Poděbrady Race Walking Festival 2019 (6th April)

European standards achieved by Matthew Glennon and Oisin Lane

As usual, the Poděbrady Race Walking Festival in the Czech Republic on Saturday 6th April included the Czech National Championships, an International match and it was a European Athletics Race Walking Permit Meeting, giving the event a real top class International flavour. Oisin Lane and Matthew Glennon were among the contingent from Ireland with coach Michael Lane and they competed in the Junior Men 10k Race Walk. Matthew was in brilliant form and really rose to the occasion with a terrific seventeenth place finish in 47:04, a big personal best time but much more significantly it is inside the qualification standard for the European Youth (u/18) Olympics Festival (EYOF) that will take place in Azerbaijan in July. This is a big breakthrough for Matthew and comes on the back of the long hard hours put in at training under Michael Lane’s watchful eye. Oisin finished eleventh in 45:23, which is also a new personal best and is the second time this season he has finished inside the standards for the EYOF and the European Race Walking Cup in Lithuania in May but it is also inside the standard for the European Junior T&F in Sweden in July, so it was a big step for Oisin too.