Q3, 2024 News & Reports – July to September

SEPTEMBER

Athletics Westmeath XC – Day 1

Results of Day 1 – u/18, 19, 20 & Novice, Senior, Masters and u/8, 10, 12, 14, 16.

With the south of the Country under an orange rainfall warning and heavy rain slowly spreading north towards the Midlands from early morning, we didn’t hang around in Belvedere on Sunday morning 29th September on Day 1 of the Athletics Westmeath Cross Country Championships. Moving quickly through the programme, we managed to get all the younger age races done and dusted and saw them safely on their way home before the rain came during the last race, which was for older underage and adult members who are hardy athletes and weren’t put off by a bit of wind and rain.

Competition was for girls and boys u/8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 years of age and for women and men under 18, 19, 20 and Novice, Senior and Masters. Given the forecast, it was little surprise that there were fewer juveniles than last year, but the number of adults was up, including some from Athlone AC and Coralstown Kinnegad AC. There was great competition in each race and performances were very encouraging in the older age groups in particular, where the focus was on places on Club and County teams at the Leinster Cross Country Championships.

The boys and girls that ran in the non-Championship u/8 and u/10 races really enjoyed themselves and were delighted with their medals, one for everyone that finished. Moving to the Championships proper, the course in Belvedere is a great test of cross country endurance and those that train there regularly will have no problem with any course at Leinster. There were some very good individual performances but Championship cross country is also about team running, so everyone was being closely watched by Club coaches, particularly the newcomers. Cross country racing always throws up some surprises, but even so, we didn’t expect quite a few of the results we saw, but it’s still early in the season and some will improve more than others as we near the Leinsters, so keep up the training and continue to deliver the surprises!

All the underage races were keenly contested and the last race of the day was a combined race for girls and boys u/18, 19 and 20 years, and for novice, senior and master women and men. All the women ran 4,000m, the older master men also ran 4,000m, the senior men ran 8,000m and the rest of the men ran 6,000m, with everyone starting together and running over the same course but with different numbers of laps. It was some spectacle to see over fifty runners racing out from the start and making their way around the rolling hills of Belvedere.

The Club’s masters group was well represented and it was great to see a number of our most recent new members compete in cross country for the very first time after just a few training sessions over the last few Saturdays. The training continues each Saturday now, so further opportunities will become available as the cross country season gets into full swing in the coming weeks.

Day 2 on Sunday morning 6th October in Belvedere will be for boys and girls under 9, 11, 13, 15 and 17 years of age. The first race will be at 11am so the younger runners should be in Belvedere before 10.30am to get ready and know where they have to run. The Athletics Westmeath Cross Country is an open competition and you don’t have to be a member of a Club to take part, so everyone is very welcome to compete.

The Leinster Championships take place over two days, with two weeks between each, so juvenile athletes can run in their own age group and can move up an age group to make up teams. Therefore, we expect all juveniles to compete on both days of the Westmeath Championships unless ill or injured or they might be disappointed if not selected. The results of both days and application in training will be used to select teams to represent the Club and Westmeath in the Leinster Championships. The results of the men and women races on Day 1 will also be used to select Club and County teams for the Leinster Championships.

Thanks to all who helped to record the results, marshal and steward on the course, to the many parents who came and supported the competitors, and to the Management and Staff of Belvedere for the use of the excellent grounds, but especially to the athletes who provided great competition.

Results of Day 1 – u/18, 19, 20 & Novice, Senior, Master and u/8, 10, 12, 14, 16.

Westmeath Schools XC

Click HERE for Results.

The Westmeath Schools Cross Country took place in Belvedere on Wednesday 25th September. In contrast to the previous week of sunshine and high temperatures, it was quite cold in Belvedere on the day but we were very lucky to escape the rain that was forecast and the last race was well over and everyone was on their way home before the rain came.

Whatever the weather, the grounds in Belvedere always look great and after a week of sunshine the previous week, underfoot conditions were great for running. Thanks to the hard work put in by volunteers from the Club in setting up the course, everything was ready on the day. As always, we are indebted to the many volunteers, members and friends of Mullingar Harriers, who turn up in big numbers to help when the call goes out, and this time was no exception and we had lots of help to make the day a success. It was great to see such enthusiasm in the competitors from the young first class pupils to the older secondary school students, cheered on by a big crowd of teachers and parents. The event remains very popular and the feedback from teachers and parents was very positive, so we look forward to continued support in future years.

Sincere thanks to Westmeath Civil Defence who attended to look after any first aid needs with their customary calm and professionalism. The Management & Staff at Belvedere House and Gardens were also of great help in organising the day at a venue that is absolutely ideal for hosting such an event. Finally, our thanks to the teachers and schools for competing and ensuring that the event continues to be one of the most eagerly awaited sporting events on the calendar for those of school going age in Westmeath.

The Primary school top 20 individual finishers and team scores and the Secondary schools top 20 individual finishers are available HERE. Congratulations to all who took part and as usual, the standard of competition was extremely high and medals were hard won for all the competitors.

Star of the Sea AC Open Cross Country

A big squad of over 50 Mullingar athletes travelled to Meath on Sunday 22nd September for the Star of the Sea AC Open Cross Country, the traditional season-opener for Mullingar for many years. The event had to move from its normal course but the new course nearby was just as hilly and with a cold wind on the day, it proved quite testing for everyone, but the Mullingar athletes gave great accounts, winning 16 individual juvenile medals, including 4 gold, 7 juvenile teams won medals, our women team was second Club, and Conor Sherwin finished second place in the men race. An added bonus to the day was when Olympic athlete Andrew Coscoran of Star of the Sea AC appeared and stayed for a long time, chatting with athletes, presenting some of the medals, and happy to pose for photos, an opportunity taken by many of the young athletes from Mullingar.

The first race of the day was the u/9 girls 500m where Cara Hickey raced to second place, ahead of Mia Barry in third, and with Tara Coyne, Adele Bertolo, Cliodhna Fitzpatrick, Sophie Whitelaw, Marie Harte, Aoife Gavigan and Eanin Staunton putting in great efforts, there was little surprise that the girls finished 1st Club. Shay Gavigan was pipped right on the line of the u/9 boys 500m to finish fourth, but with great support and team packing from Austin Keaveney, Matteo Fitzpatrick, Luke Cosgrove, Senan Whelehan and Cian Clifford, it was 1st Club again for Mullingar.

We got our first individual win of the day with Emily Rose Coyne racing clear in the u/10 girls 500m, but despite great efforts from Rachel Robinson, Elsie Hegarty, Madeleine O’Brien and Rosie O’Brien, the girls were very unlucky to finish 4th Club, missing the bronze team medals by just 3 points. We had no team in the u/10 boys 500m but Emmet Walsh ran a very good race, finishing fast and strong and even though he finished out of the medals, his performance will give him confidence for the season ahead.

