LAST UPDATE | 9 Aug

Sinead O'Carroll Reports from Paris

SARAH LAVIN FINISHED sixth in her 100m hurdles semi-final this morning, bringing an end to her Olympic Games.

The Limerick hurdler ran 12.69 seconds at the Stade de France — three-hundredths of a second off her season’s best and seven-hundredths off her PB and Irish national record of 12.62.

In an absolutely stacked field, it would have taken the run of Lavin’s career by some distance in order to be in the mix for a place in Saturday night’s final.

Alaysha Johnson of the USA and Nadine Visser of the Netherlands were the two automatic qualifiers from Lavin’s heat with times of 12.34 and 12.43.

The two fastest non-automatic qualifiers came from the third semi, as Jamaica’s Ackera Nugent and Cyrena Samba-Mayela ran 12.44 and 12.52 respectively.

Lavin, visibly disappointed after the race, showed journalists a cut on her trail leg from hitting the eighth hurdle.  

“You don’t have that hundredth of a second in a game where the margins are the finest,” she explained. “And, normally, I come through those last hurdles. Obviously, that didn’t happen there. That’s what’s disappointing to be honest with you. If I was walking off here and hadn’t qualified but I had a clean race, you know, that I guess is where the frustration will come from.”

Speaking about the depth of the competition, Lavin acknowledged that even without clipping that obstacle, the slowest qualifying times of 12.52 may have been beyond her. 

“It’s the greatest field in history,” she said of the finalists. “I think maybe you can account for 0.1 off a hit of a hurdle which still brings me to 12.59 which still means you’re out. So, that’s the reality. You know what I mean? And that’s where this event is at the moment.”

The hurdler said she was satisfied with her push off the blocks, as well as her decision to go with the quick pace of those around her.

“I wouldn’t have run a 12.69 if I hadn’t gone for that,” she said. “I wouldn’t have had a shot at making the final if I really hadn’t gone for it.

“You know, I guess when you’re looking for a time you haven’t run before you have to do things you’ve never done before.”

Reflecting on her Olympic experience, which included being one of Ireland’s flagbearers at the opening ceremony, Lavin said she is both grateful to the travelling fans for the noise they created in the stadium, and “immensely proud” of herself. 

“I think ultimately this is sport and there’s components of this experience the last two weeks that have touched me and will stay with me long more than a gold medal ever could because of the people you meet, and the experiences and the feelings you have and the emotions you have.”

Despite the hard slog of the four-year cycle, retirement is far from the Limerick woman’s mind. 

“I’ll stay racing,” she said without a flicker of doubt. ”You know, being in the form of your life which you can’t deny that I am when I’m throwing out a 12.69, you have to be very grateful for that.

“There’s a lot of exceptional athletes sitting at home so when you’re in good form, I think absolutely utilise it. We’re the ticking time bombs here as athletes. Journalists can be journalists for as long as they like; coaches can be coaches; physios can be physios. The athletes are the ones with time around their neck. So absolutely, if my body stays healthy I’ll 100% be out there racing.”

She just has to lift that trail leg higher from now on, she jokes, but the disappointment is still etched on her face. 

 With reporting by Niall Kelly; written by Sinead O’Carroll and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.