times of 2000. O'Sullivan finished a close second in this race to Romanian Gabriela Szabo in a time of 8:27.58. At Sydney, on 22 September, O'Sullivan won her 5000 m heat with a season's best of 15:07.91. In the final three days later, after an enthralling sprint finish, O'Sullivan won the silver medal behind Szabo in a National Record 14:41.02. She became only the second Irish woman to win an Olympic Medal, after Michelle Smith and the first Irish Track and Field Olympic Medalist since John Treacy took silver in Los Angeles in 1984. In the 10,000 m final, held on 30 September, O'Sullivan set another personal best and national record when finishing sixth in 30:53.37 performance. Shortly after the Olympics, she won the Grand Prix Final 3000 m. Following the Olympics, O'Sullivan made her marathon debut, winning the Dublin marathon in a time of 2:35:42 on 30 October. In March 2001, O'Sullivan decided to compete in the World Indoor Championships. She finished 7th in the 3000 m and 9th in the 1500 m. After this she took a break from athletics to give birth to her second daughter, Sophie. O'Sullivan returned in March 2002 for the World Cross Country Championships, being held in Dublin. She finished a respectable 7th in the Short Race, and led Ireland to Team Bronze. At the European Championships in Munich later that year, O'Sullivan attempted a defence of the two European golds she had won in 1998. In the 10,000 m she won silver in a national record of 30:47.59. O'Sullivan admitted she had been outclassed in the race by Paula Radcliffe, saying that only world record holder Wang Junxia could have beaten the British girl on the night. A few days later, O'Sullivan added a second silver in the 5000 m as she was beaten into second place by Marta Dominguez of Spain in a time of 15:14.85. Shortly afterwards she set a season's best for the 3000 m in Zurich as she finished third in a time of 8:33.62. A week later, she ran her fastest 5000 m time since her Olympic silver in London in a time of 14:46.97, as she finished third. She ended an excellent season by winning her second BUPA Great North Run title in a national record time of 67:19. 2003–2009 After an impressive 2002 season, O'Sullivan had a disappointing 2003. She started well with a win