Seeing Lauryn Smith race to fifth place in the u/11 girls 1,000m, just ahead of Helen McGrath in sixth with Roisin Keane right behind her, and backed up by Kate Horohoe, Lyla Lennon Currill and Rose Harte, hopes were high of team gold, but it wasn’t to be, though the girls were still very pleased to finish 2nd Club, just 3 points off the gold. Our second individual victory of the day came in the u/11 boys 1,000m where Donagh Bourke won well after a great race, to lead the team of Olly Wright and Huw Keaveney to 2nd Club, narrowly missing team gold.

Grace Farry, Aoife Dunne and Faye Carroll battled well on the tough hills in the u/12 girls 1,500m and were unlucky to finish out of the medal places. No problem for the Mullingar team in the u/12 boys 1,500m, led home by Conor Gavin in fourth, ahead of Cillian Gavin in sixth, and with great support from Aaron Robinson and Fintan Harte, the team were worthy winners of the gold medals for 1st Club.

On to the u/13 girls 1,800m where Chloe Bell put in a brilliant race, finishing strong in second place, and with Amelie Kelly in fifth, and Liadan Gavin and Mina Sheridan finishing strong, the team finished 2nd Club, missing gold team medals by just 3 points, showing how close cross country team scores are and how every place counts in the finish. Not having a team to help him meant that if Harry Flanagan wanted a medal in the u/13 boys 1,800m he was going to have to win it himself, and that’s exactly what he did. Going out strong from the start, Harry was always in contention and running fast and strong all the way he finished comfortably in third place to earn an individual medal.

Emily Tully, Aoibhe Martyn and Muirin Dunne combined brilliantly in the u/14 girls 2,000m and though they finished out of the individual medal places, their combined scores placed them 2nd Club to win well-deserved team silver medals. Antonio Bertolo was never really troubled in the u/14 boys 2,200m where he took the early lead and pushed on to win by a distance with a dominant display and will be one to watch in the season ahead.

It’s a real pity we didn’t have a third boy in the u/15 boys 2,500m where Daniel Horohoe and Morgan Isdell put in terrific performances to finish an excellent third and fourth place respectively. If we had a third boy the team would certainly have been in the hunt for team medals. No surprise that our final individual win of the day came from Matthew Molloy who gave a master class in the u/17 boys 4,500m, surging to the front early on and pushing hard all the way to finish well clear of the field.

The women’s 3,000m was a combined race for u/20, senior and master women and after a tough race where she worked hard all the way, Sinead Whitelaw finished an excellent fifth place, followed in by Orlaith Flanagan in eighth, and with great support from Claire Lennon and Kelly Dunne, led the Mullingar women team to a very well-deserved prize for 2nd Club. The final race of the day was the men’s 6,000m, which was a combined race for u/20, senior and master men. With four laps to complete, Conor Sherwin went with the early pace and his bravery paid dividends as though he couldn’t stay with the eventual winner, he had opened a big gap on the field and taking the hills in his stride he came home strong in second place, delighted with his performance so early in the season.

This was an excellent opening fixture for Mullingar Harriers and everyone that took part will gain from the experience and bring it into the season ahead. Thanks very much to the coaches that attended to look after the juvenile athletes, but especially the parents for bringing their children to the event [GD].

Athlone Half Marathon & 10k

Athlone AC organised their annual Athlone Half Marathon & 10k on Sunday morning 22nd September. Both events started on the all-weather track at the TUS Athlone campus. Each race exited onto the greenway at the Garrycastle interchange and there was a flat out and back course for runners, with different turning points for each race. On a dry cloudy and at times breezy morning, conditions were ideal for running.

In the 10k race, Kevin Moore was always in control up front and stretched his lead to over 5 minutes as he returned to the TUS Athlone campus for one lap of the track to finish first in a fine time of 32:32, leaving the field of over 160 runners in his wake. In the longer half marathon race, Laura Fitzpatrick was our sole representative among just over 260 runners that completed the event. Laura was very pleased with her time of 1:43:43 comfortably inside her pre-race target of sub 1 hour 45 minutes [MO’S].

National Half Marathon

The 2024 edition of the Charleville International Half Marathon on Sunday morning 15th September, incorporated the National Half Marathon Championships. Run in warm and humid conditions, nearly 1,600 runners completed the distance. Hosted by North Cork AC, the race commenced in the centre of Charleville and road closures provided a safe and well marshalled course for everyone. The route comprised of an out and back circuit to and from Kilmallock, just over the county boundary in Co. Limerick, and was described by participants as flat and straight.

Mullingar Harriers had five competing. Kevin Moore was first home in 1:09:45, Andrew Nevin posted a new PB of 1:10:44 and Ian McCormack also posted a new PB of 1:14:11. Eddie Newman finished in a very quick 1:19:03 to win the gold medal in his master category, while Maura Dervin was delighted to secure the bronze medal in her master category with 1:36:08. The senior men team of Kevin, Andrew and Ian were 3rd Club and won the bronze team medals, which is Kevin’s first National medal competing for Mullingar Harriers. Congratulations to them all on their National medal winning successes [MO’S].

Sydney Marathon

UNREPORTED

Sunday 15 September

20,261 finishers

Edel Glennon – 4:20:08 (11,765th overall; 2,979th woman)

Lorraine Daly – 4:29:01 (13,008th overall; 3,457th woman)

British Masters Pentathlon Championships

The British Masters Pentathlon Championships took place on Saturday 14th September at the Birmingham University Track. Excellent weather conditions were the order of the day, with bright sunshine and a pleasant cool breeze at times to help keep temperatures for the participants at a pleasant 18degC. Given it was an open competition, the event attracted athletes from Europe and Africa, and along with them was our own Aidan O’Donoghue pitting his skills against the best master athletes in his category. Aidan was right in the mix after winning the Javelin with a throw of 35.26m. He was very happy with 29:07 seconds for 200m, was a bit disappointed with his Long Jump but got very close to his personal best in the Discus. The competition came right down to the last event, the 1,500m. With Oloff Van Zyl of South Africa achieving a very fast 4:47:05, this was crucial in securing the gold medal for him, with Aidan narrowly missing a podium position back in 5th place overall [AO’D].

Ratoath Half Marathon

UNREPORTED

Saturday 14 September

1,524 finishers

Brendan Rice – 1:48:41 (767th overall)

LARCC 5k

On Sunday morning 8th September, 3 Mullingar Harriers athletes supported the great work of LARCC in their 5k run at Multyfarnham. Jason McKevitt, Orlaith Flanagan and Kieran Nolan all ran comfortably and were pleased with the race, which was a fund raiser for the cancer support service based in the village [MO’S].

