Maeve Kyle, Irish trailblazer and 3-time Olympian, dies at 96

DUBLIN AP Maeve Kyle who became Ireland s first female track-and-field Olympian when she competed at the Melbourne Games has died She was The Olympic Federation of Ireland disclosed Wednesday that Kyle was a trailblazer for women s sport The cause of death was not disclosed She competed at three consecutive Olympic Games Melbourne Rome and Tokyo at a time when women had to overcome huge prejudice and when opportunities in international athletics were extremely limited the federation stated in its announcement The federation also praised the breadth of Kyle s career A sprinter and middle-distance runner she represented Ireland in the m and m sprints in and and went on to reach the semifinals of the m at the age of in Tokyo cementing her status as one of Ireland s all-time greats on the track the comment added Kyle also represented Ireland more than times in field hockey We have lost a legend of Irish Olympic sport who rose to the top despite huge challenges in s Ireland She was an inspiration to us all May she rest in peace OFI president Lochlann Walsh stated AP Sports https apnews com sports Source