Club 800m record for Louis

With 200 metres to go Louis O’Loughlin was languished in last place in an eight-man field. He was five metres adrift of the leading pack and a disappointing start to his outdoor track season seemed on the cards.

Representing Adams State University in the prestigious Bryan Clay Invitational Meet at Azusa, California, O’Loughlin was entered to a very competitive Section One 800m race.

Then with a little over 150 metres to go, the Donore Harriers athlete unleashed a blistering finishing kick that moved him up to third place by the finish line.

In the process he had to move out to lane four  as he picked a pathway to get around some of the other competitors.

A glance at the clock and Louis could see that he had broken the 1.48 mark for the first time with a posting of 1.47.71 behind winner Edouard Lecrivain (1.47.03) of Houston.

But more good news was soon to follow as  Louis’ time had just set a new Donore Harriers club record for the 800m, with the previous record held by former World 5,000m champion and Olympian Eamonn Coghlan. Coghlan’s time of 1.47.79 was set in the Europa Cup event at Sollerod, Denmark on the 16th of June 1977.

A clearly delighted O’Loughlin said afterwards: “I’m absolutely over the moon. I was waiting for it to happen. Now for bigger and better things”

On the following day Louis outkicked Evan Horgan (3.46.37) of Lewis University to win the 7th heat of the 1,500m in a new personal best time of 3.46.06.