Kerry Way Ultra Nite

Covering 103k, the Kerry Way Ultra Nite is one of the most difficult and yet spectacular ultra athletic events not only in Ireland, but Internationally. Starting in the village of Dromid, the 103k event follows the Kerry Way into the National Park on the outskirts of Killarney, with the final few kilometres along the picturesque River Flesk before entering the finish area at Killarney Racecourse. At 9pm on Friday night 6th September, Mairtin Savage lined up with over 100 others to follow a route through Waterville, Caherdaniel, Sneem, Templenoe, Kenmare and into Killarney. With great support from his family at the various feeding stations along the way, Mairtin emerged under the tunnel into Killarney Racecourse and over the finish line in a hugely impressive 17 hours and 58 minutes, an average of just over 10 minutes per kilometre for 103k is exceptional running [MO’S].

Dingle Half Marathon

The Dingle Half Marathon on Saturday 7th September traversed the spectacular Dingle Peninsula. Run in conjunction with a full marathon in one of Ireland’s most beautiful locations on Slea Head, the course is designed for runners and walkers to enjoy its breathtaking scenery and beautiful rugged coastline. This is the only day in the year when vehicular traffic is removed from Slea Head immersing runners in the natural beauty of the Dingle Peninsula on the Wild Atlantic Way. 2,480 athletes finished the half marathon and Mullingar’s Susan Glennon (1:29:55), was 3rd woman. An excellent performance in a high-quality field on a beautiful September day [MO’S].

Lucan 5k

UNREPORTED

Sunday 1 September

524 finishers

Glenda Shaw – 30:06 (39th overall), 2nd in master category

Ann Hall – 31:18 (60th overall), 3rd in master category

AUGUST

Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon (incorp, Leinster Half)

The Bord na Mona Tullamore Harriers AC Half Marathon on Saturday 31st August, which incorporated the Leinster Half Marathon was the major road racing event at the weekend. The half marathon started from the Tullamore Harriers Stadium, taking in a scenic route through Mucklagh, Killurin and Cloonagh before finishing with a lap of the stadium track. The course is generally flat and best described as undulating with some gently rolling hills along the way.

With the entire country enjoying a belated summer’s day of warm sunshine, there was a downside for the athletes. The Mullingar Harriers competing and indeed several others spoken to, remarked on the difficulty caused by the heat, with several having to slow and take in extra hydration in the latter stages of the race. It proved a very successful event for the 39 Mullingar Harriers athletes who were part of a huge field of 1,162 finishers. Pride of place to our women team of Mary Stuart (1:29:56), Criona Reid (1:32:33), Jacintha Reilly (1:33:13) and Aisling Corcoran (1:34:25) who combined to win the coveted Phyllis Delaney Trophy for 1st women team. Mary, Criona and Jacintha also took gold for 1st senior women team in the Leinster Championships. There was further success for Mary, Criona, Jacintha and Aisling, when they took silver along with Therese Hughes (1:27:49) and Monika Dealmeida (1:36:47), both of Athlone AC in the Leinster County senior category.

Our master women o/50 team took bronze in the club category with Caroline Mullen (1:47:02), Michelle O’Halloran (1:51:38) and Anna Redmond (2:05:09), while Caroline combined with Lisa O’Rourke (1:38:59) and Julie Maguire (1:46:57), both of Athlone AC and Elaine Cooney of Coralstown Kinnegad AC to take gold in the master women o/50 county category. Mary Stuart won gold in her individual master category as well as gold in her Leinster category, and Criona Reid won gold in her individual Leinster category.

Our men team took bronze in the club category, with Eddie Newman (1:20:11), Eoin Clarke (1:20:41), Alan Crowley (1:21:24) and Tony Doran (1:22:32). In the Leinster Championship, Eddie, Eoin and Alan combined to take bronze in the master men o/35 club category. The silver medal for 2nd Club master men o/50 in Leinster went to Mullingar Harriers, with Gerard Gavin (1:23:39), James Cribben (1:27:11) and Mark Geoghegan (1:28:57). The bronze medal for 3rd County o/35 went to Westmeath with Eddie, Eoin, Alan and Gerard joined by Jim Whelehan (1:19:40) from Coralstown Kinnegad AC and Sebastian Sokolowski (1:20:49) from Athlone AC. There was gold for Eddie and Gerry who combined in the master men o/50 County category with Jim Whelehan and David Watson (1:26:19) from Athlone AC. Eddie Newman won gold in his individual master category and gold in his Leinster category, and Gerard Gavin was a silver medal winner in his Leinster category.

Our other athletes to compete in Tullamore were Ollie Geoghegan (1:24:54), Enda Seery (1:28:55), Darren Carroll (1:28:55), Dara O’Shea (1:29:26), Tommy Byrne (1:31:22), Evan McCormack (1:32:39), Enda O’Carolan (1:33;14), Orla McLaughlin (1:35:02), Kieran Dodrill (1:38:04), Mark Dunne (1;38:53), John Long (1:38:52), Therese Glynn (1:38:41), John McNamara (1:40:33), Marie Louise Johnson (1:41:42), Linda Cunningham (1:43:14), Zane Smukste (1:43:37), Gemma Kelly (1:44:42), Aisling Farrell (1:45:01), Lorraine Claffey (1:45:10), Brendan Rice (1:51:50), Ray Smyth (1:57:59), Martin Mullen (2:00:41), Kevin O’Brien (2:02:26), Rodney Farry (2:03:05) and Joan Mulvihill (2:05:24).

Very Pink Run

Over the weekend Breast Cancer Ireland ran their annual Very Pink Runs in Leopardstown Racecourse with further events in Kilkenny and Cork to follow. Five members from Mullingar Harriers thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere and all aspects of the 5k at Leopardstown on Saturday morning 31st August, while raising funds for the vital work of Breast Cancer Ireland. Over 5,000 ran the 5k at midday on Saturday with Joanna Tyrell, Marna Groenewald, Michelle Kavanagh, Ger Langtry and Pauline Troy the five from Mullingar Harriers taking part. After the run they made their way to the Forty Foot for a traditional dip in the sea and had a most enjoyable evening [MO’S].

Tara 5k

UNREPORTED

Friday 30 August

251 finishers

John Glennon – 17:17 (9th overall), 1st u/20 man

Susan Glennon – 18:55 (27th overall), 1st woman

Longford Trail Run Series – Round 4

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 28th August

Royal Canal, Longford Town – 5k [190 finishers]

Aisling Lane – 6th woman (21st overall) 20:08

World Masters T&F

Colm Walsh competed for the first time at World level in race walk when he lined up for the 10k Road Walk at the World Masters T&F in Gothenburg, Sweden on Saturday 17th August. The venue for the 10k walk was Slottsskogen City Park, which is the main park in Gothenburg, a short distance from Bjorlanda Stadium, which is the venue for the majority of the T&F events. The course was 10 laps of a 1k out-and-back course and as it was the evening, the weather was kinder and dropped to 20degC when the race started, so Colm felt pretty fresh for the entire race. Colm was the only Irish man in the race and gave a great account, finishing an excellent 6th place in 54:24, his quickest time in 3 years. Colm was back in action again on Monday 19th August when he competed in the 5,000m Track Walk at the Bjorlanda Stadium. Despite having only two days recovery after the 10k Walk, Colm felt quite fresh and quickly settled into his race and was right up with the leading group most of the way in fifth place. With 600m to go he really pushed hard to try and close on fourth place, slowly closing the gap but he remained in 5th across the line, third European man to finish and despite no medal won, he was very happy with his time of 25:39.68, his quickest in several years.

