Olympian dies, 38, as tributes paid to star who trained with Mo Farah | Other | Sport

Irish runner Ciarán Ó Lionáird was found dead in Montreal, Canada, at the age of 38 on Tuesday morning. The middle-distance athlete trained alongside Mo Farah under coach Alberto Salazar ahead of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

Ó Lionáird competed for Ireland in London, placing 13th in his 1500 metres heat after struggling with an Achilles injury in the run-up. Twelve months prior, he made his major championship bow at the World Championships in Athletics in Daegu, South Korea, reaching the 1500m final before coming 10th.

Then, in 2013, he claimed his first bronze medal in the 3000m at the European Athletics Indoor Championships. Ó Lionáird believed that chasing gold cost him silver in Gothenburg, Sweden. He said: “If I ran for silver, I wouldn’t have been able to get to sleep. I ran for gold and probably lost a silver in doing that.”

Plantaris tendon surgery brought that season to a premature close for him. Nevertheless, the Cork native advanced to the final of the next year’s European Athletics Championships in Zurich. Ó Lionáird failed to complete the 1500m race, though, after being spiked by an opponent during the contest.

He subsequently retired in 2016, two years afterwards, having spent the preceding seasons battling injuries. A short-lived return to competition arrived months into the COVID-19 pandemic.

That sparked hopes of participation at the postponed 2020 Summer Olympics, which occurred in 2021. However, this time illness dashed any prospects of a comeback, with Ó Lionáird retiring once more within the year.

He returned to recreational running more recently, having come to terms with the manner in which his career drew to a close. Ó Lionáird said: “Take away the comeback, the Olympics, anything.I realise now the return to the activity of running, how much I needed it, and that I am a runner at my core. As much as I want to shed it, I think it’s OK to admit this is something that you’re built to do, something you need to do.”

Christian Minor, a former Florida State University runner, paid a heartfelt tribute to Ó Lionáird, saying: “He was one of my best friends, running partner, and my brother. We met in college and built absolutely ridiculous memories together. He fought hard, loved deeply, and genuinely made everyone around him better. Rest easy, Mad Len. Keep the trails in Heaven warm for us.”