2013 was a great year for athletics in Cork, with Louise Shanahan winning the 800m in the European youth olympics, Orla Barry setting a work record in the discus at the IPC Athletics World Championships, Ciaran O’Lionard’s Bronze medal at the European Indoor Championships and Lizzie Lee & Claire McCarthy’s sub 2:40:00 marathons.  However when it came to selecting Cork City Sports Athlete of the year there was one performance which outshone all other sporting moments; Robert Heffernan’s Gold medal at the World Athletics Championships in Moscow.

It gave the Cork City Sports Committee great pleasure to present Robert Heffernan with the Athletics Person of the year award for the second year in succession, in a ceremony at the River Lee Hotel Monday 10th February.

Heffernan became Ireland’s first male world champion in 30 years with gold in the 50 kilometres race walk in Moscow.  The Togher athlete, who finished an agonising fourth at London 2012, strode away from Russian home favourite Mikhail Ryzhov in the closing kilometres to win in a world-leading three hours 37 minutes 56 seconds.

Heffernan follows in the footsteps of Eamonn Coghlan, who won the 5,000m in Helsinki in 1983.

At the River Lee Hotel, Tony O’Connell Chairman presenting the Cork City Sports Athletics Person of the Year Award 2013 to World Champion Robert Heffernan, also in picture L to R., Ellen Coughlan, Cork 96FM C103, Frank Walley, President CCS, Ruairi O’Connor, General Manager, The River lee Hotel, Deputy Lord Mayor Cllr Lorraine Kingston, Kieran Mc Geary CEO, Cork 96FM C103, Terry O’Rourke, Secretary CCS, Ray Lougheed, Brand Manager, Evening Echo, Ken Perrott, MC, and Clodagh Heywood, Cork 96FM C103.