Sean McMullin got his campaign underway on Tuesday 20th August when he toed the line for the 5,000m Track Walk. Unfortunately, a recurrence of a niggle in his knee robbed him of his best and despite a great effort, he had to settle for a 7th place finish in 33:00.16. Sean wasn’t finished yet though, and he competed in the longer 20k Road Walk on Sunday 25th August. The longer distance actually suits Sean better and from the start he moved into second place and settled into his rhythm. Caught at 7k, Sean was locked in a battle to 9k but was then passed and dropped into third, a position he maintained to the finish, comfortably clear of fourth place, to win a World bronze medal [CW/GD].

Monument Mile Classic

Congratulations to Cormac Dalton on running his first sub-4 minute mile. Cormac recorded a time of 3:59.51 at the Monument Mile Classic in Stirling, Scotland on Saturday evening 24th August. Cormac now joins Mark Christie on the Club list of sub-4 minute mile performers. Incidentally, Cormac’s 1,500m split was 3:44.05, which was also a personal best.

A sub-4 minute mile remains one of the iconic barriers in the sport and this was another demonstration of International class from Cormac. As current National Cross Country Champion, top-8 European Cross Country finisher, and European 10,000m representative on the track, this performance highlights Cormac’s outstanding range as an athlete [JR].

Celbridge 5k

The annual Celbridge 5k on Thursday evening 22nd August started and finished at the Celbridge AC grounds and the flat and fast course brought the 487 athletes that competed through a looped course on the outskirts of the town. Three Mullingar Harriers athletes competed with distinction. Ann Hall (18:45) and Glenda Shaw (18:46) had a great personal battle and finished 3rd and 4th respectively in their master category. Just 24 hours after her exploits in Castlepollard, Mary Stuart was again on the podium, easily winning her master category in 19:57 [MO’S].

Castlepollard 5k

Having had to cancel last year, the well-regarded Castlepollard 5k made a very welcome return on Wednesday evening 21st August and the North Westmeath AC event attracted a good entry of 239 runners. Starting and finishing in Castlepollard, the route included a very picturesque section through the beautiful grounds Tullynally Castle, so it was dubbed the “Tullynally Challenge”. On a bright but very breezy evening, 34 athletes from Mullingar Harriers made their presence felt on a course that had plenty of straight and level running mixed in with a few stiff inclines in the Castle grounds and on the exit back towards the village.

Diarmuid Fagan, Ross Killelea and James Keegan were always in contention at the head of affairs. In the last 500m, Sean Doran of Clonliffe Harriers shook of the Mullingar men to take first place in 15:40, followed closely by Diarmuid in 2nd place (15:46), Ross in 3rd (16:00), just ahead of James in 4th (16:05). Jamie Wallace finished an excellent 6th place in 16:40. Claire Fagan was always in control of the women’s race and came home ninth and 1st woman in 17:17. There were master category wins for Eddie Newman (18:24), Mary Stuart (20:04), Brigid McCabe (24:26) and Nuala Moran (25:26).

Also competing well was Griffin Kearney (17:19), Conor Liston (17:22), Gerard Gavin 2nd in his master category (17:33), Alan Crowley 2nd in his master category (17:41), Enda Seery (18:32), Kamil Orenczuk (18:47), Kieran Nolan (19:00), Tom McGrath (19:09), Mick Fagan (19:30), Jacintha Reilly (20:09), Jason McKevitt (20:32), Conleth Mullen (20:38), Orlaith Flanagan (20:45), Linda Cunningham (22:16), Caroline Mullen (22:31), Brendan Rice (23:07), Lorraine Claffey (23:08), Michael Purdue (23:23), Martin Mullen (23:59), Ray Smyth (24:30), Kevin O’Brien (24:31), Declan Costello (25:06), Robert Troy (25:30), Liam McGlynn and Breda McDonnell placing 2nd in her master category [MO’S].

St. Coca’s AC 10 Mile

Billed as the “10 from 10” because it’s 10 weeks out from the Dublin City Marathon in late October, the St. Coca’s AC 10 Mile in Kilcock, Co. Kildare on Sunday morning 18th August gave many a chance to test themselves and gauge how their marathon training was progressing. It was a very well organised events that attracted over 350 athletes, including four from Mullingar Harriers. The course was mainly flat with very good conditions for running, into a light breeze over the last two miles along the canal back to Kilcock for the finish and some very welcome refreshments at the clubhouse after. Vinny Connolly lost no time settling into his race rhythm and quickly built a lead that couldn’t be closed, coming home a minute clear to win in 53:13. Finishing well up behind him was Eddie Newman, winning his master category with 60:03, followed by Joan Flynn (68:42), just missing a prize with a fourth place finish in her master category, and completing the quartet was Paul Ginnell finishing in 74:43 [PG/GD].

Longford Trail Run Series – Round 2

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 14th August

Royal Canal, Longford Town – 5k [181 finishers]

Aisling Lane – 2nd woman (10th overall) 20:17

Youghal Bay Half Marathon

The Youghal Bay Half Marathon took place on Sunday 11 August with a large field of 670 athletes. Held as part of the “Youghal Festival of Sport”, this is a flat and fast multi-lap course through the Medieval streets of Youghal and the beautiful scenic Front Strand area of the town. David Riggs was on holiday in the area and decided to give the event a go. Coming home in 1:43:37 he was delighted with his efforts and now back to work in the midlands, he is looking forward to more road races in the coming months.

Kells 5k

The streets of Kells and some surrounding roads to the town were crowded with athletes on a fine but overcast Friday evening 9th August. Over 300 runners competed in the Kells 5k on what was described as a challenging circuit with a few testing rolling hills mixed into a number of long stretches of road, and a mixture of urban and rural as the race started and finished near the town centre and took in a number of country roads around the town. Kells AC was very happy with the large turnout and provided excellent post-race refreshments and a well marshalled and organised event. Mullingar Harriers’ sole representative was Jesica Cunningham who was pleased with her time of 19:45, just missing out on a podium finish in 4th place in the women’s race.

Longford Trail Run Series – Round 1

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 7th August

Royal Canal, Longford Town – 5k [204 finishers]

Oisin Lane – 1st 16:18

Aisling Lane – 5th woman (17th overall) 21:08

National Masters T&F

The National Masters T&F were held in a blustery and at times wet Tullamore on Sunday 4th August where the Mullingar masters were in excellent medal-winning form, gathering an impressive total of seven individual medals between the five of them and we even had a sprint relay team winning medals too.

