| Ciaran O'Lionaird |
Full Name: Ciaran O'Lionaird
Born: April 11, 1988, Cork, Ireland
Died: June 9, 2026, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
School: De La Salle HS, Dublin, Ireland
Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Olympics:
2012 - at London, England representing Ireland in Track & Field
Legacy Bricks: Legacy Walk Map Link
2010 Cross Country AA - Loc 81
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| Mike Fout, CIARAN O'LIONAIRD, David Forrester, Wes Rickman | 2012 Olympics |
| FSU Career |
| Cross Country | |
Year Hgt Wgt Cl Ltr Hometown 2009 Jr-R * Cork, Ireland 2010 Sr-R * Cork, Ireland |
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| Track & Field | |
Year Pos Hgt Wgt Cl Ltr Hometown 09-10 D Jr-R Cork, Ireland 10-11 D Sr-R * Cork, Ireland |
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| Comments |
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Irish Olympic runner Ciaran O'Lionaird dies suddenly aged 38. Posted by The Irish News. Irish athletics has been left shocked and saddened by the news that Ciaran O'Lionaird, the former Irish 1,500 metres champion and London 2012 Olympian, has died suddenly at the age of 38. O'Lionaird was found dead in Montreal on Tuesday morning, June 9, 2026. The Cork native and Leevale club member, who had been based in the US since 2011, gained considerable popularity during his relatively short international career and the news of his sudden death was greeted with similar shock throughout the wider athletics world. In a running career frequently plagued by injury, O'Lionaird's conspicuous talent as a junior athlete was often thwarted, before he made his senior breakthrough in 2011, when in the one summer he improved his 1,500m best from 3:48.36 to 3:34.46. That time qualified him for the 2011 World Championships in Daegu, South Korea and the following year's London Olympics. His laid-back and old-school approach to training and racing brought him many admirers, and he became affectionately known as "Mad Len". O'Lionaird was also outspoken on matters on and off the track, including the difficulties most elite athletes face trying to make a living from the sport, and later the challenges they face when entering retirement. Despite his inexperience, O'Lionaird made the final in Daegu in 2011, where he finished in 10th position. Two months later he moved to the Nike Oregon Project, based in Portland, Oregon, to train under the controversial coach Alberto Salazar. Although that was short-lived, he soon switched to the Nike Track Club Elite, a sort of alternative training camp in Eugene, Oregon, to train under Britain's Mark Rowland. By the time of the London Olympics, however, O'Lionaird's injuries were taking a physical and mental toll, particularly the reoccurrence of an Achilles tendon strain. "This has been the worst experience of my life, there's no positives I can take from this," he said on RTE after finishing 13th in his 1,500m heat in London. "I'm going to find something else to do with my life." He bounced back in March 2013, however, going to the European Indoor Championships in Gothenburg and winning the bronze medal in the 3,000m, having boldly struck for gold on the last lap. He then missed that entire summer with injury. There was another comeback in 2014, when he won the Irish 1,500m title in Santry in July. He then made the final of the European Championships in Zurich, but he was clipped and injured in that race and unable to finish. After another mostly crippling 2015, O'Lionaird announced his retirement before the Rio Olympics in 2016, at age 28, convinced his running career was done. Later still, he did speak of another possible comeback for the delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021 after he resumed training during the lockdown in Flagstaff, Arizona. Nothing came of that. During this period he worked as a shoe adviser for Nike, later becoming involved in the music and entertainment scene in Los Angeles. He had been based in Topanga in California in recent months. Growing up in the countryside of Toonsbridge, outside Macroom, he joined the West Muskerry Athletic Club at the age of seven. He later he moved to Leevale, in the city, where gradually his potential began to shine. He ran 3:50.10 at age 16, and in
2005 won a 1,500m bronze medal at the European Youth Olympics, in Lignano,
Italy. Inevitably that drew the interest of several US colleges, O'Lionaird
initially attending Michigan University, before transferring to Florida
State University for his final year, in 2009. |
| Conference Awards |
| Cross Country |
Year Award 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference 2010 Atlantic Coast Conference - All-Conference |
| Track & Field |
Year Award
2011 Atlantic Coast Conference - Outdoor - 1500m - Champion
Atlantic Coast Conference - Outdoor - 5000m - Champion
Atlantic Coast Conference - Outdoor - All-Conference
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| All-American Awards |
| Cross Country |
Year Award 2010 NCAA - All-American - 18th place |
| FSU Statistics |
| Cross Country |
Date Opponent/Meet Distance Place Time Points
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2009 Season
09/04/2009 Covered Bridge Open 6.4K 2 19:45.1 2
09/18/2009 VT Alumni Invitational 7.6K 8 24:31.4 7
10/02/2009 Notre Dame Invitational 8K 12 24:08 12
10/17/2009 Pre-National Meet 8K 56 24:37.9 56
10/31/2009 ACC Championship 8K 10 23:38.8 10
11/14/2009 NCAA South Regional 10K 20 31:07.88 19
11/23/2009 NCAA Championship 10K 181 31:41.2 147
2010 Season
09/03/2010 Covered Bridge Open 4.2 Miles 45 20:51.90 43
09/19/2010 Boston 8K 7 25:03 7
10/01/2010 Notre Dame Invitational 8K 38 24:40 38
10/08/2010 FSU Invitational 8K 13 25:27.46 11
10/16/2010 Pre-Nationals 8K 10 23:52.5 10
10/30/2010 ACC Championship 8K 4 23:43.6 4
11/13/2010 NCAA South Regional 10K 1 30:03.34 1
11/22/2010 NCAA Championship 10K 18 30:14.0 15
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| Track & Field |
Date Opponent/Meet Event Place Results Points Comment
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2010 Season
02/13/2010 Husky Classic 5000m (I) 29 14:10.99
02/27/2010 ACC Indoor Championship 5000m (I) 16 14:59.44
2011 Season
03/26/2011 Stanford Invitational 10000m 2 28:32.30 4
04/09/2011 Seminole Invitational 1500m 1 3:41.02 5
04/23/2011 ACC Outdoor Championship 1500m 1 3:40.69 10
04/23/2011 ACC Outdoor Championship 5000m 1 13:52.11 10
04/30/2011 Penn Relays Four-Mile Relay 5 16:27.19 0.25
05/28/2011 NCAA Regional 5000m 3 14:06.26 6
05/28/2011 NCAA Regional 10000m 3 29:09.75 6
06/11/2011 NCAA Outdoor Championship 10000m 24 32:06.21
07/16/2011 KBC Night of Athletics 5000m 13:33.64
08/02/2011 Qualitrap-Meeting 1500m 3:34.46
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