Donegal sport is in mourning today following the death of one of the county’s greatest athletes.
Cyril O’Boyle, 91, late of Glenswilly, was one of the foremost athletes in Donegal in his time.
Born in Belcruit, Cyril – pictured with his daughter, Moira, by whom he is predeceseased – won the Irish Senior and junior cross-country tiles and the Irish 1500m crown in 1952:
In 1953, he won the one-mile title and a year later added the four-mile honour to his name.
He was selected on the Donegal team of the century, the millennium team, in 2000 and was honoured with the inaugural Hall of Fame award in 2016 by the Donegal Athletics Board
Cyril spent many years with Strabane AC and lived in Scotland for a time with his beloved wife, Noreen and their family.
A keen hunter, Cyril was one of the legendary figure of the athletics world in Donegal.
“He was a lovely man,” said Patsy McGonagle of Finn Valley AC, the Irish Athletics Team Manager.
“He had A tough approach to hard training and he exercised daily into his nineties.
“When we recall athletes in this region in the years ahead he will be in an exalted position.”
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