A long day of competition started with the Shot Putt, where Ramona Carey was competing in her first National masters competition and while she might have been disappointed to finish put of the medals with fifth place in her category, she will have learned much from the experience. Later in the day, Ramona contested the Discus and came very close to the medals, finishing fourth in her category.

No stranger to National competition, Colm Walsh put all his experience to excellent use and with a terrific performance in the 5,000m Walk he won his category, his 10th National walks title.

Aidan O’Donoghue had a very busy day, starting with the 200m where he finished third in his category in a time just hundredths outside his personal best, so an excellent performance. He followed this up with another bronze in the 100m Hurdles, and rounded off his day with his third bronze, in the Javelin.

Fresh from mid-week World record 4 x 800m relay exploits, Brigid McCabe cruised to easy victory in her category in the 3,000m. Tom Walsh is by far the dominant master man in his category in the Weight for Distance event and reinforced his reputation with another win by a big margin, propelling the 28 pound weight out to 7.72m.

It was great to see Mullingar field a 4 x 100m relay team and with excellent sprinting from Claire Lennon Gavin, Naomi Battle, Caroline Mullen and Linda Cunningham, the women finished second in a very close race to win silver medals, the final medals of the day for Mullingar [GD].

Kilbeggan 10 Mile

On a showery and blustery Sunday morning 4th August, the Kilbeggan 10 Mile took to the roads. Starting on the Moate Road in Kilbeggan at the junction of the Clara Road, the race proceeded straight into Horseleap Village. Runners took a left turn bringing the race onto country roads towards the village of Clara. Before Clara, the runners took another left turn which brought them on the final nearly three mile straight back into the finish at Kilbeggan GAA grounds just yards from the race start. The course was a challenging one and while there were no big hills there were numerous smaller challenging inclines including a steep motorway bridge ascent at the 9-mile mark.

Nearly 200 athletes completed the course. James Keegan was always with the leaders before having to settle for 3rd on the run-in, posting a very good time of 55:39. Alan Crowley was satisfied with his time of 61:13, followed closely home by Enda O’Carolan in 61:25. Enda Seery returned home in 65:06, and John Long (74:16), Lorraine Claffey (79:41) and Michelle O’Halloran (85:36) were all pleased with their mornings work and found the race a good preparation for the Tullamore Half Marathon later in the month [MO’S].

Banna 5k & 10k

Even though they were on holidays in Banna, Co. Kerry, that didn’t stop some of the Glennon family using the opportunity to compete in the St. Brendan’s AC Banna 5k & 10k road races on Sunday morning 4th August. Susan Glennon opted for the longer 10k distance, a race that attracted nearly 180 runners to the start line of a nice relatively flat route. Taking full advantage of having a few men of similar standard to run with and to pace off, Susan was very happy to finish well up in tenth place overall in 39:52, the 1st woman to finish with a comfortable margin. Also using their time in Kerry well, Gareth Glennon and Daniel Glennon ran in the shorter 5k race, a smaller event that attracted just under 100 entrants, where Gareth finished a fine 7th place in 19:22, followed by Daniel in 12th with 20:35 [GD].

National u/20 and u/23 T&F

Mullingar had a small group of seven athletes competing in Tullamore on Saturday 3rd August at the National u/20 and u/23 T&F Championships, amassing an impressive tally of four medals.

First into action was Aisling Lane in the u/20 women 3,000m walk where she hit the front after 800m and with a dominant solo effort thereafter she powered to victory in a new PB of 14:13.04, well clear of second place. In the u/20 men 5,000m walk, Andrew Glennon kept pace for the early laps with the silver medal winner at the recent European u/18 Championships, Seamus Clarke (Moy Valley AC), but couldn’t sustain the effort and had to settle for 2nd in the finish, coming home in 23:00.64. Following him in was his brother, John Glennon, finishing in 3rd place (24:43.74) after battling the rest of the field for most of the race but pulling clear and finishing very strong over the last two laps.

Colin P Smith ran with intent from the start of the u/23 men 800m, settling on the shoulder of the leader from the outset. When the final push for home came with 200m to go the pack closed in and he lost a few places around the final bend, but rallied in the home straight to finish very strongly in a very close finish with less than one second separating the top five, Colin crossing the line just out of the medals in 5th place. He deserved more from the race but can take consolation from finishing in a very good 1:55.21.

Aimee Wallace was the pre-race favourite in the u/20 women 1,500m as the fastest Irish athlete over the distance in both 2023 and 2024. Aimee confidently moved to the front at the start and led every step of the race to claim the National title. She held a commanding lead with 200m to go and despite experiencing cramp in the final stages she had enough in hand to take the title in 4:28.93 and add to the Mullingar medal total. This rounded off a great week for Aimee who had competed in the Athletics Northern Ireland Open Meeting at the Mary Peters Track in Belfast on the Thursday evening before (1st August) where she recorded a personal best of 2:09.92 for 800m, a big 3 second improvement. We ended the day with the u/20 men 5,000m where Conor Sherwin and Ross Killalea toed the line. Both battled really well but finished just out of the medals, Conor in 4th place (15:55.89) and Ross in 5th place (16:07.75) but top marks for effort [ML/JR/GD].

Birr 5k

The Sean Lowry Memorial Birr 5k on Friday evening 2nd August, hosted by Birr AC, marked the conclusion of the 2024 Healthy Offaly Athletics 5k series. A good entry of over 350 athletes participated in the event that was the opening activity for the Birr Vintage Week celebrations. Birr AC did a commendable job hosting the event, which featured an undulating route through the outskirts of the town, capped off with a downhill finish, after a steep incline for over 700m at the 4k mark.

In a competitive race up front, Kevin Moore was always in contention and only lost out to the fast-finishing Peter Somba (Ratoath AC) but still claimed 2nd in a fine time of 15:26. Eddie Newman again captured a master category prize running 18:13. Orlaith Flanagan, fresh from her first sub-20 run recently, showed consistency with an exact 20:00 time on this occasion. Caroline Mullen was well up in her category and pleased with a season’s best of 22:10, while Martin Mullen also had a season’s best, coming home in 23:34 [MO’S].

Streets of Athboy 5k

The annual Streets of Athboy 5k attracted over 500 runners on a bright evening on Friday 2nd August in the County Meath town. A noted fast course, two Mullingar Harriers athletes, Matthew Glennon (15:33) and Andrew Nevin (15:58) mixed it up-front throughout and came home 2nd and 3rd respectively. Both satisfied with their times as they prepare for the National half marathon later in the month [MO’S].

