Ciarán Ó Lionáird has died.
Ciarán Ó Lionáird has died. Illustration image. Ismo Pekkarinen / AOP
Irish runner Ciarán Ó Lionáird has died at the age of 38.
The Irish Times – magazine, Ó Lionáird died suddenly in Montreal.
Ó Lionáird was one of the most successful Irish middle distance runners of the early 2010s. The biggest competition achievement of his career was the 3,000-meter EC bronze on indoor tracks in 2013 in Gothenburg.
He already made his breakthrough in 2011 when he ran 1,500 meters with a time of 3:34.46. The result is still the sixth fastest ever by an Irish runner on that distance. In the same year, he also advanced to the 1,500m final at the World Championships in Daegu, South Korea.
Ó Lionáird also represented Ireland at the 2012 Olympics in London.
Athletics Ireland released a statement on Wednesday about the death.
– Cork native Ciarán was one of Ireland’s best middle-distance runners of his generation, reaching the 1,500m final at the 2011 World Athletics Championships, in the bulletin let’s tell.
– We offer our deepest condolences to Ciarán’s family, friends, former teammates, coaches and everyone who knew him.
Ó Lionáird ended his career in 2016. The cause of death has not been made public.