{{short description|Irish race walker}} {{Use Hiberno-English|date=August 2014}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}} {{Infobox sportsperson | image= Robert Heffernan by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg | image_size=240px | caption= Heffernan wins the World Championships of 2013 in Moscow | birth_date= {{birth date and age|df=yes|1978|2|28}} | birth_place= [[Cork (city)|Cork]], Ireland | spouse= [[Marian Heffernan]] | height={{height|m=1.71}} | weight={{cvt|58|kg}} | pb= 20 km: 1:19:22<br />50 km: 3:37:54<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/ireland/robert-heffernan-139453|title=Robert Heffernan|publisher=[[World Athletics]]|via=worldathletics.org}}</ref> | country= {{IRL}} | sport =Racewalking | event=[[20 kilometres race walk|20 km race walk]], [[50 kilometres race walk|50 km race walk]] | medaltemplates = {{MedalSport|Men's athletics}} {{MedalCountry|{{IRL}}}} {{MedalOlympic}} {{MedalBronze|[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics|2012 London]]|[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|50 km walk]]}} {{MedalCompetition|[[IAAF World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]}} {{MedalGold|[[2013 World Championships in Athletics|2013 Moscow]]|[[2013 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|50 km walk]]}} {{MedalCompetition|[[European Athletics Championships|European Championships]]}} {{MedalBronze |[[2010 European Athletics Championships|2010 Barcelona]]|[[2010 European Athletics Championships – Men's 20 kilometres walk|20 km walk]]}} }} '''Robert Heffernan''' (born 28 February 1978) is an Irish [[race walking|race walker]].
==Career== At the [[2000 Olympics]] he finished in 28th place in the [[Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|20 km walk]], and at the [[2004 Olympics]] he was disqualified.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/he/robbie-heffernan-1.html|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200418021245/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/he/robbie-heffernan-1.html|url-status = dead|archive-date = 18 April 2020|title = Robert Heffernan at sports-reference.com|access-date = 11 October 2014|website = www.sports-reference.com}}</ref>
At the [[2008 Olympic Games]] he improved, coming eighth in the 20 km walk. His wife Marian Andrews is also national women's 400 metres champion and was on the Irish women's team that finished 4th in the European indoors. On 27 July 2010, Heffernan won the bronze medal in the 2010 European Athletics Championships in the 20 kilometres walk, posting a time of 1:21:00 (achieved retrospectively in 2014 after Russian Stanislav Emelyanov was found to have committed an anti-doping violation). He also finished 4th in the [[2010 European Athletics Championships – Men's 50 kilometres walk|50km walk]] in a national record time of 3:45:30, a notable achievement just three days after the 20 km event.
At the [[2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Olympics]], Heffernan finished ninth in the [[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|20km]] race. A week later he finished fourth in the [[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|50km]], finishing seven minutes faster than the previous national record. His achievements in London were the top two performances for the Irish Athletics team at the 2012 Olympics.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/other-sports/london-can-spur-rob-to-medal-in-moscow-says-loughnane-239370.html|title=London can spur Rob to medal in Moscow, says Loughnane|date=9 August 2013|work=Irish Examiner|access-date=14 August 2013 }}</ref>
In early 2015, it was revealed that a number of Russian male and female champion racewalkers were under investigation for doping violations including the winner of the 50 km walk in London, Sergey Kirdyapkin. The athlete was retrospectively suspended during specific periods between 2009 and 2012 by his federation (RUSADA) and had most of his results annulled —including world titles, but not his Olympic title.
The IAAF were unhappy with the verdict made by the Russian Athletics federation and made it clear that they would be taking the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) believing that the ban should include his participation in the London Olympics. In a statement, the IAAF disagreed with the selective disqualification of results applied by RUSADA.