Athletics Northern Ireland Open Meeting

UNREPORTED

Thursday 1st August

Mary Peters Track, Belfast

Aimee Wallace 800m – 2:09.92, a new PB by 3 seconds

JULY

Brigid McCabe – member of World Record o/70 Women 4 x 800m Relay Team (31st July)

Having dropped down an age group to be part of the Irish master o/65 women 4 x 800m relay team that set a new World Record in May, Brigid McCabe was selected again by the Irish Masters Athletic Association to be part of a six strong squad of master women in her own age group, to target the World record for o/70 women 4 x 800m relay of 14:45.88, held by Germany since September 2013. Trials were held and Brigid’s time was fast enough to be selected to be part of the racing four with Eileen Kenny (Tullamore Harriers AC), Margaret Glavey (Mayo AC) and Mary Lynch (Raheny Shamrock AC).

Thanks again to Dublin Athletics, a 4 x 800m relay race was added to the programme at the Dublin Graded Meeting in Santry on Wednesday evening 31st July, where conditions were ideal for the World record attempt. Running the final leg, thanks to a great team effort that had them always ahead of World Record pace, when Brigid took the baton, the team was well inside schedule and she brought the team home in 13 minutes 26.87 seconds, a new World Record, taking a huge 79 seconds off the previous record. To have one World record holder in our midst is terrific, but to have a double World record holder is incredible. Congratulations to Brigid and the Irish team on setting another master’s World record [GD].

British Masters T&F

Aidan O’Donoghue competed in a number of events at the British Masters T&F in the Moorways Stadium in Derby on Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th July. On Saturday he competed in the 100m Hurdles where he finished just of the medals in 4th place but ran a new PB of 21.16 seconds. He followed this up with the High Jump where he cleared 1.35m to place 5th. On Sunday he ran in the 200m, which was extremely competitive and was delighted to finish in 28.64 seconds, a new PB. He finished the day with another PB when he launched the javelin out to over 38m, improving his previous best by a huge 3m, which was good enough to win the silver medal. Over the course of a great weekend, Aidan recorded 3 new PBs, which will give him great confidence for the upcoming National Masters T&F in Tullamore [GD].

Westmeath Road Championships

The annual Westmeath Road Championships were held in sunshine and most pleasant conditions on Sunday morning 28th July. Starting and finishing by the lake shore at Ladestown, the resplendent setting provided the ideal backdrop for the race, which took in an 8k looped circuit. Well stewarded and with great support from the Gardai, the event went off smoothly and there were plenty of refreshments, including some home-made treats provided by Club members, at the finish beside the lake.

Oisin Lane took a break from his race walking exploits and led from the gun to come home in 26:31, well clear of second place Dan Morris (26:46), with Ross Killalea third (27:11). Ann Hall was first woman in 31:55, with Aine O’Reilly second (32:07) getting the better of Mary Stuart (32:44) in third. There were category wins for Eddie Newman, Bashir Hussein, Darren Carroll, Aeilish McGovern, Criona Reid, Nollaig McEntegart and Vera McCool.

The Club would like to thank sponsors ORS and CL Plant & Tool Hire for their support of the event as well as the Gardai who provided valuable support to our stewards through the course. The general feedback from those taking part was that the course was testing without being overly challenging, but fair. Mullingar Harriers will now review this feedback and consider the possibility of making this course and venue a permanent home for the annual Westmeath Road Championships. Full results available HERE [MO’S].

National Juvenile T&F – Day 3

Lily Walsh crowned a hugely successful outdoor T&F season on Saturday 27th July on Day 3 of the National Juvenile T&F in Tullamore with a superb victory in the u/14 girls 1,500m. Winning the Leinsters with a new Championship Record saw Lily line up as a solid pre-race favourite, but always with an eye on the indoor 800m Champion, Nellie Bateman (Belgooly AC) who was certain to feature strongly, and that’s exactly how it turned out. Right from the gun, Lily went to the front and holding the inside line she controlled the race, setting a fast pace. Maintaining her place at the front for all but a short period, Lily continued to control the race and was ideally placed when the final push for home came with 200m to go. Rounding the final bend and into the home straight, Lily and Nellie were locked together as both sprinted furiously for the finish. It was neck and neck all the way but Lily just had the edge at the finish, dipping at the line to win in a photo finish, just three hundredths of a second ahead, and was absolutely delighted to win gold and her first outdoor National track title.

Grace Byrne kept herself in contention for honours in the u/19 girls 1,500m but just couldn’t quite reproduce the finish that won her bronze in the 3,000m the week before and despite a great effort over the final lap had to settle for 4th place, just out of the medals. In the u/19 boys 1,500m, Pablo Lozano went out hard from the gun and was right up with the leaders when disaster struck after 500m, as he suddenly stopped and pulled off the track. He was feeling some discomfort in his Achilles, so wisely stopped rather than risk further injury. Hopefully it’s not too serious and we wish Pablo a speedy recovery. Meanwhile, Conor Sherwin had settled nicely into his race and looked strong and smooth in the early laps. However, as the race approached the business end so to speak, Conor was unable to stay with the pace and was disappointed to finish down the field out of the medal places.

Earlier in the day, Finn Roddy competed in the heats of the u/17 boys 200m but despite running faster than in the Leinsters it wasn’t quite enough to qualify from the very competitive heats, and he narrowly missing out on a place in the final, but top marks for effort.

Lily Walsh’s gold medal adds to the bronze she won over 800m two weeks before and brings the total number of medals won by Mullingar athletes over three days of individual Championships and one day of relays to seven, four gold, one silver and two bronze, which are very good results for Mullingar.

Apart from those that still have Regional and National Community Games T&F Finals, the outdoor T&F season is over for most of our juvenile members and they can now take a welcome break before returning to training in a few weeks to get ready for the cross country season that starts in late September [GD].

National Juvenile T&F – Day 2

Day 2 of the National Juvenile T&F took place in Tullamore on Sunday 21st July. First into action was Daniel Glennon in the u/16 boys 3,000m walk where after a great battle with the long-time leader, Daniel had to settle for second place by a narrow margin. Despite arriving home from the SIAB Schools T&F International in Wales in the early hours of the morning John Glennon was still more than up to task of tackling the u/18 boys 5,000m walk, taking the victory and another National title.

The heats of the u/17 boys 100m were so competitive that each was won in a time that was better than the Championship Best Performance. Despite that, Finn Roddy put in a very good effort in his heat and despite not advancing to the final can be satisfied that he was competitive throughout.

Suffering with a head cold, Conor Walsh struggled a bit mid-race of the u/15 boys 3,000m but rallied for a good finish, though out of the medal places in a tough race. Matthew Molloy worked hard throughout a fast u/17 boys 3,000m and though he finished out of the medal places in a very creditable 8th place, he can be very satisfied with running a new PB of 9:21.25. It was great to see two Mullingar girls in the u/19 girls 3,000m. Grace Byrne and Jessica Cunningham kept in the mix but a mid-race surge saw Grace pull away with the leading group of three but Jessica continued to work hard. Grace was in second place at the bell but over a fast final lap she was passed but had enough in reserve to finish in third place in 10:13.71, a new PB by 7 seconds. Jessica has lost a bit of time recently due to shin splints but finished strongly in a very good 7th place. We finished with the u/19 boys 3,000m where Conor Sherwin and Pablo Lozano competed strongly, with Conor leading and controlling the race for much of it. A furious burn-up over the final 600m quickly split the pack and despite every effort, Conor just couldn’t get among the medals, finishing in 5th place in 8:54.33, a new PB and his first time under 10 minutes, while Pablo finished further back in a fast race [GD].

