Bryan Keane will compete in his first Olympic Games at the age of 35 tomorrow, Thursday. The Corkman has had an incredible career with plenty ups and downs and an article here can't come close to documenting his career highlights and lowlights. He's been an incredible - if unsung, ambassador for Irish sport.
By Brian Canty
Bryan Keane will realise a dream tomorrow at 3pm Irish time when he toes the line as the eldest competitor in the men’s triathlon at the Olympic Games in Brazil.
The Corkman will turn 36 years on Saturday and he is the sole Irishman in the 56-man field.
Having been cruelly denied a place in London four years because of an horrific collision with a car while out training in 2011 he’s shown incredible resolve to make it this far.
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He was a relative latecomer to the sport and that’s arguably given him the longevity; his long road back from recovery following his crash only serving to increase his hunger to get to the Olympics.
He’s had to stay incredibly focused and motivated throughout his recovery, something made all the more difficult by missing so many races in the early part of this Olympic cycle.
His qualification for Rio was a nerve-shredder and came down to the final qualifying event in Japan in May.
Keane was never afraid of the hard work required to knock himself into shape and while his life might look glamorous as he flies around to world to race and train, it's not always sunny skies and paved roads he's on. This picture was taken from a cyclocross event called the Muddy Cup last winter, which he won. (Photo: Sean Rowe)
“I know it's a massive event but in my mind this will be just be another ITU race in a different setting,” he said from Rio.
“There might be a couple of hundred million people watching on TV but you have to block out that stuff and not even think about it.
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"I’ve done some solid training since qualifying, you'll always want to have better form but I am here and I am ready to race.”
Keane has spent the last number of weeks avoiding the fanfare by preparing with a select number of Team Ireland staff in Florida.
He’ll take on arguably the strongest ever field in an Olympic triathlon with the likes of the Brownlee brothers - Alistair and Jonathan - likely to contend.
Alistair is the reigning Olympic champion, but one man who won’t be there tomorrow is Spaniard Javier Gomez.
The five-time ITU world champion and London silver medallist is out with a broken elbow but his countryman Mario Mola is another who should contend.
Bryan Keane is a serious athlete who has dedicated his life to qualify for the Olympic Games. He's careful not to have the Olympics define him because he says it's just another race but for him, personally, to get there, has been a real story of triumph in the face of adversity.
The course - 1.5km swim, 40km bike and 10km run - is extremely punishing and if the Copacabana beach swim doesn’t break the pack, the gruelling bike leg should as there’s a hill that hits up to 18 per cent gradient.
The run is along the beachfront so a massive crowd set against one of the world’s most iconic backdrops is sure add to the spectacle.
The best ever result by an Irishman at an Olympics is Gavin Noble’s 23rd from London but Keane is a big man for the big occasion.
A top 20 would be a huge result given the quality of the field and if it’s hot, like Keane hopes, he could manage it.
“The weather has been changeable every day this week, ideally I would like it to be a stinking hot and humid, that would suit me better but everyone’s in the same boat,” he said.
“The bike is eight laps with a short 45-second hill which goes up to 18 per cent so it’s tricky enough, it’s not like any other course on the World Series.
“Last year the hill didn’t break the pack, it’s not long enough so you don’t know, it’s technical and can be quite dangerous so you have to be careful there were a lot of crashes last year on the downhill there are off camber corners so you have be really careful,” he added.
A few things you might not know about Bryan Keane
- He started cycling as a teenager with Cork CC
- He later joined Dublin Wheelers while in university
- He rode for the Irish national team in the An Post Rás while also racing for the Sean Kelly-Grant Thornton-M Donnelly team in Belgium
- His current cycling club is AquaBlue in Cork
- He runs for Leevale AC and swims for Cork tri club
- He won a bronze medal (team prize) at the 2000 European cross country championships
- He started swimming with Dolphin Swimming Club in Cork
- He has worn the yellow jersey at the Kerry Group Rás Mumhan (2005)
- He was sixth in the national road race championships in 2005
- At the age of 29 he became Ireland’s first triathlete to win gold, silver and bronze in ITU events
- He was 7th in the 2010 ITU sprint world championships….before disaster struck within a month….
- His career took a major setback when he was knocked down while out training near his home in 2010, shattering his knee cap and forcing him into a two-year rehab programme. He spent 14 of those 24 months in a leg brace.
- He became the first Irishman on a World Cup podium when claiming a silver in Japan. He finished the year ranked 52nd in the world, rising to 38th just 12 months later.
- He qualified for the Olympics by finishing 53rd in the world rankings. Only 56 athletes made it to Rio.
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