Trailblazer Maeve Kyle, Ireland's first female Olympian in athletics, dies aged 96
have led the tributes to Irish Olympic and sporting trailblazer Maeve Kyle, who has died at the age of 96.
A three-time Olympian, and the first Irish woman to compete in track and field at the Olympics, Kyle devoted much of her life to sport.
In a statement Athletics Ireland said Kyle was 'a true pioneer of Irish sport and one of our most iconic and inspirational athletes; she was a torchbearer who lit the path for those who followed. Her legacy lives on in the athletes she inspired and the standards she set.'
Olympic Federation of Ireland
president Lochlann Walsh added: 'We have lost a legend of Irish Olympic sport who rose to the top despite huge challenges in 1950s Ireland. She was an inspiration to us all. May she rest in peace.'
READ MORE
In 2012, Kyle was the recipient of The Irish Times/Sport Ireland Lifetime Achievement award, presented by 1956 Olympic 1,500m champion Ronnie Delany, her team-mate on her maiden Olympic voyage of 1956.
It was at those Games in Melbourne where Kyle became the first woman to represent Ireland in athletics at the Olympics, selected in both the 100m and 200m events. Kyle often told the story of how news of her selection for Melbourne was greeted, perhaps best surmised in a letter printed in The Irish Times.
Maeve Kyle (87) first represented Ireland in three Olympic Games, Melbourne in 56', Rome in 60' and Tokyo in 64'. She was the first female representative for Ireland in the Games and was trained by her husband Seán Kyle. Video: Enda O'Dowd
'I was a disgrace to motherhood and the Irish nation', she once proudly recalled. 'That's what one letter in The Irish Times said. Imagine! A woman leaving her husband and daughter to go and run!'
Kyle's achievements didn't stop there, as she packed several lifetimes worth of sporting involvement across several different codes.
Born in Kilkenny in 1928, educated in Dublin at Alexandra College before attending Trinity College, her first love was hockey. Kyle earned 58 Irish caps and represented three of the four Irish provinces – Leinster, Munster and Ulster – and she was also named in the All-Star teams of 1953 and 1959.
In addition to Melbourne, she also competed in the Rome Olympics in 1960 and in Tokyo in 1964, reaching the semi-finals of both the 400m and 800m. She also took bronze in the 400m at the 1966 European Indoor Athletics Championships in Dortmund.
Kyle was equally deft at tennis, swimming, sailing and cricket. She later cofounded the Ballymena and Antrim Athletic Club with her late husband and coach Seán.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
28 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Joe O'Connor: The new star of Rock Street
Well, Kieran Donaghy, what did you think of that? Maybe it's a Stacks thing, a townie thing. Or maybe it was because there was a whiff of Donegal again in the air. But when Joe O'Connor was presented with yet another man of the match award after the All-Ireland semi-final win over Tyrone, there were echoes of a certain 2014 post-match interview in how the latest Rolls Royce to come off the production line in Kerry spoke. This is exclusive subscriber content. Already a subscriber? Sign in Take us with you this summer. Annual €130€65 Best value Monthly €12€6 / month
Irish Examiner
28 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
All-Ireland SFC final: Three key Donegal-Kerry matchups
Brendan McCole versus David Clifford Humour us with a quick exercise. If you are in the Donegal dressing room this week, what is acceptable for David Clifford to score? It was seven from play against Armagh. It was eight against Tyrone. What constitutes a good day out? The two-time Footballer of the Year is in sensational form. Brendan McCole's reward for a terrific run is the greatest test of his season the biggest day of his career. Already he has bested Sam Mulroy, Ryan O'Donoghue, Conor Turbitt and Darragh Canavan. 'He works very hard at his game,' said Jim McGuinness after their semi-final triumph over Meath. 'He wants to know as much as he can about opposition forwards. He trains really well. He is focused in his own training and he wants to defend. That is the bottom line. 