National 10 Mile

The final instalment of the 2024 Athletics Ireland Race Series, the National 10 Mile, took place on Sunday morning 21st July in ideal dry and calm conditions in the Phoenix Park. Seven master athletes represented Mullingar Harriers and made their way to the starting line alongside nearly 1,800 other competitors. 10 miles of racing in the Phoenix Park on a winding course with plenty of testing rolling hills as well as some flat straights can be very challenging but Eddie Newman raced with determination and had the honour of leading the Mullingar squad home in 61 minutes 33 seconds, safely securing the National silver medal for his master category. Mary Stuart was next to finish, leading the women team in 68 minutes 46 seconds, and was awarded the gold medal and National title in her master category. Criona Reid, capitalising on her current excellent form, recorded a time of 69:44 and was thrilled to take the bronze medal in her master category. Also running steady were Patrick Muldoon (70:50), Liam McGlynn (74:31), Linda Cunningham (77:24), delighted to record a personal best for the distance, and Caroline Mullen (80:13) completed the Mullingar group. The master women team of Mary, Criona and Linda took the bronze medals for 3rd Club in the o/35 team event, completing the fantastic results for Mullingar in the race series for 2024 [LC].

National Juvenile Relays & National “B” T&F

The National Juvenile Relays and National “B” T&F Finals were held together in Tullamore on Saturday 20th July. It was warm but despite long periods of drizzle on and off during the day, with the occasional downpour, there was no dampening the spirits of what was the biggest entry ever from Mullingar, a total of 21 athletes, who competed brilliantly across a range of events, winning two relays, but special mention to our field event athletes who won three medals, not something we often see for Mullingar.

The u/13 girls 4x100m team of Katie Bohan, Lily McDonald, Penny Bohan and Clodagh Keane combined well as a unit and gave a spirited effort in their heat but it wasn’t enough to advance to the final. In the u/18 boys 4 x 400m, Kyle Faherty stormed from the blocks, quickly breaking down the stagger on the teams outside him and after a terrific lead leg, handed over well clear to Luke O’Leary who charged around the track to increase the lead even further to hand over to Jamie Wallace. Better known as a middle-distance runner, Jamie was up against a strong seasoned 400m runner who closed the lead down but Jamie never let up and wouldn’t surrender the lead, handing the baton over to Conor Liston in the lead for the final leg, which he executed brilliantly, pulling comfortably clear to bring the team home in first place in 3 minutes 29.52 seconds, just a little over a second outside the Championship Record. Not content with their u/18 victory, the same quartet returned in the afternoon to contest the u/19 boys 4 x 400m. Competing against older opposition, the team had to work hard on tired legs but another strong start by Kyle, followed by an astonishing second leg by Luke that swept Mullingar into the lead, and with Jamie and Conor leaving nothing behind and holding their place, the team was victorious again, winning in 3:33.50 to secure their second set of All-Ireland gold relay medals.

In the “B” T&F, a number of young Mullingar athletes contested the very competitive sprint heats. Cillian Gavin and Cillian Martyn (u/12 boys 60m), Liadan Gavin and Clodagh Keane (u/13 girls 80m) where both finished strongly in fourth place in their respective heats, Aoibhe Martyn (u/14 girls 80m) who just missed a place in the final by a mere three hundredths of a second, Chloe Duggan (u/15 girls 100m) and Cian Hyland (u/16 boys 100m).

Moving to the middle-distance races, Katie Bohan and Penny Bohan competed well in the u/12 girls 600m but finished out of the medals. No luck either for Conor Gavin in the u/12 boys 600m despite a strong fifth place finish in his heat. We had four girls competing in the u/13 girls 600m, with the medals decided on the fastest times over the three races. Chloe Bell finished second in her race, 4th place overall, Amelie Kelly was third in her race, 5th overall, and Clodagh Keane and Mina Sheridan also ran very well in their races. Daniel Horohoe put in a good performance and though he finished out of the medals, he finished strongly in the u/15 boys 800m.

No medals on the track, but our field event athletes were in sparkling form. Despite two fouls in the u/14 boys shot, Seth Walsh held his nerve and launched the shot out to 9.00m on his third and final attempt to win by a significant margin and secure the gold medal. It was gold too for Chloe Bell in the u/13 girls long jump, leaping to 4.10m in her final jump to move from fourth to first. Mina Sheridan also competed in the u/13 long jump and was delighted to be competing in a National event. Donnacha Doyle was in great form in the u/13 boys high jump and all his hard work in training paid off as he leaped to a terrific bronze medal. Cian Hyland put together an excellent series of jumps in the u/16 boys long jump to finish an excellent 5th place, not far off the medal places.

SIAB Schools T&F International

The prestigious SIAB Schools T&F International rotates around the four competing Nations of Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales and this year it was the turn of Wales to host the event. Among the strong Irish team in action at the Carmarthen Leisure Centre, Wales on Saturday 20th July was John Glennon making his International debut, competing in the 3,000m race walk. As if making his debut wasn’t memorable enough, John added to the occasion when after a polished display, he raced to victory in 13 minutes 52.98 seconds, which is very good considering the wet and miserable conditions during his race, to win gold, making it a truly memorable golden debut.

John’s older siblings, sisters Edel, Rachel and Sarah and brothers Matthew and Andrew also made their debuts in the race walk at SIAB Schools T&F Internationals too, so John is the sixth Glennon to represent Ireland in International competition in the same event, which is an extraordinary record of success from one family in Mullingar Harriers.

Now that John has competed for Ireland, his name will be added to the Roll of Honour in the Clubhouse, bringing the total so far up to 126 since the Club was founded in 1975. Congratulations from everyone at the Club [GD].

National Combined Events & AAI Games

The National Combined Events & AAI Games took place together in Santry on Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th July. Conditions were ideal on Saturday when Aidan O’Donoghue competed in the Masters Pentathlon (long jump, discus, 200m, javelin and 1,500m), where competition for medals was very keen. Over the course of a long day, starting with the long jump early in the morning and finishing with the 1,500m in the late afternoon, Aidan came close to his personal bests in the long jump and discus, but personal bests in the 200m (28.76 seconds), the javelin (35.84m) and the 1,500m (6 minutes 16.83 seconds) gave him the edge to finish third overall to win National bronze, just 28 points ahead of the athlete in fourth place in a very tight finish.

