Q2, 2026 News & Reports – April to June

June

National Juvenile T&F – Days 1 & 2

In a warm, showery and blustery windy Tullamore on Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th June, Days 1 and 2 of the National Juvenile T&F were held. Mullingar Harriers was represented by 14 athletes competing in 17 events, each giving their best on the National stage. We started Saturday with a podium finish in the first race, and started and finished Sunday with two more podium finishes, with lots of great competition by everyone else in between.

In the first race on Saturday morning, Lily Walsh lined out in the u/16 girls 3,000m. There was a strong, blustery wind blowing across the track all weekend, resulting in few fast times but a lot of tactical races, and it was tactics that delivered Lily her second National title of 2026. Front running from the start of the race, Lily used the tail wind on the home straight to push the pace and eased off into the headwind on the back straight. This fast-slow tempo eventually shook off all bar one of her competitors, but a strong kick inside the last 200m saw Lily pull clear to comfortably win the 3,000m National title.

In the u/16 boys 3,000m Oisin Clarke sensibly sat on the heels of the leaders for the majority of the race. With 400m to go the race exploded into a furious battle to the finish line. Three runners gradually moved clear of Oisin, but he held on for a fantastic fourth place finish. Morgan Isdell was in action in the u/17 Boys 3,000m but with the runners quickly strung out, he had nowhere to shelter from the strong winds. Despite that, a good run from Morgan had him finishing just outside the top ten. It was a similar experience for Eleanor Kiernan in the u/18 girls 3,000m and for Conor Walsh in the corresponding u/18 boys 3,000m where they gave good accounts in difficult conditions, each finishing very creditable eighth place in their races. Matthew Molloy battled hard in the u/19 boys 3,000m to finish a very respectable tenth place.

After the 3,000m races, attention moved to the 400m sprinters. Scott Cogan is still new to the event, so drawn in lane 3 of his u/17 boys 400m heat was ideal, and though he competed well he finished fifth in his heat, only a fraction off his best for the distance, not enough to advance to the final but the experience of competing at National level will stand to him.

In the field events, Alice Hyland competed in the u/15 girls shot put where she threw the 2.72kg ball out to 9.08m for a very respectable eleventh place at a National Championships.

We started Sunday with the u/15 boys triple jump. The swirling, blustery wind didn’t help the technical field events but Donnacha Doyle made the most of the day to hop, skip and jump his way to silver. A distance of 10.06m in his final attempt secured second place and the National silver medal.

Chloe Bell’s u/15 girls long jump in Leinster was cut short by injury, but recovered for the Nationals, she leapt back into action to claim a brilliant fourth place finish. Chloe’s final jump of 5.10m was a personal best and moved her just short of a podium position. Hannah Dunne made her All-Ireland Championship debut competing in the u/16 girls high jump. The strong winds played havoc for the jumpers, and while she didn’t clear the heights reached at the Leinsters, Hannah should be encouraged by her performance on the National stage.

On the track, John McManus raced in the second of two heats of the u/15 boys 800m. John was unfortunately boxed in after the start and having to chase the breakaway leaders was just too much for John who unfortunately missed out on a place in the final. Oisin Clarke was back on the track in the u/16 boys 800m. The exertions of the previous day’s 3,000m were still in Oisin’s legs and when it came down to the sprint for places in the final, Oisin was narrowly edged out of the last qualifying places.

The steeplechase is regarded as one of the toughest events on the track so having to race laps with 5 barriers per lap wasn’t helped by the swirling winds. Tianna O’Leary put in a really great effort in the u/18 girls 2,000m steeplechase, working hard to keep in touch with the leaders, negotiating the barriers and the tricky water jump with great skill to finish an excellent fifth place in 7:32.88, out of the medals but has the consolation of a personal best time for the distance. A strong run by Daniel Horohoe in the u/17 boys 2,000m steeplechase provided him with a very respectable eighth place finish, out of the medals but a personal best of 7:22.10 is some reward. Conor Walsh also gave a spirited performance in the u/18 boys 2,000m steeplechase where he raced to a fine fifth place close to his best time for the distance.

We had our final podium place in the u/19 boys 3,000m steeplechase where Matthew Molloy bravely went with the pre-race favourite for the first half of the race, and though he had to let the chase go in the closing laps, he continued to race hard and was too far ahead to be challenged and finished in second place, delighted to win the silver medal in his final National juvenile T&F competition.

A great weekend for Mullingar and well done to all who represented the Club at the National Championships [CW/GD].

