“Fourth place is the WORST place to finish!”
That is what Thomas Barr learned from his phenomenal Olympic journey, which saw him finish five-hundredths of a second away from a bronze medal as he set his second Irish 400 metres record in three days with a time of 47.97 in the Olympic final on Thursday.
Interviewed by fellow Irish sprinter David Gillick for RTÉ Sport after the dramatic race, which saw him finish behind winner Kerron Clement of United States, with Boniface Mucheru of Kenya and – most agonising – Yasmani Copello of Turkey, who finished 0.05 secs ahead of the Waterford native.
Finishing with a great kick, the 24-year-old was gaining on the Cuban-born Turkish competitor and he told Gillick that another five metres might have seen him move into the medals.
It was that close.
The fact he could smile through the disappointment was great. Watch the entire interview below.
Thomas Barr talks to RTÉ Sport after his fourth placed finish in the Olympic men’s 400m hurdles final #rterio2016 https://t.co/C62RQKlZht
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 18, 2016
