A Tipperary man had a front row seat for Kellie Harrington’s gold medal winning bout at the Tokyo Olympics.
Templederry native Ken Fogarty of Fogarty Films was working behind the camera for RTE at the games.
However speaking on Tipp Today he said he didn’t get to fully enjoy Kellie’s achievement at the time.
“You’re concentrating on what you’re looking at as opposed to what’s actually happening if that makes sense.”
“You’re watching to make sure the frame is right so I actually had to watch the fight afterwards. So you don’t get to really enjoy it – you feel the energy from it but you don’t really appreciate the skill that’s in it as you’re technically watching what you’re doing.”
Ken says he got to fulfil a lifelong dream by working at the Tokyo games
He owns a television production company with contracts for the likes of RTE, BBC and Channel 4 and was hired by RTE as cameraman to cover the games.
He said a trip by his uncle to the 1964 Tokyo Games left him eager to get to an Olympics himself.
“We’re very privileged in the position that we have and the places we get to go.”
“I’ve always wanted to go to Tokyo and especially for the Olympics. My uncle Jim Carey was at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and we had mementos in the house with Olympics rings and stuff like that on it.”
“So we were always saying would one of us ever get to the Olympics – not as athletes obviously – but will we get there ourselves? So it was great to get there.”
