Tommy Hughes

Tommy Hughes ran the Olympic marathon at Barcelona in 1992, finishing 72nd. An electrician by career, he had only begun running at age 23 to lose some weight, but discovered he had a talent for distances. He eventually won the Belfast Marathon in 1988 and 1998, and the Dublin Marathon in 1991.

After the 1990s Hughes focused on his career and unfortunately, on his drinking, becoming an alcoholic. In 2008 he began running again, although he was still drinking, and in the early 2010s his addiction was becoming life-threatening. However, in 2018 it was discovered that he had a tumor on his parathyroid gland and surgery to remove it was successful, after which Hughes quit drinking cold turkey.

As his electrician career wound down, he again focused on running and in his 50s began to set age-group records for distances. In 2018 he led Ireland to a bronze medal at the World Masters Half-Marathon Championship. In April 2019, at the Rotterdam Marathon, he recorded 2-30:15, and later that fall, in Frankfurt, Hughes ran 2-27:52 for a 55+ age group marathon record. In September 2020, at age 60, Hughes ran the Antrim Coast Half-Marathon in 1-11:09, setting another age group record.

Personal Best: Mar – 2-13:59 (1992).