Northern Ireland Masters T&F

The Northern Ireland Masters T&F was held at the Mary Peters Track in Belfast on Saturday 27th June. Paddy Boyhan used the event to fine tune his preparations for the National Combined Events in three weeks. Paddy had an extremely busy schedule, as he competed in 6  events over the course of a long day of competition, coming away at the end with 5 medals in his age category for his efforts – long jump Gold, high jump Gold, weight throw (heavy hammer) Silver, triple jump Silver, and javelin Bronze. He also placed a very creditable 5th in the Discus [GD].

Roscommon 10 Mile

Roscommon Harriers staged their annual Roscommon 10 Mile road race in dry and humid conditions on Saturday morning 27th June. Over 500 athletes, including 4 from Mullingar Harriers, completed a challenging course around the outskirts of the town. Dan Morris was always in contention at the head of the race and came home with a time of 56:13 in 7th place overall, winning his master category. Niamh McEntegart was also in the mix for the women’s prize and finished 3rd woman in the race in a time of 1:05:03. Jacintha Reilly finished in 1:10:09, with Darren Caroll completing the course in 1:16:58 [MO’S].

St. Coca’s AC 5k

As the week-long heatwave began to ease, St. Coca’s AC played host to over 500 runners for their annual St. Coca’s AC 5k race around Kilcock on Friday evening 26th June. Conditions were dry but humid with a slight breeze. The first kilometre was described as crowded, as runners tried to get a good position while weaving in and out through narrow streets.

Mullingar Harriers had five athletes competing. Euan Lagan led them home in a time of 15:41. Kedagh Geoghegan was next of the Mullingar contingent, recording a time of 16:53. Our sole woman representative on the evening, Ciara Foy, was our next in on 17:21, which earned her a fine ninth place in a very competitive women’s race. Enda Seery raced to a time of 17:45 and John Long was satisfied with another sub-20 minute run over the distance, finishing in 19:54 [MO’S].

Dublin Graded T&F Meet – #6 of 8

UNREPORTED

Wed. 24th June, Santry

Liam Kane (1,500m Grade D) 4:53.38

Copenhagen Athletics Games

The Copenhagen Athletics Games is a World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze Event and took place on Monday 22nd June in the newly renovated Østerbro Stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark. Having smashed his personal best for 1,500m in setting a new Club record only a little over a week before, Colin P Smith lined up for the mile full of confidence for another great performance and he didn’t disappoint. Staying in close contact throughout the race and with his trademark fast finish coming to good effect once more, Colin raced home to a fifth place finish in 3 minutes 57.62 seconds, a personal best and a new Club record, surpassing the 21 year old previous of 3:58.99 set by Mark Christie in 2005. A measure of the quality of the race and opposition is that every finisher ran a personal best, so it was an ideal race to be in. A fabulous result for a clearly in-form Colin [GD].

National Children’s Games and u/12 T&F

The National Children’s Games and u/12 T&F were held in a very warm and sunny Tullamore on Sunday 21st June where Mullingar had 8 girls in action on the National stage, the first time for most of them to compete at this level, but they all took it in their stride and performed brilliantly.

Starting with the sprints, Alana Spain won her u/10 girls 60m race and Tara Coyne was a close second in hers but when their times were added for the “pair” team score, they were very unlucky to finish just out of the medals in fifth place, but top marks for outstanding sprinting. Meanwhile, Heather Kelly was taking part in her first National T&F final, in the u/12 girls high jump, where she came close to the height she cleared in the Leinsters but had to settle for a place out of the medals on this occasion though the experience will stand to her.

Moving to the middle distance events, Mia Barry and Cara Hickey contested the u/11 girls 600m. Despite nearly matching their times in Leinster and finishing fast and well up in their races, they finished out of the medals but can be very proud of their efforts. The field in the u/12 girls 600m was very big but Emily Rose Coyne settled in nicely to the early pace and was well positioned at the bell. She waited patiently in the pack until 200m to go when she made her move, passing runner after runner until she was in third coming into the home straight and chasing hard, but despite her best efforts she couldn’t close the gap ahead but was delighted to finish third and win the National bronze medal. Rested after their 60m sprints, Alana Spain and Tara Coyne were back on the track again for the u/10 girls 500m where they ran extremely well in the challenging hot conditions, close to their times in Leinster, but they finished out of the medals with another close fifth place, though can be very proud of their efforts.