Also on Saturday, Claire Fagan competed in the 10,000m, which counted as the National 10,000m Championship. Starting conservatively, Claire tracked the leaders and stayed in fourth place up to 5k but then increased the pace to slowly reel the field in and move nearer the leader, going on to finish an excellent second place in 34:37.20 and win the National silver medal.

Aimee Wallace took to the start line on Sunday morning for the 1,500m looking to blow off the cobwebs in her first race since sitting the Leaving Certificate exams in June. It was a very tactical affair but Aimee sat in with the leading group and had plenty in reserve when the pace suddenly increased at the bell for the final lap. There was a tangle of bodies with 200m to go and Aimee was fortunate to keep her footing and not fall. Despite losing a bit of momentum she recovered well and finished strongly in fourth place in 4:38.85 and can face her next outing with confidence.

Finally, Patrick Leydon competed in one of four 400m races, which he won with ease in 49.65 seconds to continue his current run of good form [GD/AO’D].

Edenderry 10 Mile

The Peugeot Race Series continued with the annual Edenderry 10 Mile on Sunday morning 14th July. Edenderry AC were excellent hosts with a well stewarded course, excellent post-race refreshments and results announced to everyone as they enjoyed the refreshments in pleasant sunshine at the end of the event. By race time, early morning drizzle had cleared and the sun appeared during the race from cloudy and overcast conditions. A course described as challenging with some sharp rises and some rolling hills, the 351 runners had their fitness and conditioning well tested. It was a good morning for a dedicated group from Mullingar Harriers who performed very well.

We had an excellent 2nd Club place for the Mullingar men team with Kevin Moore 4th overall in 53:40, followed by Matthew Glennon 5th in 54:18, Andrew Nevin 9th in 55:14 and Andrew Glennon (65:16) providing the vital fourth team score. Andrew was also 2nd in his u/20 category.

Tommy Byrne (68:23) had a very good race, breaking the 70 minute barrier for the second successive race over the distance, Mary Stuart (68:50) was 2nd in her master category, as was Aisling Corcoran in her master category with 70:25 [MO’S].

Midland Inter-County T&F Match

Following up on a great event in May, Offaly Athletics organised another Midland Inter-County T&F Match on Friday evening 12th July that gave nearly 200 youngsters from Clubs in the midland Counties, including 26 from Mullingar, a great opportunity to compete in the top-class Tullamore Harriers AC stadium in a lovely low-key friendly competition.

This was similar to the event we attended back in May, but this time there were more ages and some different events. Girls and boys u/9 to u/16 could compete in 4 x 100m relay, shot, turbo javelin, javelin and 400m. As always, the relay races proved extremely popular and reflecting the friendly spirit of the event, teams could be made up of athletes from more than one club, so Mullingar borrowed others to make up teams, a number of Mullingar athletes helped to complete teams for other clubs, and in fact, one of our young boys even ran with a team made up of runners from four different clubs. Over the course of a very enjoyable evening, Mullingar athletes won a big number of medals across all the events, with some winning several medals, but medals won or not, they all enjoyed the event. Thanks to the parents for bringing their children and to those that helped as officials, but especially to Offaly Athletics for hosting a great event [GD].

Kinnegad 5k

Coralstown Kinnegad GAA staged their annual Kinnegad 5k on Wednesday evening 10th July. A cold but dry evening faced athletes as they took to the looped course on the west of the town, with the start and finish on the main street. A largely flat course meant it was an opportunity to record a fast time. Of the 150 finishers, Mullingar Harriers was well represented with 16 in action.

For the Glennon family, it was a very good evening with Matthew Glennon leading home the men race to win in a fine time of 15:37, John Glennon (17:02) was 4th, Susan Glennon (18:40) was 1st woman home, Gareth Glennon (18:44) was 1st u/16 boy and Daniel Glennon (19:09) was 3rd u/16 boy. James Keegan followed Matthew in for 2nd place overall in 15:55, while Mary Stuart was 2nd woman behind Susan in 19:57. Other prize winners were Enda Seery (18:31) 2nd in his master category, Zane Smukste (21:55) 1st in her master category and Amelie Kelly (23:23) 1st u/16 girl.

Also running in the Mullingar colours and happy with their performances were Kieran Nolan (19:13), Richie Kelly (21:43), Gemma Kelly (23:00), Kevin O’Brien (24:18), Joel Kelly (25:11) and Andy Boyhan on 27:01 [MO’S].

Oldcastle 5k

Padraig Beglin was Mullingar’s sole representative on Wednesday evening 10th July at the St. Brigid’s AC annual Oldcastle 5k around the streets of the Co. Meath village and was happy with a sub 20 minute finish, just getting under the mark with 19:59 in a competitive field of nearly 200 runners [MO’S].

National Juvenile T&F – Day 1

Day 1 of the National Juvenile T&F was held on Sunday 7th July in Tullamore where it was warm and dry by the afternoon, perfect conditions for the middle distance events.

Lily Walsh competed in the 800m u/14 where she had a really great run and was absolutely delighted with the result. It was a very tactical race with a lot of jostling for position throughout and up to 600m it was quite slow with lots of movement in the pack but Lily kept right in the thick of the action and held her ground near the front to avoid being boxed in. When the final move came at 200m, Lily was in the top three that broke away and racing hard with a furious sprint to the line she finished third behind the two girls who were first and second at the National Indoors 800m back in April.

The steeplechase is rightly regarded as one of the toughest track events, but Ailbhe O’Farrell was up to the task and put in a terrific effort in the 2,000m steeplechase u/18. Expertly negotiating the wooden barriers and water jump over the five laps and running nearly 20 seconds faster than she ran in Leinster, Ailbhe finished strongly in fifth place, an excellent result in a National final [GD].

Rhode AC 5k

Round 7 of the Offaly 5k Series, the Rhode AC 5k, took place on Friday evening 5th July. Local showers did not reach the Offaly village, and runners were treated to a dry and at times sunny evening with a light breeze. A looped course to the south of the village brought runners over Rhode Bridge and followed country roads before turning over Toberdaly Bridge just before 3k and down onto the Grand Canal Greenway before emerging back at Rhode Bridge for the last 800m dash to the finish line opposite the local primary school. The scenic route was well marshalled and with all roads closed to vehicular traffic for the duration of the race, this gave all 267 runners a safe and pleasant course.

Mullingar Harriers had nine representatives. Eddie Newman was first home and won his category with a time of 18:28. Next in was Orlaith Flanagan delighted with her personal best of 19:54, her first sub-20-minute 5k. Caroline Mullen showed steely determination to place third in her master category with 22:35. Michael O’Sullivan with 23:34 and Liadan Gavin with 23:40, were just ahead of the fast-finishing Brigid McCabe on 23:41 earning her second place in her master category. Claire Lennon (23:45), Michael Purdue (24:10) and Martin Mullen (24:37) completed the Mullingar group. The women team of Orlaith, Caroline, Brigid and Claire finished 4th Club, just missing out on a podium spot by only a few places [MO’S].