1. Ronald Michael Delany was born on 6 March 1935 and is an Irish former athlete who specialised in middle-distance running.
19 Facts About Ron Delany
1. 2.
Ron Delany won a gold medal in the 1500 metres at the 1956 Summer Olympics.
3.
Ron Delany later earned a bronze medal in the 1500 metres event at the 1958 European Athletics Championships in Stockholm.
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Ron Delany is one of Ireland's most recognisable Olympians and international ambassadors.
5.
Ron Delany later went to the Christian Brothers' O'Connell School, North Richmond Street, to Sandymount High School and to Catholic University School.
6.
At Catholic University School, Ron Delany was first coached by Jack Sweeney, to whom he sent a telegram from Melbourne stating "We did it Jack".
7.
Ron Delany studied commerce and finance at Villanova University in the United States.
8.
Ron Delany kept close to Landy until the final lap, when Ron Delany started a crushing final sprint, winning the race in a new Olympic record.
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Ron Delany thereby became the first Irishman to win an Olympic gold medal in athletics since Bob Tisdall and Pat O'Callaghan in 1932.
10.
Ron Delany was Ireland's last Olympic champion for 36 years, until Michael Carruth won the gold medal in boxing at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.
11.
Ron Delany went on to represent Ireland at the 1960 Summer Olympics held in Rome, this time in the 800 metres.
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Ron Delany continued his running career in North America, winning four successive AAU titles in the mile, adding to his total of four Irish national titles, and three NCAA titles.
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Ron Delany was next to unbeatable on indoor tracks over that period, which included a 40-race winning streak.
14.
Ron Delany broke the World Indoor Mile Record on three occasions.
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In 1961 Ron Delany won the gold medal in the World University games in Sofia, Bulgaria.
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Ron Delany coached athletics for a period at Franciscan College Gormanston in the 1960s.
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In 2006, Ron Delany was granted the Freedom of the City of Dublin.
18.
Ron Delany was conferred with an honorary Doctor of Laws Degree by University College Dublin in 2006.
19.
In 2019, a housing scheme in Arklow, where Ron Delany was born, was named Ron Delany Park in his honour.