Ciara Mageean has paid an emotional tribute to her 'friend, mentor and father figure' Jerry Kiernan.
The death of the former Olympian, who was aged 67, was announced on Thursday.
The Listowel man finished ninth in the Olympic marathon in Los Angeles in 1984, and in recent years he coached top athletes including Mageean and John Travers.
Speaking on RTE Drivetime following Kiernan's passing, a tearful Mageean said: “He was more than just a coach to me.
"To everybody else he was my coach, but he was more than that.
"He was a friend and a mentor and, to be honest, he was like a father figure to me in Dublin.
“He had this special ability to meet anybody at their level.
"He was a humble man, a tough man – I’d say people from the outside thought he was very hard and stern, but anybody who knew him closely knew that wasn’t the case. He was a big softy.
"He called me his regazza. He has two lovely sons who I know are going to miss him dearly, and I felt like part of his family.
"I felt like a daughter and he was like a father to me. There was something special there with Jerry."
Mageean worked under Kiernan for four years before moving to Manchester and says it was the toughest decision she has ever made.
The Co Down runner explained: "It was the hardest thing in my life actually, leaving Dublin and coming to Manchester – it was a really tough decision for me in my athletics career.
"It wasn’t necessarily tough leaving Ireland to move to England… my boyfriend might be upset to hear it wasn’t hard leaving him in Dublin and coming to Manchester, it was hard leaving Jerry.
"I felt like I broke his heart a little bit and it broke my heart a lot leaving him as my coach, but also as my friend.
"The bond we had as coach and athlete was something special."
She added: "He took me under his wing and nurtured me, and made me believe in my ability. He was a special man, he definitely was, and he’s going to be missed by many.
"There’ll never be another Jerry Kiernan, that’s for sure."