We finished the day with the sprint relays where the Mullingar team was drawn in what turned out to be faster of the two timed races in the u/10 girls 4x100m. Unfortunately Tara Coyne was taken ill and couldn’t start the relay, but showing great team spirit young Aoibh Spain was drafted in as a late substitute to join Laila Morgan, Alana Spain and Eibhlinn Reihill. The Mullingar quartet gave a spirited effort and ran very well in their heat but finished out of the medal places, though this is a young team that we’re sure to see more of in future competitions. We wish Tara a speedy recovery [GD].

Derravarragh 5 Mile & 10 Mile

On the longest day of the year, Sunday 21st June, the Derravarragh 5 Mile & 10 Mile races were held in the Collinstown area near the shores of Lake Derravaragh. The 5 Mile Race had a field of 73 runners and Paul O’Reilly was 2nd in a time of 29:39. Sharon O’Dowd finished 5th overall, 2nd woman, in 33:18. Following in was Robert Whelan (34:15), Timmy Mescall (36:02), with Declan Costello completing the Mullingar interest with a time of 46:58.

In the 10 Mile Race, Mick Fagan came home in 1:11.12, ahead of Tommy Byrne in 1:13.05 and Michael Purdue in 1:24.48. Avril Keane finished in 1:33.26, with John Keane home in 1:38.34. Kevin O’Brien ran 1:40.14 and Catherine Gavin 1:42.32. A total of 76 runners took part [MO’S].

National 5 Mile Championships

The National 5 Mile Championships took place in a sweltering hot Phoenix Park on Sunday morning 21st June. Mullingar had a small but talented group of 6 runners running well alongside just over 1,500 finishers. Eddie Newman had the honour of leading the Mullingar squad home in 30:28, taking the National silver medal in his master category. Criona Reid was next (34:20) and with Mary Stuart in close pursuit (34:27), both were rewarded for their efforts with the National bronze medals in their respective master categories. Marie Louise Johnston had a very strong run (35:45), while Linda Cunningham battled through the heat, happy to cross the line in 36:44. Nicky McCabe finished a very creditable 5th place in his master category recording a time of 43:51. When the team results were calculated after the last runner finished, it was celebration for the Mullingar master women o/50 team of Criona, Mary and Marie Louise who were unbeatable and took the National gold medals for 1st Club [LC].

Michael Manning Dunshaughlin 10k

The annual Michael Manning Dunshaughlin 10k is always a highlight on the road racing circuit. Another high-class field with 1,200 runners, including 13 athletes from Mullingar Harriers, took part on Saturday 20th June on a warm and humid evening.

First home for Mullingar Harriers was Kris Foster in 33:50, followed by Enda Seery with a time of 37:42, and Joe Doherty close behind him dipping under the 40-minute barrier with a time of 39:44. Conor Corcoran was the next club finisher (41:06), followed by Tom Byrne (42:03), with Orla Gillespie our first woman home with a time of 43:22. Barry White completed the course in 44:16, Niamh Doherty finished in 44:36, Colm Brennan ran 45:53, with Zane Smukste home in 46:11. She was followed closely by Laura Fitzpatrick in 46:35, with Emer O’Hanlon running 48:06 and Ciara Dillon running 50:30 [MO’S].

Jack Cox Memorial 10k

Organised by Kilcormac Killoughey AC in Offaly, the annual Jack Cox Memorial 10k on Saturday 20th June saw 270 runners take part on a warm humid evening. The course was largely flat and a light breeze was a welcome relief in the humid conditions. In the women’s race, Orlaith Flanagan led all the way and had over 3 minutes to spare on the next runner, finishing in a time of 41:30 [MO’S].

Tailteann Inter-Provincial T&F

There were three Mullingar Harriers racing at the Tailteann Inter-Provincial T&F in a sunny SETU Carlow on Saturday 20th June. Lily Walsh (Loreto Mullingar) representing the Leinster Schools team ran in the Intermediate girls 3,000m. The race was run at a solid pace from the gun with Lily going straight to the front and Eleanor Kiernan (Ursuline Convent Thurles), representing the Munster Schools team, sitting a few metres off in the middle of the pack. With two laps to go the pace began to ramp up and Lily was passed but kept pushing on in second place, with Eleanor moving into sixth. It was only in the last 30 metres that the race changed dramatically as Lily suffered a hard fall during the sprint finish, ending her challenge for a win, but she got up and forced herself over the finish line to secure 3rd place, while Eleanor kept up the effort and was rewarded with a fine 6th place finish.

