'When I saw Kelly run in that semi-final, I had tears running down my face' - Harvey

Tír Chonaill AC member and former Olympic coach Eamon Harvey has cited Kelly McGrory’s Olympic journey in Paris as one, if not the greatest sporting achievement that the local community in Donegal Town has seen in any sport. 

Harvey, a well-known athletics coaching maestro, has seen McGrory’s rise from when she first joined the athletics club in Donegal Town as a child to being a key member of Team Ireland’s 4x400m women’s relay team who finished fourth at the Summer Olympics, with McGrory being one of the four runners in the semi-final. 

Returning to the Abbey Vocational School last Friday for her homecoming alongside fellow Olympian Tom Barr, McGrory was emotional on her return, with Harvey claiming it to be a special day for sport in Donegal. 

“I came back to work in Donegal Town here in the 1970s, and over the years we’ve had many sporting highlights in this community but without a doubt, this has to be the best,” the Donegal man, who coached at the Olympic Games said regarding McGrory’s achievement. 

“To see someone come into the local athletics club and into the school at the age of 13, and to see Kelly progress over the years from winning All-Ireland school medals and national titles to where she is now, it’s just mindboggling. 

“I think Danny McDaid put it best, that because we’re from Donegal, we don’t think that we can have success like other places and other countries have, so when you eventually see it, it’s amazing.” 

Watching her 4x400m semi-final race in Paris, her former coach admitted that the occasion brought tears to his eyes knowing the sacrifice, the Laghy woman made to become an Olympian. 

“It was very much an emotional day for me, and I wouldn’t really be an emotional person, but when I saw Kelly run in that semi-final, I had tears running down my face,” Harvey said. 

“I think the whole occasion, first of all it’s amazing for Kelly and her family, but it’s a great day for her club and her community. She’s a very grounded person, and step by step she has grown in her performance through the years. 

“She’s always had ability and she’s never let things bring her down. Yes, she’s had setbacks and injuries, particularly in the last two years, but she’s always overcome it and had a real belief that she could make the Olympics, and I’m so happy she did make it onto a world stage.” 

It remains to be seen if McGrory will be there for LA 2028, but her Donegal coach is fully confident that she has the ability to make it but must focus on all the competitions before then first. 

“Kelly was always a bit above the ordinary in her success, she’s constantly looking to improve step by step. We know the next Olympics is four years away in LA, but before that, she has the World and European Championships which she’ll be focusing on,” he said.