ATHLETICS:EXACTLY TWO weeks before the start of the Beijing Olympics hammer thrower Eileen O'Keeffe is in trouble with an injury.
It's the worst possible time for an athlete to find themselves sidelined from training, although O'Keeffe is hopeful the knee injury that has ruled her out of this evening's Morton Memorial meeting in Santry is of the minor sort, and shouldn't put her Olympic participation in doubt.
The problem started after O'Keeffe threw a season's best of 72.75 metres to win the national title in Santry last Saturday. The Kilkenny athlete subsequently felt a pain in her left knee, and after first resting it, underwent a scan early yesterday.
This revealed nothing more serious than inflammation, but still has necessitated a strong anti-inflammatory injection, which requires medical clearance from the IAAF as otherwise it could show up a positive doping result.
O'Keeffe will have the injection sometime today, and is not due to depart for China until next Friday.
"The Athletics Ireland medical team are working with Eileen to ensure that she makes a full recovery and will be ready in time for Beijing," says athletics team manager Patsy McGonagle.
O'Keeffe still has some time to play with as the women's hammer competition doesn't get under way until the Monday, August 18th, but clearly she'll want the injury to clear up sooner rather than later.
The 400 metre runner Joanne Cuddihy is the only other Beijing-bound athlete with an injury problem, as a calf muscle strain continues to sideline her from training, but she will still travel with the team and make a final decision on whether to compete in the days before her event, on the Saturday, August 16th.
O'Keeffe's withdrawal from this evening's Morton Memorial in Santry is a disappointment as meeting director Garrett Coughlan had assembled some world-class competition, including world champion Betty Heidler of Germany, the former Olympic champion from Poland, Kamila Skolimowska, European Junior champion Kathrina Safrankova of the Czech Republic, and world number two Ivana Brkljacic of Croatia.
However, the meeting should still rank as one of the best in Dublin in years.
Inspired as a celebration of the 1958 season where three world records were set in Santry, most famously Herb Elliott's mile mark of 3:54.5, the international programme starts at 7.20pm, with admission free.
The headline event, the Morton Mile, includes 12 athletes from six countries who have already broken the four-minute barrier for the distance, including Ireland's David Campbell, with Mark Carroll also in the field.
There will also be a men's three-mile, and two high-quality 400 metres.
The women's race includes Jamaica's Rosemary Whyte, one of the medal favourites for Beijing, while the men's field boasts Andrae Williams from the Bahamas, who has run 44.90. American Bernard Williams, who has run 9.94, is also down to run the 100 metres.
Most of the top Irish athletes will be absent, only because they've managed to secure a lane in the London Grand Prix, which is spread over this evening and tomorrow, including Paul Hession, David Gillick and steeplechasers Róisín McGettigan and Fionnuala Britton.
At the same meeting, Deirdre Byrne (1,500 metres) and Una English (3,000 metres steeplechase) will also make a last effort at securing an A-standard for Beijing and possibly receive a late call-up to the team.
