Hard to watch.
It was a tough night for Ciara Mageean in Glasgow. The Irish distance runner came up agonisingly short in her bid for a medal in the 1500m final, losing out on the bronze to Great Britain’s Laura Weightman as fellow Briton Laura Muir – as expected – took gold.
Mageean’s run in Berlin was brave and spirited and, although she does not come away with a medal, she has earned the admiration of those watching back in Ireland.
Unfortunately, right in the throes of her heartache, the Portaferry athlete was made to face the RTE cameras. The interview clearly came a bit too soon as Mageean had to cut the interview short.
“I felt that it was within my grasp and I give it one hell of an effort,” the 26-year-old said. “Just sadly wasn’t enough.”
Having answered one of David Gillick’s questions, it was clear Mageean wasn’t all too well and the RTE cameras weren’t quick enough in cutting back to the studio.
“I’m bitterly disappointed,” she said during an earlier part of the interview.
“I tried to bring another medal home for Ireland and I gave everything out there and just fell short, but it was a tough run and I’m proud to be able to go out there and give everything in the Irish vest.”
"I'm proud to be able to go out there and give everything in the Irish vest."- Ciara Mageean reacts to her fourth-placed finish in the 1500m final #RTEsport pic.twitter.com/OI5bKfNSzX
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 12, 2018
As hard as it was to watch, Mageean did Ireland proud. Her comments were as honest as they were classy.