OlympicIRL

You got 3 points and are top of the group, thus in a World Cup qualification position.... that's what happened according to pure statistics

Referee blew the final whistle and still I'm half-expecting someone else to score.... what a fun match to watch as a neutral

Bulgaria 4-3 Luxembourg

Bulgaria 1-0 Luxembourg Let me grab a cup of tea.... 5 mins later Bulgaria 1-2 Luxembourg WTF, I think, I watch the replay of the goal which flashes up on the screen with the second Luxembourg goal. Then I turn back to the mainscreen and it's 2-2! I can't keep up I'm now watching this match instead of all other matches

Scotland... why do you always do this to me?

Awaiting official confirmation but sources from the Lithuanian organising committee speculated about the TISC Open final being held late October / early November. So expect the new contest thread to be opened soon as we will soon need to begin with registration, and then national selections

So it's an end of an era this week with the retirement of Irish legend Robbie Keane from international football. It was quite sad and emotional watching him play his final ever game for Ireland on Wednesday . He has been such a wonderful servant for us and always showing unwavering commitment for the green jersey. Thanks for all the wonderful memories Robbie, you are forever an Irish hero . Of all the wonderful and beautiful goals that he scored in the green jersey, it is this goal which he scored at the World Cup in 2002 that will forever stay in the hearts and minds of the Irish public:

Le Galaxie - Love System ft. Elaine Mai:

2020 Vision Athlete Profile: Mona McSharry Sport: Swimming Age: 16 (born 21 August 2000) Achievements: Silver Medal in 100m Breaststroke at European Junior Championships (2016) Bronze Medal in 50m Breaststroke at European Junior Championships (2016) Athlete Profile: Sharlene Mawdsley Sport: Athletics Age: 18 (10 August 1998) Achievements: 5th place as part of women's 4x100m Relay team at World Junior Championships (2016) Finalist in Women's 200m at European Junior Championships (2015)

Athlete Profile: Finn Lynch Sport: Sailing Age: 20 (23 April 1996) Achievements: Qualified for Rio 2016, becoming Ireland's youngest ever Olympic helmsman - finishing 32nd Silver Medal at the World Youth Championships (2012) Gold Medal at European U-21 Championships in Men's Laser Radial (2013) Silver Medal at European Championships in Men's Laser Radial (2013) Athlete Profile: Liam Jegou Sport: Canoe Slalom Age: 20 (09 January 1996) Achievements: Silver Medal in Men's C1 Slalom at World Junior Championships (2014) 6th place at U-23 European Championships (2015) 7th place at U-23 European Championships (2016) 9th place at U-23 World Championships, qualified in 2nd place for the final (2016)

2020 Vision Athlete Profile: Ian O'Sullivan Sport: Trap Shooting Age: 20 (born 1996) Achievements: World Junior Champion in Men's Trap (2014) Bronze medal at European Championships (2015) Athlete Profile: Cathal Daniels Sport: Eventing Age: 19 (13 September 1996) Achievements: Gold medal in Team Eventing at European Junior Championships (2013) Gold medal in Team Eventing at European Junior Championships (2014) Silver medal in Individual Eventing at European Junior Championships (2014) Bronze medal in Individual Eventing at European Young Rider Championships (2015)

2020 Vision Athlete Profile: Conor Ferguson Sport: Swimming Age: 16 (11 October 1999) Achievements: Silver medal 100m Backstroke at European Junior Championships (2016) Silver medal 100m Backstroke at European Youth Olympic Festival (2015) Silver medal 200m Backstroke at European Youth Olympic Festival (2015) Athlete Profile: Nhat Nguyen Sport: Badminton Age: 16 (16 June 2000) Achievements: Became European U-17 Champion (2016) at the age of 15 Bronze Medal European U-17 Championships (2016) in men's doubles alongside Paul Reynolds Became Irish National Champion (2016) at the age of 15

2020 Vision Athlete Profile: Rhys McClenaghan Sport: Artistic Gymnastics Age: 17 (21 July 1999) Achievements: Silver Medal in Pommel Horse at the European Junior Championships (2016) 3rd place at the UK Championships in Pommel Horse behind Max Whitlock and Louis Smith (2016) 13th place Individual All-Around at the European Junior Championships (2016) Athlete Profile: Jack Woolley Sport: Taekwondo Age: 17 (23 September 1998) Achievements: Ranked No.4 in the WTF World Rankings in (-54kg) Came within 10 seconds of qualifying for the Rio 2016 Olympics at the age of 17, defeating the European Champion along the way Quarter-finalist at the 2015 World Championships (-54kg) at the age of 16. Gold medals at Luxembourg Open, Canada Open (-54kg) in 2016 and at the Morocco Open and Russian Open (-54kg) in 2015.

