Jeremiah Kiernan (31 May 1953 – 21 January 2021) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
long-distance runner
Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires endurance, stamina as well as mental strength.
Within e ...
.
Biography
Kiernan was born in
Listowel
Listowel ( ; , IPA: lʲɪsˠˈt̪ˠuəhəlʲ is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,820 according to the CSO Census 2016.
Desc ...
,
County Kerry
County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...
. He represented his native country at the
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...
in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, where he finished in ninth place in the
men's marathon.
[ His teammate, ]John Treacy
John Treacy (born 4 June 1957 in Villierstown, County Waterford) is an Irish Olympian and former athlete, now a sporting administrator.
Athletic career
Treacy attended St Anne's Post-Primary School in Cappoquin, County Waterford, Ireland, ...
, claimed silver in the same race.
Kiernan twice won the Dublin Marathon
The Dublin Marathon is an annual 26.2 mile (42.2 km) road marathon in Dublin, Ireland, held on the last Sunday in October. Prior to 2016, the race took place on the last Monday in October, which is a public holiday in Ireland. Held each yea ...
, in 1982 and 1992.
He also won the national cross country title in 1984. A former Irish record holder over 3000 metres, Kiernan was a sub-four-minute mile
A four-minute mile is the completion of a mile run (1609 m) in four minutes or less. It was first achieved in 1954 by Roger Bannister, at age 25, in 3:59.4. As of April 2021, the "four-minute barrier" has been broken by 1,663 athletes, and is n ...
runner being the seventh Irish runner to break that barrier in June of 1976.
Kiernan represented Ireland 17 times between 1975 and 1993, competing seven times in world cross-country championships, and won five Irish titles, from the 1,500m to the marathon, and also national inter-club and inter-county cross-country titles.
His running club in Dublin was Clonliffe Harriers
{{Use Irish English, date=February 2022
Clonliffe Harriers is a Dublin-based athletics club. They were founded in 1886, and are the oldest athletic club in Ireland. They have been based in Morton Stadium since the 1950s. The club has top-class int ...
. Kiernan coached many athletes including Ciara Mageean
Ciara Mageean ( ) (born 12 March 1992) is a middle-distance runner from Portaferry in Northern Ireland who specialises in the 1500 metres. She is a three-time European Athletics Championship medallist at the event, with bronze in 2016 and silve ...
and trained regularly in the UCD campus.
He was a regular part of RTÉ
(RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...
's athletics television coverage.
Achievements
*All results regarding marathon, unless stated otherwise
Personal life
Kiernan taught at St. Brigid's Boys School, Foxrock,
See also
* Ireland at the 1984 Summer Olympics
* 1984 in athletics (track and field)
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kiernan, Jerry
1953 births
2021 deaths
Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics
Irish male long-distance runners
Irish male marathon runners
Irish schoolteachers
Olympic athletes of Ireland
People from Listowel
Sportspeople from County Kerry