On 24 March 2016, the court of Arbitration for Sport favoured the IAAF and Heffernan was upgraded to Olympic Bronze.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/sport/olympic-star-robert-heffernan-finally-receives-bronze-medal-after-doper-is-disqualified-34569166.html|title= Olympic star Robert Heffernan finally receives bronze medal after doper is disqualified|date=11 June 2014|work=Irish Independent|access-date=25 March 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/sport/athletics/2016/0324/777122-heffernan-set-to-receive-olympic-bronze/|title= Olive Loughnane and Robert Heffernan to receive major medals and justice|date=11 June 2014|work=RTÉ Sport|access-date=25 March 2016}}</ref> He received his bronze medal in November 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|date=July 12, 2021|title=Reallocation of Olympic Medals an Arduous Process|url=https://www.infobae.com/aroundtherings/articles/2021/07/12/reallocation-of-olympic-medals-an-arduous-process/|access-date=2021-08-12|website=infobae|language=es-ES}}</ref>
===2013 World championships=== {{main|2013 World Championships in Athletics}} On 14 August 2013, Heffernan finished first in the [[2013 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|2013 World Championships in Athletics]] [[50 kilometres race walk|50km event]] in [[Moscow, Russia|Moscow]], finishing over a minute clear of the silver medal position with a winning time of 3:37:56.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/ireland-s-rob-heffernan-strikes-gold-in-50km-walk-1.1493924|title=Ireland's Rob Heffernan strikes gold in 50km walk|date=14 August 2013|work=[[The Irish Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-sports/rob-heffernan-it-was-a-bonus-that-i-destroyed-everyone-29498542.html|title=Rob Heffernan: It was a bonus that I destroyed everyone|date=14 August 2013|work=Irish Independent|access-date=14 August 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.breakingnews.ie/sport/other/proud-heffernan-we-are-as-good-as-anybody-603585.html|title='Proud' Heffernan: We are as good as anybody|date=14 August 2013|work=Irish Examiner/BreakingNews.ie|access-date=14 August 2013 }}</ref> Speaking after the race Heffernan said "Its surreal, it's just a great feeling," he said. "When I came into the stadium it just felt like an out of body experience. It's hard to take it all in at the moment. I'm delighted."<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2013/aug/14/robert-heffernan-gold-50km-walk|title=Robert Heffernan wins Ireland's first world gold for 18 years in 50km walk|date=14 August 2013|work=Guardian|access-date=14 August 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thescore.ie/rob-hefferan-gold-50k-walk-moscow-2013-1036125-Aug2013/ |title=Ireland's Rob Heffernan claims gold at World Track and Field Championships |date=14 August 2013 |work=The Score |access-date=14 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130816074548/http://www.thescore.ie/rob-hefferan-gold-50k-walk-moscow-2013-1036125-Aug2013/ |archive-date=16 August 2013 }}</ref> The winning time was the fastest time in the world in 2013 by more than three minutes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eveningecho.ie/2013/08/14/leeside-legend-rob-gets-his-just-reward/|title=Leeside Legend Rob Gets His Just Reward|date=14 August 2013|work=Evening Echo|access-date=14 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140301232735/http://www.eveningecho.ie/2013/08/14/leeside-legend-rob-gets-his-just-reward/|archive-date=1 March 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.independent.ie/sport/other-sports/rob-heffernan-aiming-for-rio-after-his-rocky-moment-29500999.html|title= Rob Heffernan aiming for Rio after his 'Rocky' moment|date=15 August 2013|work=Irish Independent|access-date=15 August 2013 }}</ref>
==Other work== In November 2022, Heffernan was announced as performance coach of the [[Cork county football team|Cork senior footballers]], working under the management of [[John Cleary (Gaelic footballer)|John Cleary]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rte.ie/sport/football/2022/1125/1338385-heffernan-joins-cork-backroom-team-as-performance-coach/|title=Rob Heffernan joins Cork backroom team as performance coach|publisher=RTÉ|date=25 November 2022}}</ref>
==Performance at major championships== {| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}} |- !colspan="6"|Representing {{IRL}} |- |rowspan=2|1999 |[[1999 IAAF World Race Walking Cup|World Race Walking Cup]] |[[Mézidon-Canon]], [[France]] |70th |20 km |[[1999 IAAF World Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:32:14]] |- |[[1999 European Athletics U23 Championships|European U23 Championships]] |[[Göteborg, Sweden]] |13th |20 km |[[1999 European Athletics U23 Championships – Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:36:26]] |- |rowspan=2|2000 |[[2000 European Race Walking Cup|European Race Walking Cup]] |[[Eisenhüttenstadt, Germany]] |18th |20 km |[[2000 European Race Walking Cup#20 km walk|1:22:43]] |- |[[Athletics at the 2000 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] |[[Sydney, Australia]] |28th |20 km |[[Athletics at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Men's 20 km walk|1:26:04]] |- |rowspan=2|2001 |[[2001 European Race Walking Cup|European Race Walking Cup]] |[[Dudince, Slovakia]] |17th |20 km |[[2001 European Race Walking Cup#20 km walk|1:23:57]] |- |[[2001 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] |[[Edmonton, Canada]] |14th |20 km |[[2001 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:25:02]] |- |2002 |[[2002 European Championships in Athletics|European Championships]] |[[Munich, Germany]] |8th |20 km |[[2002 European Championships in Athletics - Men's 20 km Walk|1:21:10]] |- |rowspan=2|2004 |[[2004 IAAF World Race Walking Cup|World Race Walking Cup]] |[[Naumburg, Germany]] |27th |20 km |[[2004 IAAF World Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:22:58]] |- |[[Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] |[[Athens, Greece]] | — |20 