'Our fans kept us going to the finish line', says Rachel

OPERATION Transformation leader Rachel Walker has revealed that the support she received from thousands of fans spurred her on in her five-kilometre run in the Phoenix Park over the weekend.
The Tallaght woman, who had rarely exercised before the diet programme, had no trouble completing the run on Saturday with the support of around 5,000 Dubliners who ran, jogged and walked beside her.

"It's great to have such support, we needed that kind of final push before the end of the show," the mum-of-three said.
The RTE show's experts, nutrition specialist Dr Eva Orsmond, psychologist Eddie Murphy and fitness guru Karl Henry, donned their trainers to take part, as did presenter Kathryn Thomas.
The final episode of the show will air this Wednesday.
Rachel (36) told the Herald that although the series was ending, she had every intention of following the strict regime imposed on her while she was filmed.
"I want to start wearing nice dresses and skirts for my birthday in May and build on all I've achieved with Operation Transformation so I'm going to need small weekly targets like we've been doing for the last two months," she said.
"I'm not sure yet where I'll do the weigh-ins but someone else has to do it so that I feel the pressure like I do now."
The 5ft4 brunette has also found that plenty of her relations were keen to help her keep on track.
"My brother Stephen is really fit and he'll be helping me stick to my exercise routine," she said.
Since the diet programme started in January, the Tallaght native has shed an impressive 1st4lbs and is now only one small pound away from her 12st 6lbs target for the series.
Having lost two dress sizes and four bra cups, Rachel is now slimmer than she has been in the last two years.
"I've gone from a size 18 to trousers that are size 14, I still can't quite believe it but it makes me confident that I can reach my next target, I want to be around 10st," she added.

Garda detective who left his gun in hotel toilet will keep his job

AN ARMED garda detective will keep his job -- despite leaving a lethal pistol in a Dublin hotel toilet.
According to sources, the detective will not face further action for leaving the standard-issue Sig Sauer pistol in the bathroom of the five star Merrion Hotel.
The detective only realised he had misplaced his weapon 30 minutes after leaving the hotel with the high profile VIP he was protecting.
It is understood that the garda may face disciplinary sanctions but will not be sacked.
The detective was on duty while the VIP he was protecting dined in the Michelin star Patrick Guilbaud restaurant in Dublin's Merrion Hotel.
He removed his high-powered Sig Sauer pistol from around his waist to use the toilet and apparently left it behind.
There have been unconfirmed reports that a member of the public handed in the weapon before the detective returned to the hotel to reclaim it.
A chief superintendent has been appointed by new Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan to investigate the incident.
Commissioner Callinan, who was appointed to the top post in the gardai in December, has ordered the high-level investigation into the lapse.
Responsible
Armed gardai are responsible for their own weapons and can face disciplinary action if they do not take proper care with their weapon.
Each detective is issued with a personal weapon that is normally stored at a secure location at the garda station but that may be taken home.
There is a list of safety guidelines in relation to weapons-handling for gardai.
Some ambassadors, senior diplomats and foreign dignitaries are given armed protection 24 hours a day during their time here.
Officers in the detective units carry guns, mostly the modern Sig Sauer P226 semi-automatic.
In January of last year a major investigation was launched after a Sig Sauer pistol was stolen from the home of a Special Branch detective in Dublin.
They launched a hunt for the burglars and the Sig Sauer semi-automatic pistol which belongs to a member of the Garda Special Detective Unit.
The gun was locked in a safe at the officer's home.
The safe was recovered by gardai in north Dublin. It had been prised open using heavy cutters.
The gun has not been recovered.

AK-47 found near school was used in gang war

A REPLICA AK-47 assault rifle found in Bray was part of an arsenal of weapons being used by a gang to threaten rivals.
The discovery was made in undergrowth during a planned search of ground beside St Gerard's school on Thornhill Road in the Co Wicklow town during a search for a different weapon.
Gardai investigating the shooting of Glen McGrath outside the Cappagh Nua pub in Finglas on January 30, as well as a series of shootings in the Bray area in the past month, had been looking for a shotgun in the waste ground beside the school.
FINGERPRINTS
But as well as finding the components of the shotgun, they also discovered the AK-47 lying beside the wall of the exclusive school.
The weapon, which was a replica, is still undergoing analysis in the garda ballistics division for fingerprints and other forensic evidence, but senior gardai believe it was part of a cache of more weapons.
"Two other similar guns have been found in the Bray area in recent times, and while we cannot say they were used for a specific crime, it is more likely they were used by one criminal gang to intimidate or threaten another," said a source close to the investigation.
At the time of the find, on February 2, gardai were surprised to locate the gun because it appeared to have been there for some time with no real effort to conceal it.
Although it had been overgrown to some degree by briars and ivy, it was not buried or protected from the elements.
Gardai believe the gun was placed there to be picked up shortly afterwards, but for some unknown reason it was left there, possibly for months.
Specially trained gardai using slash-hooks and metal detectors made the discovery and immediately called scene-of- crime officers to have the gun examined before removing it to ensure it was safe.
Gardai said they were relieved to have such a weapon taken off the streets.