Event: Judo
Who is she? A 23-year-old from Belfast, based in Edinburgh, Kearney is the first ever Irish woman to win gold at a World Cup event, in Samoa in 2010, and is already this country’s most decorated judoka.
Her appearance in London will be all the more remarkable, given the ligament tear that almost killed her Olympic dream. That was at the start of the year in Bulgaria but, thankfully, she was back on the mat within three months.
Road to London: Kearney made her return from injury to take part in the European Championships in Chelyabinsk, Russia.
Although she was beaten in her second round 48kg fight against the eventual winner Alina Dumitru of Romania, she remained inside the qualification places and will become the first woman to represent Ireland in Olympic judo.
Kearney’s coach, Ciaran Ward, competed twice for Ireland in the sport – in Barcelona in 1992, and again four years later in Atlanta.
What she says: “Ciaran has been there and done it, twice. He knows exactly what it’s like, what it takes to get there, what it’s like being there. To have a coach with that experience is absolutely phenomenal and I think it will definitely help me give the best performance I can and prepare in the best way I can.”
Medal chances: It will be tough for Kearney, as she only qualified in the -48kg category when her two closest rivals were also beaten in Russia, but after coming through such tough injury problems, anything is possible.
On the Twitter: Yep! She’s not prolific, but she can be found on @kearney_judo
If she was a YouTube video, she’d be… Promoting Electric Ireland
(Credit: Electric Ireland)
At his age Ken probably thought he might not make it through to the cruicible again ,let him enjoy it ,he’s well aware that he’s not going win it ,it’s about enjoyment for his at this stage .I don’t understand why your being critical of him only beating poomjaeng 10-5, a player who knocked out Stephen Maguire in the first round last year
200/1 on Ken to win…get in there ;)
530/1 on betfair. Get your value!!!
I think the David he is referring to is David Morris ,who didn’t even qualify and is ranked 89 in the world .So yeah he’s clearly nowhere near as good as him .
Yeah I guessed that Patrick.David Morris was a excellent amateur player but unfortunately like so many before him,he hasn’t made the transition to the pro game.Im not saying he won’t,hes still young and as I said,hes an excellent player.But to compare him to Ken is laughable.His best days may be nearly over but Im sure he’ll give whoever he plays a tough game.Best of luck Ken and the same to Fergal who plays today.
I bet hes praying for a lucky 1st round draw, otherwise its curtains for another year! Hes not anywhere even close to David, who can actually compete in the first couple of rounds once he doesn’t draw one of the top guys. Doherty still gave 5 frames away to a nobody in his previous match.
I’d love to see an Irish player do well again but Doherty’s days are long over!
Who’s David???
Such an Irish player doesn’t exist I’m afraid. You can’t go through twenty years of clubs closing all over the country and expect that the standard will remain the same.
Ireland’s next big star (as he has been for ten years) was beaten in the first qualifying round. Not Ken’s fault, and he deserves only huge credit for getting there.
A nicer drawer than he has received on his last few trips to The Crucible would be nice, granted!