The Olympic dream, says Keane, has been there for as long as he can remember, and by age 12 he began chasing it, first in swimming, then in running, and later in cycling - before realising he was suited to combine all three in the triathlon. Poised to qualify for London, that dream turned into a nightmare when in September 2010 he was knocked off his time-trial bike, shattering his right kneecap. Three years later, after a long recovery, in Japan, he became the first Irishman to make the podium at a Triathlon World Cup (finishing second), ready now to fulfil that lifetime dream.