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Former 1980 Olympic and marathon Irish national champion Pat Hooper died at the age of 68.
Club member Raheny Shamrock died suddenly of a suspected heart attack.
Hooper, a very popular figure in the Irish athletics world, achieved a personal best of 2:17:46 to win the national title in 1979 and the following year he competed in the Moscow Games.
He finished 42nd in Moscow, four places behind his younger brother Dick, a three-time winner of the Dublin Marathon.
Hooper was an integral part in the growth of the Raheny Shamrock athletic club and was a permanent fixture at a wide range of sporting events across the country as a volunteer.
Hooper, a longtime member of the Athletics Ireland Competition Committee, was re-elected as President of Leinster Athletics in January and is the current President of the Dublin Athletic Board.
Our hearts are broken 💔
Irish Athletics has lost a great server, an absolute gentleman who gave so much to the sport both on and off the track.
Pat Hooper, the 1980 Olympian, has passed away.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and the broker community at large – RIP ❤️ pic.twitter.com/7xojpAiKWS
– KBC Dublin Marathon (@dublinmarathon) October 9, 2020
I am so sorry to hear about the death of Pat Hooper.
For all the time that I have been in athletics, I have heard his name spoken highly and I saw the impact and legacy he had on our sport.
My thoughts and prayers go out to his entire family.
Thank you Pat for giving so much to our sport. https://t.co/CFl1QKPbLa
– Ciara Mageean (@ciaramageean) October 9, 2020
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