Neil Ryan competed in the men’s 100 metres at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, finishing 7th in his heat.

Ryan and Gary Ryan (no relation) were the first Irish athletes to represent Ireland in the short sprints since 1960, and their selection and performance at Atlanta proved a catalyst for the development of a new culture in Irish sprinting – with sprinters represented at every subsequent Games.

Neil Ryan devoted his teenage years to playing Gaelic football at St Flannan’s College in Ennis and then association football. He was in his early twenties when his sprinting prowess was discovered by athletics coach Paddy Fay. He achieved the B standard of 10.53 seconds in Cork in June 1996 and won the Irish national 100 metres championship to earn his selection for Atlanta.