The Intermediate boys 1,500m was a very tactical affair. Cillian Galvin (Colaiste Mhuire & Leinster) was in his first year at Intermediate and giving away a year to many in the field, but he ran a very tactically astute race. The pace was very slow for the first 800m and Cillian was  in a good position to cover all moves, sitting in the leading group. With 700m to go the race favourite dropped a 13 second 100m and split the pack, but Cillian had the move covered and was in a group of four that broke away from the main pack and gave chase on the leader. With 300m to go Cillian made his move for home and started to chase the leader down and moved into second and it was only down the home stretch that he got caught and pushed into third but was delighted to run a huge personal best of 4 minutes 10.77 seconds and win the bronze medal for 3rd place [CW/TW].

Westmeath Road Championships

For the full results, click HERE.

The Westmeath Road Championships were held on a lovely warm summer evening 0n Wednesday 17th June. Between online sales and entries taken on the night, nearly 90 entered to run and 74  ran on the night, showing that the event continues to grow and we expect it will get even better in the years to come as word spreads in the County. The 8k course proved so popular last year, that thanks to the support of Waterways Ireland, this year we staged the race on the Greenway again, using the Park Run route, running 2 laps, a smaller 3k lap followed by a longer 5k lap.

The organisers, led by Philip Burke and Joanna Tyrrell, made excellent provision for the warm humid conditions with water stations on the course and at the finish area. All the runners remarked afterwards on how warm the evening was, so plenty of water was taken on board during the race and again at the finish.

Mark Darby (Mullingar Harriers) and Andy Nevin (Coralstown Kinnegad) set the early pace and passing through the finish area for the first time approaching 3k they had a good lead of over 30 seconds on the chasing pack, led by Dan Morris (Mullingar Harriers). Heading out on the longer 5k lap, they continued to push on and it was only in the last 2k or so that Mark began to pull clear of Andy, going on to finish in 26:27 to take the gold medal in the senior men race, to Andy’s 26:36 for silver, and Dan coming home in third place in 27:39 for the bronze, to seal the top three places in the men race. In the women race, Sarah Glennon (Mullingar Harriers) continued her impressive recent form on the road race circuit and sticking with Conor Collison and Eddie Newman, ensured she maintained a fast pace to finish in 31:53 to take the gold medal in the senior women race, ahead of Criona Reid (Mullingar Harriers) in 33:46 and Marie Louise Johnston (Mullingar Harriers) in 35:29, giving Mullingar a clean 1-2-3 sweep of the medals in the women race.

As expected, there were many great battles for Championship honours In the master categories. In the F35 category, Deirdre Flynn (Mullingar) won gold, ahead of Theresa Geoghegan (Knockdrin) and Nicola Reynolds for silver and bronze. In the corresponding M35 category, Johnny Morrissey (MHAC) won gold, Tommy Byrne (MHAC) won silver and Timmy Mescall (MHAC) won bronze. Laura Fitzpatrick (MHAC) finished strong to win the F40 category, clear of Abi Manning (Mullingar) in second and Miriam Walsh (MHAC) making a welcome return to competition in third. Paulius Patackas (MHAC) won the M40 category, with Enda Seery (MHAC) in second and Conor Collison (MHAC) in third. Linda Cunningham (MHAC) won the F45 category, ahead of Zane Smukste MHAC) and Julie Wallace (Rathconrath), while Eoin Clarke (MHAC), Kieran Nolan (MHAC) and David Baker (Westmeath) were the 1-2-3 in the M45 category. It was another 1-2-3 for Mullingar Harriers in the F50 category thanks to Mick Fagan, Richard Carey and Jason McKevitt. Caroline Mullen (MHAC) won the F55 category, and in the M55 category it was gold for Andrew Bracken (Coralstown Kinnegad), silver for Mark Cunningham (Castletown-Geoghegan), and bronze for Gerry Molloy (North Westmeath). Majella McGrath (Roscommon Harriers and Creggan) won the F60 category, with Julianne Ryan taking the silver medal. In the “Battle of the Eddies” in the M60 category, the gold medal was won by Eddie Newman (MHAC), the silver was won by Eddie Lynch (MHAC), with Tom McGrath (MHAC) winning the bronze medal. The evergreen Brigid McCabe (MHAC) won the F70 category, with Breda McDonnell (MHAC) winning the silver medal, and concluding with the M70 category, the timeless trio of Nollaig McEntegart (MHAC), Sean McMullin (MHAC) and Nicky McCabe (MHAC) took gold, silver and bronze respectively.

The full results are available HERE.