RTÉ's promo video for the Paralympics is stunning!! https://video-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t43.1792-2/14122058_546741412203284_129859551_n.mp4?efg=eyJybHIiOjE1MDAsInJsYSI6MTAyNCwidmVuY29kZV90YWciOiJzdmVfaGQifQ%3D%3D&rl=1500&vabr=704&oh=5c32b72837a4dfee5d82c527e1ccc4b9&oe=57BDEFB7

You and me both, just too many distractions this season

2020 Vision A new Olympic cycle is upon us and as we embark upon the trail to Tokyo 2020, I am going to begin a new project entitled "2020 Vision". This project will follow the trials and tribulations of 20 young Irish athletes throughout this Olympic cycle as we follow their progress towards realising their Olympic dream. The athletes will be aged 20 years or younger and will range from a variety of different sports. Some have already had a tilt at Olympic qualification, others will be embarking on their Olympic quests for the first time. So without further ado, let's meet our 2020 team of hopefuls. 1. Rhys McClenaghan (Artistic Gymnastics) 2. Jack Woolley (Taekwondo) 3. Conor Ferguson (Swimming) 4. Nhat Nguyen (Badminton) 5. Ian O'Sullivan (Trap Shooting) 6. Cathal Daniels (Eventing) 7. Finn Lynch (Sailing) 8. Liam Jegou (Canoeing) 9. Mona McSharry (Swimming) 10. Sharlene Mawdsley (Athletics) 11. Kevin McGrath (Athletics) 12. Gina Akpe-Moses (Athletics) 13. Rachel Darragh (Badminton) 14. Gearoid McDaid (Surfing) 15. Lee Cole (Field Hockey) 16. Oisin McClelland (Sailing) 17. Aoife Hopkins (Sailing) 18. Bertram Allen (Showjumping) 19. Antoinette Neamt (Swimming) 20. Gerry Quinn (Swimming) So expect plenty of updates on these athletes as we move into a new Olympic cycle. Tokyo 2020 begins now!

OMG that Tokyo segment was AWESOME!!

[hide] Men's Tournament - Knockout Round August 17th - August 21st, 2016 8 Nations, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Bronze Medal Match and Gold Medal Match Bronze Medal Match Date and Venue Team 1 T1 T2 Team 2 August 21th 2016, h. 09:30, Ginasio do Maracanazinho, Rio de Janeiro United States 3 1 Russia Gold Medal Match Date and Venue Team 1 T1 T2 Team 2 August 21th 2016, h. 13:15, Ginasio do Maracanazinho, Rio de Janeiro Italy 1 3 Brazil [/hide]

Just be careful, Qatar will be out to buy your best hot dog eaters and cheerleaders..... well maybe not cheerleaders

Don't forget cheerleading

Trinidad and Tobago have maintained their stay on the Olympic medals table in every Games since Barcelona 1992 thanks to Walcott's bronze in the javelin.

1.97m wins women's high jump

Very true . Some riders had no control over their horses too and the horse was flying at the fences at speed. In fact, only for the fact that some of the horses were capable that the situation could have been much worse for those riders.

Some of those pentathletes were indeed terrible riders. We had an equestrian commentator for that phase and he was able to tell immediately which riders were going to struggle simply by the way they were positioned on the horse, and he was almost always right in his predictions. Having said that, even good riders can have nightmares in modern pentathlon showjumping. It's a messy element that should be amended or changed entirely.

8th place for Arthur Lanigan-O'Keeffe... he flew through the field after a disaster in the fencing where he was in 25th place. Natalya 7th Arthur 8th Good Olympics for our team. Bring on Tokyo 2020