Cian McPhillips put in a superb performance in the world 800m final on Saturday, coming up just short in his pursuit of an unlikely medal.
Ranked 55th in the world coming into the championships in Tokyo, McPhillips stormed to first in his semi-final on Thursday. His Irish national record in that semi-final of 1:43.18 led to real hope he could claim a medal in the final, against a stacked field.
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In the end, McPhillips would absolutely smash his own national record in the final, with a storming final 200m seeing him home in 1:42.15. Guttingly, it was only enough for fourth place.
The only three athletes ahead of McPhillips in the world final were the three medallists from last summer’s Olympic Games in Paris, summing up the monumental scale of his achievement.
After the race, McPhillips admitted he was disappointed in the moment, but that time would allow him to appreciate what he had achieved in Tokyo.
The Longford man left everything on the track in a stellar showing in the final, but RTÉ’s David Gillick pointed out post-race that he may have been hard done by after an unusual decision by the event organisers.
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David Gillick points out strange decision that cost Cian McPhillips
Cian McPhillips’ semi-final time of 1:43.18 was the fastest time of any qualifier for Saturday’s 800m final at the World Athletics Championships. Only Mohamend Attaoui of Spain matched his time.
However, McPhillips was allocated the inside lane for the final, commonly known to be the toughest lane in shorter distance events. Though 800m runners bunch together after the first turn, it gave the Irishman a tighter turn than his competitors at the outset of the race.
The lanes for finals at major athletics events are generally drawn based on qualifying times, but they were ultimately decided based on world rankings. McPhillips was comfortably the lowest-ranked of the eight runners in the final, leading to him being placed on the inside.
It was a decision David Gillick pointed out on RTÉ post-race as unusual, questioning whether it had impacted McPhillips’ ability to challenge early in the race.
Gillick revealed that McPhillips himself was frustrated with having been placed in the inside lane even after setting the fastest qualifying time.
“To do what he did through the rounds is incredible,” Gillick said.
Even there in the final…it’s not a disappointing run by any means, to come fourth and do it the way he did it.
He was coming home like a train. If he had a little bit more, maybe he could have gotten on the podium.
After the interview there, he was saying he was a little bit annoyed with the lane draw. He would have liked a better lane, he won his semi-final. But, apparently, they went by world rankings.
All these things he’s probably going to stew on tonight.
But, overall, this is a massive breakthrough. The way this sport operates, that puts him into a much better calibre of races going forward. I think we’re only seeing the beginning of Cian McPhillips.
McPhillips certainly came to the fore at the end of both his semi-final and final, but he has been left frustrated by a strange call that was completely out of his hands.
However, few will view Saturday’s run as anything but a monumental statement from the Irish youngster.
There is no doubt that there are big things ahead for Cian McPhillips, who has marked himself out as a talent to watch in the years to come.
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