Irish Athletic Performances at the Olympic Games...

 Just prior to the 2012 Olympics in London, the IAAF released a statistics booklet about track and field performances at the various games since it started. One of the lists that they had included were top 8 finishes and I have shown the updated version above.

As you can see, Ireland has only won six medals since it has competed independently of Britain at the Olympics. Only 13 Irish athletes have ever finished in the top 8 of any event which just goes to show how impressive Rob Heffernan's fourth place finish in the 50km walk was. In the 20k walk, he was just seven seconds away from finishing 8th.

Top 8 finishes by Irish Track and Field Athletes since 1924
1928 –   Pat O’Callaghan   Hammer    1st
1932 –   Pat O’Callaghan   Hammer   1st
1932 –   Bob Tisdall     400m Hurdles   1st
1932 –   Eamon Fitzgerald    Triple Jump    4th
1932 –   Bob Tisdall      Decathlon 
1956 –   Ronnie Delany    1500m    1st
1960 –   John Lawlor     Hammer    4th
1976 –   Eamonn Coghlan    1500m    4th
1980 –   Eamonn Coghlan    5000m    4th
1980 –   John Treacy     5000m    7th
1984 –   John Treacy     Marathon    2nd
1984 –   Caroline O’Shea    800m     8th
1988 –   Marcus O’Sullivan    1500m    8th
1992 –   Sonia O’Sullivan    3000m    4th
1992 –   Jimmy McDonald    20km Walk    6th
2000 –   Sonia O’Sullivan    5000m    2nd
2000 –   Sonia O’Sullivan    10000m   6th
2008 –   Rob Heffernan    20km Walk    8th
2008 –   Olive Loughnane    20km Walk   7th
2012 -    Rob Heffernan      50km Walk    4th

Irish Gold Medalists.....Bob Tisdall (400m hurdles 1932) and 

Pat O'Callaghan (Hammer 1928 & 1932)