'He wants to defend. He wants to really, really defend.' In the buildup to Sunday, the Donegal boss also referenced the 'attacking aggressiveness' Clifford has brought to the contest recently. This has been evident on and off the field. He called for supporters to get to Croke Park for their quarter-final and celebrated directly to them as he lite it up. It has also led to a reversion to his tried and trusted. That outstanding goal against Tyrone was his first on his right foot all year. The reliable left has accounted for the majority of scores. McCole will have studied this closely in recent weeks. Stopping it is another matter entirely. Shane Ryan versus Shaun Patton In the new rules, no element of the game is as important as kickout. A staggering stat from the semi-final was that Donegal won 18 kickouts and sourced 14 scores from that, 2-1-11. Their retention was 67%. When the Ulster champions get hands on ball, they maximise it. Kerry's figures are more concerning for Jack O'Connor. They retained just 52% against Tyrone. From 12 kickouts, they hit six scores, one two-pointer and five points. Patton has more range than Ryan does, but the Kerry number one has big-game composure that can prove invaluable. Despite conceding a goal from a short kickout against Armagh, albeit one that wasn't exactly his fault, Ryan managed to get his restarts off super quickly in the second half and consistently found short options. Their use of the bunch and break provided the platform for that success. How both outfits press will be as important. Kerry have become one of the best teams in the country at winning the opposition's kickout. This creates an intriguing battle for Sunday. The Kingdom can press aggressively. Patton can boom it long and few players are better at breaks and flick-ons than Michael Murphy. One side trying to squeeze, the other trying to crack their way through. The pressure is coming. Who will break first? Joe O'Connor versus Michael Langan Jim McGuinness versus Jack O'Connor. Michael Murphy and David Clifford. After that, there are two decisive players in this All-Ireland final. They are also the third and fourth favourites for Footballer of the Year. Midfielders Joe O'Connor and Michael Langan have enjoyed immense campaigns so far. They are similar players for their teams. Both can create, score and win kickouts. Midfield powerhouses. Langan has scored 1-23. He marked his 100th appearance with a goal in the quarter-final against Monaghan. O'Connor has hit 1-7. No player has won more long kickouts for the Munster champions than the Austin Stacks man. Their tackling ability is excellent, O'Connor has made that armpit punch strip tackle a trademark. The old-school battle for centrefield is less prevalent in the modern game. What will decide this matchup is who can win more kickouts and how accurate can they be with each attack. It is not about how they make their mark on each other as much as it is make their mark on the match. At times, O'Connor lines out at wing-forward rather than midfield but the ask is similar. Kickouts, collisions, finishes: this is the engine room.
Irish Examiner
28 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
All you need to know about Kerry v Donegal in the All-Ireland football final
All-Ireland SFC final: Donegal v Kerry, Croke Park, 3.30pm (B. Cawley, Kildare) Live RTÉ2, BBC2 The SFC kicked off last April 5, and to date there have been 98 games played, with one to go. HOW THEY GOT THERE DONEGAL (Won 9, Lost 1) Ulster SFC preliminary rd: Donegal 1-25 Derry 1-15. Ulster SFC quarter-final: Donegal 0-23 Monaghan 0-21. Ulster SFC semi-final: Donegal 1-19 Down 0-16 Ulster SFC final: Donegal 2-23 Armagh 0-28 (after extra time) All-Ireland SFC group stages: Tyrone 2-17 Donegal 0-20, Donegal 3-26 Cavan 1-13, Donegal 0-19 Mayo 1-15. All-Ireland SFC prelim quarter-final: Donegal 2-22 Louth 0-12 All-Ireland SFC quarter-final: Donegal 1-26 Monaghan 1-20 All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Donegal 3-26 Meath 0-15. KERRY (Won 7, Lost 1) Munster SFC semi-final: Kerry 3-21 Cork 1-25 (after extra time) Munster SFC final: Kerry 4-20 Clare 0-21 All-Ireland SFC group stages: Kerry 3-18 Roscommon 0-17, Kerry 1-28 Cork 0-20, Meath 1-22 Kerry 0-16. All-Ireland SFC prelim quarter-final: Kerry 3-20 Cavan 1-17 All-Ireland SFC quarter-final: Kerry 0-32 Armagh 1-21. All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Kerry 1-20 Tyrone 0-17. DID YOU KNOW? Jack O'Connor is leading Kerry into the All-Ireland Final for the eighth time, having presided over wins in 2004 (Mayo), 2006 (Mayo), 2009 (Cork), 2022 (Galway) and defeats in 2005 (Tyrone) 2011 (Dublin) and 2023 (Dublin). Both Donegal and Kerry have been taken to extra-time once in this championship, with both winning. Kerry beat Cork by two points in the Munster Semi-Final, while Donegal beat Armagh by a point in the Ulster Final. Brendan Cawley is the first referee from Kildare to referee an All-Ireland Final since Michael Monahan in 2005 (Kerry v Tyrone). 