New book on distinguished Mayo Olympian Martin Sheridan

A new book by Bohola author, Margaret Molloy, is on the shelves for Christmas.

Margaret has spent many years researching the story of her village’s most famous export, Martin Sheridan, who won nine Olympic medals while competing for the U.S.A., and the result is a 568-page hardback forensic account of his life and sporting achievements.

In the aftermath of the Great Famine and the Land War which had decimated the West of Ireland, employment and a way of life had to be sought in foreign lands.

Martin Sheridan from Bohola, aged 16, emigrated to New York in 1897, and found work as a trolley-car driver.

In 1906, he joined the New York Police Department and forged a career there that saw him rise up through the ranks. He also had something else going for him and that was his talent as a gifted athlete.

Track and field events were Sheridan’s forte and he excelled in throwing the discus – both in the freestyle and Greek style. Over the course of 12 years, he had nine Olympic medals to his credit – five gold, three silver and a bronze.

He won the All-round Championship of the World in track and field events in 1905, 1907 and again in 1909. He is credited with winning 12 national championships, and more than 30 American metropolitan and regional championships.

Martin Sheridan was an avid nationalist and he never lost an opportunity to further this cause whenever he could.

He took part in numerous games held at Celtic Park, New York, to raise funds for nationalist causes, and was always to the fore when anything concerning Ireland’s fight for Independence was mooted.

His nationalism was inherited from his family in Bohola, who were imbued in the politics of the time – his uncle, P.J. Sheridan, being a founder member of the Land League in Mayo and acquainted with Davitt and Parnell.

His brother Joe was married to Kitty Collins, a sister of Michael Collins, and his father and grandfather were heavily involved in the political climate.

Tragically, Martin Sheridan’s life was cut short at the age of 37. He died in New York having contracted the Spanish Flu, which killed so many in 1918. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Queens, near his beloved Celtic Park, where he gave so much pleasure to so many on the athletic field.