Seán Tobin finished 11th in the final of the 3000m at the European Indoor Championships in Poland on Sunday evening.
For the Clonmel man - Ireland's last chance of a medal at the competition - it was a thoroughly unsatisfying result.
"Ah, pretty rough - that was very disappointing," Tobin told RTÉ following the race.
"It feels embarrassing, being honest.
"Clearly the head wasn't there. When it went, I didn't go and my mind was screaming at me to go. I don't know, I let it go and switched off. That shouldn't at these sort of levels.
"I felt pretty good coming off yesterday; today I felt pretty good. Still, it just shows our group - (Andrew) Coscoran was seventh and Paul (Robinson) was 10th (in the 1500m) - we're all good enough to get to a final now but that's not good enough for us.
"It's a step in the right direction."
The 26-year-old, who ran a personal best in the 3000m heats on Saturday, added that his future lies in longer distances.
"I think the marathon is where I belong," said Tobin.
"I've always felt more comfortable over the cross-country and I've dipped my toes in the road [races].
"A lot of my training suggests I'd be strong aerobically over the long stuff. I'm here now because there are no marathon opportunities to qualify for the Olympics.
"That's just disappointing - I was the last man on for the Irish team and that's the last thing I wanted to do.
"I did everything right until about a K (kilometre to go). Cearly, we probably need another year to get stronger, get together, and get more experience of being able to come back on back-to-back days like this.
"Again, back to your question, the marathon is probably the future."
A somewhat disappointed @SeanTobin94 spoke in the aftermath of his 11th-place finish in the 3,000 metres #Torun2021 @irishathletics pic.twitter.com/iHnRpBSIYd
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) March 7, 2021
Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
See Also: Drama After The Finish Line In Men's 1500m Final At European Indoors
