovica Cavalli in second.

Next up is Sarah Healy in the event’s second heat.

Ireland’s Sophie O’Sullivan during the women's 1,500m repechage. Photograph: Morgan Treacy/Inpho

11:47

Athletics: O’Sullivan sticking to middle of the chasing pack. Ethiopia’s Birke Haylom is far out in front, she’s about 50m clear of Spain’s Esther Guerrero in second.


11:46

Athletics: Heat one of the women’s 1,500m repechage is off.

Sophie O’Sullivan running for Ireland. Needs a top-three finish to qualify for the semi-finals.


11:38

We’ll be heading back to Stade de France now shortly as Sophie O’Sullivan and Sarah Healy are in the women’s 1,500m repechage looking to qualify for tomorrow’s semi-finals.

O’Sullivan is up first in heat one at about 11.45am, followed by Healy in heat two.

Meanwhile in the women’s individual stroke play, Stephanie Meadow is now seven over thru 14, while Leona Maguire is two over after the first hole.


11:25

The round ends in 12-7 favour of Azerbaijan’s Gashim Magomedov, so he progresses to the quarter-finals.

If Magomedov gets to the final later, Woolley can get another chance in the repechage.


11:24

Taekwondo: Two seconds left on the clock in the second round, there’s a review to check a penalty. It’s 6-12 against Woolley.


11:22

Taekwondo: Woolley lands a head shot to take four points, but picks up a penalty for a punch.

Another penalty levels it to 4-4, but Magomedov’s gone ahead with a shot to Woolley’s trunk.


11:19

Taekwondo: First round goes to Magomedov, 7-4.


11:18

Taekwondo: Gashim Magomedov’s team have challenged a head shot which has been awarded after review.


11:13

Taekwondo: They’re under way at the Grand Palais. Woolley’s in blue.


11:09

We’ll take a break from the athletics now for a short while to focus on taekwondo.

Jack Woolley will become a two-time Olympian shortly when he takes to the mat in the men’s -58kg round of 16 against Azerbaijan’s Gashim Magomedov.

If you’ve forgotten the rules since Woolley’s last outing in Tokyo, Team Ireland have this explainer...


11:07

Athletics: In the men’s 800m, Mark English has qualified for Friday’s semi-finals.

He finished second in heat two, his time of 1:45.15 just .02 behind Gabriel Tual of France.

Ireland's Mark English crosses the line alongside France's Gabriel Tual in the men's 800m round one at Stade de France in Paris. Photograph: Hannah Peters/Getty

10:50

Athletics: All over in heat two of the men’s 5,000m, and its disappointment for Ireland’s Brian Fay who misses out on qualification for Saturday’s final.

Fay was home in 13th in 13:55.35, leaving him outside the top-eight finish needed to progress.


10:45

Athletics: Ah look at that, quelle surprise as the French say, Ingebrigtsen is up to first. One lap left.


10:43

Athletics: They’ve upped the pace and Brian Fay has slipped back the pack to fourth last.

Ingebrigtsen has started his pursuit of the leaders.


10:38

Athletics: Fay sticking to the middle of the pack.

Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen is up to his old tricks once again, sitting at the very back of the pack hardly breaking a sweat. Expect a late push from him.


10:32

Athletics: Drama at the finish of heat one in the men’s 5,000m. A fall in the pack on the final stretch brought down a handful of runners. Appeals likely to follow.

Heat two is just after getting under way, with Brian Fay in action.


10:19

Golf: While we’re waiting for the first heat of the men’s 5,000m to finish, the poor dears have to do 12.5 laps and their current pace can best be described as leisurely (all relative I hasten to add), let’s look at how things are going at Le Golf National.

Stephanie Meadow teed off at 9am alongside France’s Perrine Delacour and Belgium’s Manon de Roey. She’s currently on four over par, thru eight holes.

Leona Maguire will tee off at 11.17am.

Team Ireland's Stephanie Meadow tees off on the first hole during round one of the women's individual stroke play at the Olympic Games in Paris. Photograph: Andrew Redington/Getty

10:12

Athletics: Next up on the track is Brian Fay, who is running in heat two of the men’s 5,000m which will set off shortly. The first heat has just got under way.

First eight finishers in each heat qualify for Saturday’s final.


10:07

“To have that one under the belt is great,” Sarah Lavin told David Gillick after qualifying for the semi-finals of the women’s 100m hurdles.

“I 100 per cent think that’s the scariest round, and the next one is the most difficult because so many girls are capable of making that top eight. You need to be clean and also just go for it, I think that’s hopefully the brave will be rewarded.

“It’s a pretty scary thing to do in a heat when all that’s up for offer is a Q (qualification) and yet you know that if you get the Q you get the day off tomorrow. So it was funny kind of bartering with myself, ‘come on Sarah, you can do this’, but I do need to be a lot more aggressive, keep myself a lot tighter over the hurdles.”

Of course, the downside of being on this morning’s schedule was a strict bedtime last night. Asked if she held out to watch Harrington’s fight, Lavin said: “I couldn’t, thank God I didn’t because I would have been bawling!

“Over breakfast this morning I watched her (Harrington) singing Grace and thank God I went to bed because it would have been all hours. But what a special person, and yeah, there’s an incredible atmosphere in the team.”


09:54

Athletics: Ireland is off to a good start at Stade de France as Sarah Lavin placed second in heat four to qualify for Friday’s semi-finals.

The Treaty woman put in a blistering 12.73 run, jumping cleanly to best all but Jamaica’s Danielle Williams, who crossed the line in 12.59.

Lavin goes into the semi-final as the 12th fastest qualifier. The event’s Olympic record-holder Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico qualified fastest with a 12.49.


09:35

Good morning everyone. Did we all dream of gold medals last night?

Day 12 in Paris is another busy one for Team Ireland, with action in golf, athletics, sailing and taekwondo.

But first, in case you missed last night’s glory for Kellie Harrington, Malachy Clerkin has you covered.

“She did it. In what was her last ever international fight, Kellie Harrington came to the gilded courts of Roland-Garros and kept stockpiling firsts,” he writes, having been among those who saw the Dubliner make history in Paris to become back-to-back Olympic champion.

“She was smooth and clinical, like she has been all through the boxing competition here. And it brought her to a place no Irish boxer has ever been.”

Kellie Harrington makes history as she wins a second Olympic gold medal in ParisOpens in new window ]

Looking ahead, Sarah Lavin gets her Games under way, taking part in the heats of the women’s 100m hurdles, as does Jack Woolley, competing in the men’s -58kg taekwondo event.

Although mathematically out of the medals by his own calculations, Finn Lynch is also in the postponed medal race in the men’s dinghy race, and Stephanie Meadow and Leona Maguire are at Le Golf National for the opening round of the women’s individual stroke play.

Sarah Healy and Sophie O’Sullivan are in the women’s 1,500m repechage round, while Brian Fay is in the heats of the men’s 5,000m and Mark English competes in the men’s 800m heats.

Last up for Team Ireland will be Rhasidat Adeleke, taking to the starting blocks in the women’s 400m semi-final at around 7.45pm.