km |[[Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|DSQ]] |- |2005 |[[2005 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] |[[Helsinki, Finland]] | — |20 km |[[2005 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|DSQ]] |- |2007 |[[2007 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] |[[Osaka, Japan]] |6th |20 km |[[2007 World Championships in Athletics - Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:23:42]] |- |rowspan=2|2008 |[[2008 IAAF World Race Walking Cup|World Race Walking Cup]] |[[Cheboksary]], [[Russia]] |9th |20 km |[[2008 IAAF World Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:19:22]] (PB) |- |[[Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] |[[Beijing, China]] |8th |20 km |[[Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:20:36]] |- |rowspan=2|2009 |[[2009 European Race Walking Cup|European Race Walking Cup]] |[[Metz, France]] |4th |20 km |[[2009 European Race Walking Cup#20 km walk|1:25:21]] |- |[[2009 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] |[[Berlin, Germany]] |15th |20 km |[[2009 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:22:09]] |- |rowspan=2|2010 |rowspan=2|[[2010 European Athletics Championships|European Championships]] |rowspan=2|[[Barcelona, Spain]] |bgcolor="CC9966"|'''3rd''' |20 km |[[2010 European Athletics Championships – Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:21:00]] |- |4th |50 km |[[2010 European Athletics Championships – Men's 50 kilometres walk|3:45:30]] |- |2011 |[[2011 European Race Walking Cup|European Race Walking Cup]] |[[Olhão, Portugal]] |9th |20 km |[[2011 European Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:25:34]] |- |rowspan=3|2012 |[[2012 IAAF World Race Walking Cup|World Race Walking Cup]] |[[Saransk, Russia]] |11th |20 km |[[2012 IAAF World Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:21:51]] |- |rowspan=2|[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] |rowspan=2|[[London, England]] |9th |20 km |[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 20 kilometres walk|1:20:18]] |- |bgcolor="CC9966"|'''3rd''' |50 km |[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|3:37:54]] (PB) |- |rowspan=2|2013 |[[2013 European Race Walking Cup|European Race Walking Cup]] |[[Dudince, Slovakia]] |9th |20 km |[[2013 European Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:23:26]] |- |[[2013 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] |[[Moscow, Russia]] |bgcolor=Gold|'''1st''' |50 km |[[2013 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|3:37:56]] |- |2014 |[[2014 IAAF World Race Walking Cup|World Race Walking Cup]] |[[Taicang, China]] |23rd |20 km |[[2014 IAAF World Race Walking Cup#Men's 20 km|1:21:00]] |- |2015 |[[2015 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] |[[Beijing, China]] |5th |50 km |[[2015 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|3:44:17]] |- |rowspan="1"|2016 |rowspan="1"|[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] |rowspan="1"|[[Rio de Janeiro, Brazil]] | 6th |50 km |[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 kilometres walk|3:43:55]] |}
== Personal life == Heffernan is married to [[Marian Heffernan]], a 400M Olympian, and lives with his wife and family in Cork city. He has written an autobiography of his life called Walking Tall in 2016.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Heffernan|first=Rob|title=Walking Tall|year=2016|location=Amazon}}</ref> His son, [[Cathal Heffernan]], plays football for [[Newcastle United F.C. Reserves and Academy|Newcastle United's U21 squad]] and has played for the Republic of Ireland u17 and u19 teams.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/international-soccer/15-year-old-son-of-olympians-rob-and-marian-heffernan-set-to-train-with-juventus-and-ac-milan-40171877.html |title= 15-year-old son of Olympians Rob and Marian Heffernan set to train with Juventus and AC Milan |last1= McDonnell |first1= Daniel |date=8 March 2021 |work=[[Irish Independent]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-16 |title=Cathal Heffernan explains why he chose to sign for Newcastle United |url=https://onefootball.com/en/news/cathal-heffernan-explains-why-he-chose-to-sign-for-newcastle-united-38094164 |access-date=2025-02-16 |website=OneFootball |language=en}}</ref> His daughter, Meghan Carr,<ref>{{cite web|url = https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/healthandwellbeing/arid-41163112.html | work = Irish Examiner | title = Like father, like daughter: Irish sportswomen and their Dads | date = 18 June 2023 | accessdate = 17 February 2025 }}</ref> plays in the [[League of Ireland Women's Premier Division|LOI Women's Premier Division]] for [[Waterford F.C.|Waterford]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-09 |title=Carr is a Blue! |url=https://waterfordfc.ie/2025/02/09/carr-is-a-blue/ |access-date=2025-02-16 |website=Waterford FC |language=en-IE}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{World Athletics}} *[https://www.irishtimes.com/sports/olympics/irish/athletics-heffernan.htm Irish Times Olympic Profile]
{{Footer World Champions 50 km Walk Men}} {{Footer WBYP Race Walk Men}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heffernan, Robert}} [[Category:1978 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Cork county football team non-playing personnel]] [[Category:European Athletics Championships medalists]] [[Category:Irish men race walkers]] [[Category:Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics]] [[Category:Olympic athletes for Ireland]] [[Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Ireland]] [[Category:Olympic bronze medalists in athletics]] [[Category:Athletes from Cork (city)]] [[Category:People educated at Coláiste Chríost Rí]] [[Category:World Athletics Championships athletes for Ireland]] [[Category:World Athletics Championships medalists]] [[Category:World Athletics Championships winners]]