2025 Allianz League and Championship Records: Donegal: P17, W13, Lost 4 (Galway, Tyrone and Mayo in Division 1 and Tyrone in SFC). Kerry: P16; W12, L4 (Donegal, Dublin and Mayo in Division 1 and Meath in SFC). KERRY v Ulster opposition in All-Ireland finals (W5, D1, L6) 1930: Kerry 3-11 Monaghan 0-2 1937: Kerry 2-5 Cavan 1-8 (draw) 1937: Kerry 4-4 Cavan 1-7 (replay) 1947: Cavan 2-11 Kerry 2-7. 1953: Kerry 0-13 Armagh 1-6. 1960: Down 2-10 Kerry 0-8. 1968: Down 2-12 Kerry 1-13. 1986: Kerry 2-15 Tyrone 1-10. 2002: Armagh 1-12 Kerry 0-14. 2005: Tyrone 1-16 Kerry 2-10. 2008: Tyrone 1-15 Kerry 0-14. 2014: Kerry 2-9 Donegal 0-12. John Fogarty's big match preview You might think there's nought between this pair. We speak not of 2014 but the indications in Kerry that Donegal's 2025 preparations began before the clocks went back in '24. 'I think the whole country knows they have a lot of training done, a good bit more than us,' said Jack O'Connor in January before the counties' Division 1, Round 1 game, which was postponed as Donegal couldn't travel. 'I'm trying to be as diplomatic as I can there.' Kerry know they have been in the crosshairs of Jim McGuinness for quite some time now. Nevertheless, irrespective of their injuries and playing just one less game than Donegal this year, they will consider themselves fresher. To offset Donegal's energy, they will have to be. Putting an argument together for a Donegal win isn't difficult – their superior spread of scorers, what should be an advantage in midfield and the towering presence of Michael Murphy. Their recent routs against Monaghan and Meath might suggest they are peaking at the right time. But Kerry's Croke Park experiences have come against Division 1 opposition. Adding Donegal to Armagh and Tyrone would complete quite the trifecta for O'Connor. In even better form than 2022, David Clifford will have a shadow behind him in Brendan McCole and in front of him likely in the form of Ryan McHugh. To combat that resistance, the drives Joe O'Connor, Gavin White and Brian Ó Beaglaoich are what will pull Donegal out of shape and the Ulster champions have been porous on occasions. Where it seems an occupational hazard for Kerry and Shane Ryan's expert shot-stopping is consider the fail safe, such a trade-off is not part of the deal for Donegal. Two of Jack O'Connor's last two All-Ireland successes have been achieved without a goal. If they aren't booming over two-pointers, they will have to find the net here. Paul Geaney's clinical eye was missed as Kerry gave up an abundance of goal chances against Tyrone. He should see action for the first time since the group game against Cork. Before he does, Seán O'Shea's high level of execution could be utilised in the inside line. From McGuinness to Ryan McHugh to Paddy McBrearty, the remaining members of Donegal's class of 2014 have spoken openly about how that final defeat has haunted them. For Murphy too, it must be too be a potent rallying cause. If captain McBrearty believes Donegal have underachieved since 2012, what must Kerry's golden generation of minors think of these past eight senior seasons? Sunday marks skipper White, Clifford, Seán O'Shea, Diarmuid O'Connor and Ó Beaglaoich's fourth final, excluding the 2019 replay. Their one All-Ireland brings to mind what O'Connor told the Mayo dressing room after the 2006 final, that one season without the Sam Maguire Cup was akin to the 55 years Mayo at that time had been waiting for the cannister. Donegal's modus operandi seems to be doing it for the county. For Kerry, it's a lot more personal. In what should be a game of seconds, their years of hurt can count for more. Verdict: Kerry.
