Heffernan gears up for title defence

Heffernan set for world title defence

Robert Heffernan (Togher) will take to the startline at 12:30am in Beijing in a bid to defend his world 50km Race Walk title alongside Alex Wright (Leevale) and Brendan Boyce (Letterkenny).

Heffernan famously won gold on the streets of Moscow in 2013 and he will face stiff competition once more. The startlist is here. Athletics Ireland caught up with Heffernan and Boyce at the airport before they flew  to Beijing. 

Brendan Boyce has been making good progress and is hoping for a top 16 performance. 

Also in action will be the men's 4x400m relay team in heat 2 and will face stiff competition against the likes of USA, Jamaica, Cuba and Trinidad and Tobago. Team Ireland are drawn in lane 9 and you can view the full heat draw here 

here