By ELLIOTT DENMAN

Irish eyes were smiling – ever so brightly.

The 112^th Millrose Games had raced to a slam-bang

conclusion last Saturday evening – Ajee Wilson’s

American-record 1:58.60 800-meter triumph followed by Yomif Kejelcha’s staggering 3:48.46  mile – and no eyes were brighter than honored Millrose guest Eamonn Coghlan’s or meet director Ray Flynn’s.

 Flynn, who continues to be the mile record-holder for

Ireland – his 3:49.77 at Oslo’s Bislett Games on July 7, 1982  has not been surpassed by a countryman in the succeeding 36 ½ years – is now gaining recognition as an unsurpassedmeet director, as well.

The 112^th edition of the meet was surely one of the greatest Millrose gatherings of them all.  There was something in it for everybody – from the Fastest Kid in the World 55-meter dashes for boys and girls to the Masters relays that featured some of the spryest sexagenarians and septuagenarians on the planet.

  All was not pure delight, of course. The unfortunate collapse of Jamaican champion Kemoy Campbell, early into the Dr. Norbert Sander Men’s 3,000 meters, sent a shudder through the Armory. However, the brightening news since is that Campbell is now awake and on the road to recovery at the Columbia New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

  Wilson of Neptune, New Jersey added yet another decisive win to her prestigious career in the Jack and Lewis Rudin 800m. Still only 24, Wilson is the brightest light in American women’s 800-meter racing since Olympic champion Madeline Manning Mims a half-century ago. After she dispatched a strong field that included Natoya Goule to get the record, it was time for the Wanamaker Milers to get on with the show.

  And nobody in the Armory appreciated Kejelcha’s brilliance in the mile more than Coghlan, the one and only “Chairman of the Boards.” The Villanova Irishman won the Wanamaker Mile seven times between 1977 and 1987, set the meet record of 3:53.0 that endured until Bernard Lagat ran 3:52.87 in 2005, set the indoor world record of 3:49.78 in 1983, and broke the

four-minute barrier 83 times in a storied career.

 Coghlan ran all of his great Wanamaker Mile races

at Madison Square Garden, where he became known as one of the few track and field celebrities who could draw thousands of fans into the famous arena. The decision to move Millrose from the Garden to The Armory in 2012 attracted some criticism at the time, but Coghlan was always enthusiastic.

  Indeed, Coghlan was gushing with exuberance soon as he touched down in America on his annual Millrose pilgrimage from the Emerald Isle, and he maintained that stance until the final Wanamaker finisher had crossed the line. Sam Prakel finished in 3:59.36, ensuring that all ten finishers broke four minutes, and making this race one for the history books.

  With eight-time Wanamaker championLagat at his side, Coghlan had the honor of firing the starting pistol. The two legends were then treated to a remarkable race.

“When [Kejelcha] hit the halfway mark, I turned to Bernard and said, begorrah, he’s going to get it,” said Coghlan.“We were with him all the way, willing it to happen. He fell short by just 1/100^th of a second.  How close and so far.It surely ranks among the very best performances of all time, there’s no question about it. Perhaps the sport’s been a little stagnant the past few years.I think it’s time for a shakeup, and [Kejelcha] may be the one leading the way.He seems to have everything going for him. Best of all, the crowd was with him all the way, they were a big part of it.Tell you the truth, it was a lot like the old days.”