Irish athlete Kerry O'Flaherty Ian MacNicol / INPHO
Ian MacNicol / INPHO / INPHO
Event: 3000m steeplechase.
Who is she? An Irish runner competing in the 3000m steeplechase, O’Flaherty has represented Northern Ireland in the 2014 Commonwealth Games and Ireland in the 2015 World Championships.
Where’s she from? A native of the town of Newtownards in Co. Down in Northern Ireland.
Olympic CV: This will be the 35 year-old’s first appearance at the Olympic Games.
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Road To Rio: O’Flaherty booked her place in July 2015 in Letterkenny with a time of 9.42.61 inside the time required (9.45.00) to qualify for next summer’s Olympics in Rio.
When does she start? On Saturday 13 August at the Olympic Stadium.
Where can I follow her? Check her out on Twitter – @runkerryrun.
What she says: “I took five years off serious running when I was in uni so I don’t feel like my running age is 35. I still feel like I’m in my twenties and my running age isn’t even 30 yet.
“I look at Joe Pavey winning at the Commonwealth Games two years ago when she was 40 – that’s an inspiration. A lot of female athletes don’t hit their peak until their mid or late thirties.” (RTÉ.ie, July 2016)
Medal chances? Didn’t manage to get out of the heats in Beijing at the World Championships in 2015 but did make the final at the European Championships last month in Amsterdam. A final appearance will be a key aim here.
And here’s something you probably didn’t know… She spends most of her time on the road with her coach and two dogs, Lola and Ella. They travel to events and training camps around Europe in a left-hand drive car after their previous one broke down in France and they were forced to buy a second-hand motor.
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Meet Ireland's Olympic team: Kerry O'Flaherty
Event: 3000m steeplechase.
Who is she? An Irish runner competing in the 3000m steeplechase, O’Flaherty has represented Northern Ireland in the 2014 Commonwealth Games and Ireland in the 2015 World Championships.
Where’s she from? A native of the town of Newtownards in Co. Down in Northern Ireland.
Olympic CV: This will be the 35 year-old’s first appearance at the Olympic Games.
Road To Rio: O’Flaherty booked her place in July 2015 in Letterkenny with a time of 9.42.61 inside the time required (9.45.00) to qualify for next summer’s Olympics in Rio.
When does she start? On Saturday 13 August at the Olympic Stadium.
Where can I follow her? Check her out on Twitter – @runkerryrun.
What she says: “I took five years off serious running when I was in uni so I don’t feel like my running age is 35. I still feel like I’m in my twenties and my running age isn’t even 30 yet.
“I look at Joe Pavey winning at the Commonwealth Games two years ago when she was 40 – that’s an inspiration. A lot of female athletes don’t hit their peak until their mid or late thirties.” (RTÉ.ie, July 2016)
Medal chances? Didn’t manage to get out of the heats in Beijing at the World Championships in 2015 but did make the final at the European Championships last month in Amsterdam. A final appearance will be a key aim here.
And here’s something you probably didn’t know… She spends most of her time on the road with her coach and two dogs, Lola and Ella. They travel to events and training camps around Europe in a left-hand drive car after their previous one broke down in France and they were forced to buy a second-hand motor.
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kerry o'flaherty Olympic Games Rio 2016 Rio Olympics The Jerries