Sonia O'Sullivan Olympics Atlanta

[hoyadestroya85]

Let's Go Nova!

[coiscarraig1234]

Legend

[kcloona]

Yes she did make us proud ! <3 Always loved watching Sonia as a little girl with my parents all staring at the tv, she was great the only reason i watched the Olympics

[Nautilus1972]

She did a Declan Moffat !

[EazyJ08]

COBH 4 LIFE

[kezanator100]

chase the sun by planet funk what a tune.Song of the darts

[cailinaschilldara]

Chase The Sun by Planet Funk. We're proud of ya Sonia.

[dpetyo]

whats the name of the first song?

[yowwow]

How lazy is she?

[OrthodoxSteel]

Derval O Rourke....I just wish that squirrell headed loser would PISH OFF!!

[donnybrooklads]

Sonia Queen of Munster! Cork a hotbed of athletes: Keano O'Rourke and O'Sullivan

[OrthodoxSteel]

Sonia shit her pants, just like Keane did in Saipan. Shiny Boots, Shitty Pants. Thats Cork for you.

[Nautilus1972]

@OrthodoxSteel Keane shat his pants? No, McCarthy did. McCarthy sent him down. Sonia was sadly a choker.

[LearnScouse]

what a ledgend

[proto1type]

To jasperrawlinson: I want to publicly apologise most sincerely for those despicable and inexcusable remarks I made yesterday. I was in a foul humour because of something that happened - totally unrelated to this site - and I was clearly venting my anger at the wrong person. I would like to stress that I am vehemently anti-racist and strongly against the use of offensive language. This makes it doubly embarrasing and shameful to me. With my deepest regrets, I wish you well.

[flipocb]

Fernanda Ribeiro was european, world and olympic champion in the 10 000m. It's true, Radcliffe has a better personal record but on the big occasions, Fernanda Ribeiro was at her best, and she wasn't. She's the greatest 10 000m runner of the 90's!

[LURIG81]

Did she REALLY shit her knickers on the track or was that just an excuse? Brilliant athlete but she should have been an Olympic Champion 2times over. RESPECT SONIA!!

[jimbojimjimbo]

She was sick in Atlanta. Believe me its not an excuse. If it wasnt for that, she would have won the 5000m in 1996. There is no guarantee that she would have won the 1500m though as Svetlana Masterkova was in great form.

[jimbojimjimbo]

3 time World Champion (nullifying all chinese performances), 3 time European Champion, 2 time World Cross-Country Champion, and Olympic Silver (and robbed of Bronze in 92 by the russian cheat Samolenko). Cant get a whole lot better than that to be honest!

[proto1type]

It's simple really. Sonia was the REAL winner of the 1993 World Championships (at 3,000m and 1,500m) She WOULD have been Olympic Champion in Atlanta if she weren't carrying the weight of expectation of millions. She did not fail us - we failed her. After another fairly disastrous 1997 season (excepting the World Indoors Silver at 3,000m)she came back in 1998 with a phenomenal run of successes. That's because she was relaxed -people stopped having expectations.

[jasperrawlinson]

whatever, harden up buttercup, its the olympics deal with it

[proto1type]

Up yours with a fucking blowtorch. Now deal with THAT, asshole.

[proto1type]

"gay butsowhat" has become my best internet friend so if you insult him you're insulting me too. Fuck off back to the nether regions - down under. This is an IRISH forum. Abo bastards not welcome.

[jasperrawlinson]

Right... that's a reasonable reaction. When you are at world level, you are at elite level, if you can't handle the heat that comes with that then get out of the kitchen. That being said its not like Ireland is renowned for its sporting prowess more its drinking habits as displayed by proto1type, so sonia would have most likely more than average pressure on her opposed to Australia which produce the most olympians per capita in the world.

[proto1type]

You were not very gracious in your acceptance of my apology. Whilst I consider I have restored some of my dignity, you on the other hand assume that being in bad humour can only be as a result of out of control "drinking habits". This is a dangerous assumption to make - about myself in particular but more so about the Irish public in general. (For your information I do not take alcohol, and never

have.) Now it's time to see how big you really are. There is an apology due to me .

[niall7777]

We are a population of 3.5 - 4 million irish people, so bear that in mind when you see our rankings at football & rugby. (which are good) Also we have a fantastic record at boxing, and never had a good lasting economy so therefore we have bad facilities / training. Regarding Sonia, she is a legend, she was sick and you could clearly see that at the starting line, maybe she was given dodgy food, anyway ive lost all confidence in the olympics after seeing the farce of phelps/cavic & china qymnasts

[connersau]

Yeah i agree ireland is wicked at rugby, O'Driscoll is arguably the best or one of the best outside centre's in the world. I guess in perspective when you don't produce a large amount of athletes each one has a high amount of pressure which sonia says in the video, but equally every athlete may feel exactly the same pressure, again as sonia says.

[ciananal]

don't forget the golfers, snooker players, jockeys, horse trainers, cyclists et al we've produced.

[jimbojimjimbo]

Check out my Sonia O'Sullivan tribute video!

