Donegal Olympic walker Brendan Boyce achieves top 10 finish in gruelling Sapporo heat

Donegal Olympian Brendan Boyce put in an incredible performance to finish 10th in the 50 kilometre walk in gruelling conditions in Japan this morning.
By Kevin Mullan
Published 6th Aug 2021, 10:51 BST
Updated 6th Aug 2021, 10:54 BST
Brendan BoyceBrendan Boyce
Brendan Boyce

The Finn Valley Athletic Club athlete showed remarkable durability to finish just 3.53 minutes behind race winner Poland' s Dawid Tomala in brutal conditions.

The event was held several hundred kilometres north of Toyko in Sapporo but temperatures still soared above 30 degrees celsius in the early morning.

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The 34-year-old Letterkenny native was unperturbed and battled the heat to achieve one of the highest Irish track and field placings of these Olympic games.

"I was in the elite group until 35K but the way the race panned out meant I wasn't going to get a medal - still it was great to come away with a top 10.

"I made up two spots in the last two or three laps - I wasn't giving up hope - a few guys ahead of me were struggling as well and I managed to pip a Polish lad to get the top 10," he said.

Team Ireland tweeted: "10th for Brendan Boyce! What a brilliant performance in extreme conditions, another top-10 at a global championships for Brendan Boyce. Finishing time of 3:53:40, less than 3 minutes from the medals!"

Related topics:DonegalJapanPoland