[rodgil1]

shouldn't a great athlete win the olympic gold? if she is so great, why did she performed so poorly in the most important race of her career?? radcliffe also had a disappointing day in athens but she will be back in beijing and she will win it all, she is the real best of all times!!

[gaybutsowhat]

Your comment exhibits just ignorance. So, an athlete who fails to achieve Olympic Gold cannot be great? You forget the complexity of what's involved - Sonia failed in Atlanta because she was paralysed with nerves. That's human. The only valid analogy you make is with Radcliffe in Athens, but you try to justify that by "predicting" her success in Beijing - a weight of expectation athletes don't need. You are contributing to the situation O'Sullivan and Radcliffe found themselves in.

[rodgil1]

ok you have a point. i am not saying she is not a good athlete, she indeed is. it is only that i still believe that the biggest athletes of all time are that because they achieve that huge success that of course goes beyond normal human limits.

[gaybutsowhat]

Your analyses are so full of holes.Anything that goes beyond "normal" human limits must be abnormal - such as the speed,power,stamina and endurance that the use of illegal substances can attain. What do mean "why did'nt she try again ?" She not only tried, but became double World Cross Country Champion, double European Champion and Olympic Silver Medallist - all after Atlanta!

[frodoireland]

And also double European Silver Medalsit in Munich in 2002.

[rodgil1]

that means they can overcome all that huuuuge preassure and still find success. take a look at haile gebrselassie for instance, he always had enormous ammounts of preassure, yet he not only performed as expected but even better. i understand they are humans, but if she is one of the biggest why didn't she try again, that's what i meant with paula, she tried and tried and she is at the top right now. besides, her problem was related to health not to nerves

[rodgil1]

but anyway i didn't mean she is not good, she was but i wouldn't consider her as one of the greatest, just my opinion dude.

[gaybutsowhat]

Furthermore,the story of her being ill at the time was just a media cover-up - something to explain it all away. Sonia herself admitted in an interview - when pressed on the question of whether nerves ever "got the better" of her - that YES, they certainly contributed on occasion to an under-par performance. As a stage performer I can empathise with the feeling of total paralysis nerves can induce. And I don't have the whole world looking at me!

[gaybutsowhat]

My replies are appearing in reverse order(Please read the "9 minutes ago" one first, then go upwards). Look, can't you see , what happened to Paula Radcliffe in Athens mirrors what happened to Sonia in Atlanta. As for Paula sweeping the boards in Beijing. Let's just wait and see. Radcliffe is undoubtedly one of the true greats of middle to long-distance running - but she will never win an Olympic medal.

[rodgil1]

ok, i agree with the fact that we just have different opinions. however, i think you are wrong when you say paula will never win an olympic medal. people thought the same about a world championship in the marathon and she did here in helsinki in 2005. she will do it man, you will see!

[gaybutsowhat]

Sorry, I forgot the minutes turn to hours, then days, weeks, months!!! Read my four comments in reverse order. I don't want to argue with you - so let's just agree to having a difference of opinion. I feel confident enough to say that I can rest my case!

[jimbojimjimbo]

3 time world champion (I'm counting the double Gold in 1993, as I refuse to recognise the Chineese performaces, something the IAAF should do aswell, Sonia was the true champion of those 2 races),2 time World CC Champion, a 3 time European Champion and a European 3000m Record Holder for 8 years(WR, ignoring the Chineese times).

[niall7777]

So did Radcliffe win? Sonia is a legend and the world knows and seen that, watch her face before the race, you can see something is up, it happens to lots of athletes and even at this olympics.

[gaybutsowhat]

What a champ! She was as gracious in defeat as in victory - and a really, genuinely nice person too. There will never be an other Irish athlete quite like her - watching her run brought me so much joy for over a decade. Thank you Sonia. You lifted the spirts of a nation. Your wonderful achievements will never be forgotten.

[fanaticdancer]

a true great she always won once she was on the shoulder of her leader except for sydney 2000 where she was brill but szabo edged her!!!Atlanya was jus a bad ime for her every1 can have an off day!!!!One of the greatest honest, excitng mid distance runners of all time along with szabo i j us home it wasnt tru dat drugs were found in da boot of szabos car!!!

[gaybutsowhat]

Actually it was true about the drugs being found in Szabo's car. They were being taken by Michaela Botezan to a training base in France. Szabo denied all knowledge of it, but it's strange she never won a race again - Sydney was the last time she was a champion. And then her sudden retirement at the ripe old age of 28 ! It makes you wonder. Hate to think she might have robbed Sonia of that gold in Sydney.

[Sothertonfan1]

That's right. I might just give Szabo the benefit of the doubt. Szabo has always been a precocious talent, Botezan hasn't. Botezan was also tied up in a more recent doping scandal. Szabo has always protested against drug taking but it does look a bit iffy nevertheless.

Look at Botezan's 10000m record

1998 35:26.45

1999 34:33.01

2000 34:00.27

2001 31:45.06 and 5th at the World Champs

[jimbojimjimbo]

Actually if anybody out there has any other footage of her races, could you please upload it. :)

[jimbojimjimbo]

Absolute hero! Best Irish Sportsperson ever.

[irish090]

Best Irish Athlete ever. Pity about Atlanta tho