Sincere thanks to Westmeath Civil Defence who provided very valuable assistance and while their expertise was not called into action on the evening, they are always available to Mullingar Harriers when we stage events, and are ever helpful to athletes, stewards and spectators in ensuring a safe event [GD].

Leinster Juvenile T&F

In warm and sunny Tullamore on Saturday 13th & Sunday 14th June, Mullingar Harriers had athletes competing in an impressively wide range of events at the Leinster Juvenile T&F, amassing an excellent tally of 13 medals, with another 5 athletes finishing in 4th place meaning Mullingar will be well represented at the National T&F Finals in the coming weeks.

On Saturday, 7 athletes took on the sprints events, 9 runners took on the 1,500m, 2 boys ran steeplechase, 2 girls high jumped, 1 long jumped and 1 threw javelin. The morning kicked off with the short sprints where John McManus raced to third place in his heat of the u/15 boys 100m to qualify for the final where he ran even quicker with a PB of 12.61 seconds to place 5th, just hundredths of a second off 4th which would have earned him a place in the National finals. Joel Kelly finished third in his heat of the u/16 boys 100m to qualify for the final where he finished 5th in a close race. Also competing in the sprints but not advancing from the competitive heats was Trijol Bhattacharjee who made his T&F Championship debut in the u/17 boys 100m heats, and Cian Hyland and Aaron Conroy (u/18 boys 100m heats).

On to the middle-distance races where Daniel Cummins ran  a fine race to place a very creditable 6th in the u/14 boys 1,500m, with Cillian Gavin and Conor Gavin running well to follow him home. No luck for Rian Gavin in the u/15 boys 1,500m despite a good effort and race, but a very creditable 7th place in a competitive race. We finally got in the medals thanks to Lily Walsh who led from the gun in the u/16 girls 1,500m and stretched the field as the race progressed. With 300m to go there was just two girls chasing the gold, and after a furious sprint finish Lily held on to win in 4:37.64, breaking the 26 year Championship Record in the process.

Mullingar had Cillian Galvin, Oisin Clarke and Trijol Bhattacharjee in the u/16 boys 1,500m, which built up in intensity as the race unfolded. Cillian and Oisin were part of a small lead pack that broke clear of the field, and after another sprint finish, albeit far closer this time, a time of 4:16.86 saw Cillian steal the win by four thousandths of a second! A fine win from an exciting race and a second Leinster title for Mullingar. Unfortunately Oisin was out-sprinted in the last few metres and just edged out of the podium places in 4th. Trijol followed his club mates home with a top ten finish in 9th place. Eleanor Kiernan kept the medals coming for Mullingar in the u/18 girls 1,500m. Staying in contention throughout the race, Eleanor kept the leaders within striking distance. In the later stages the eventual winner pulled ahead and although Eleanor was closing on the girl in second, she couldn’t close the gap and crossed the line in third place, securing a fine championship bronze medal.

Over in the field events, Hannah Dunne leaped to 4th place in the u/16 girls high jump with a PB of 1.35m. Kate Horohoe doubled up in the u/13 girls javelin and the u/13 girls long jump and despite not getting in the medals enjoyed the competition and will have gained valuable experience. Also competing in the field events but not securing any honours was Amelie G Kelly and Alice Hyland (u/15 girls high jump).

The u/16 girls 400m was run as time trials, with the medals decided on the fastest times over two race. Making her 400m debut was Aoibhe Martyn and while she finished out of the medals, will have gained a lot from the experience. Scott Cogan contested the u/17 boys 400m where he showed great promise over the one lap distance to finish 4th, just out of the medals. No luck for Cian Hyland in the u/18 boys 400m despite a strong performance in his heat but he didn’t advance to the final. Better known as a middle-distance runner, Daniel Cummins dropped down to the u/14 boys 300m where he ran very well but finished out of the medals. John McManus was back on track for the u/15 boys 300m where he blasted from the blocks and led for the first 200m, only caught coming into the home straight, but he dug deep and had enough in the tank to hold on to second place and a fantastic silver medal.

We finished on the track  with Daniel Horohoe and Morgan Isdell contesting the u/17 boys 2,000m steeplechase, a gruelling event that both have only taken up a few months ago but they excelled on the day with Daniel finished in 3rd place, his first individual Leinster podium finish, and Morgan close behind in 5th place.

On Sunday the club was represented with athletes competing in the long jump, triple jump, high jump, shot put, javelin, 200m, 800m, and 3,000m. Sunday was even warmer and sunnier from early morning, great for the sprinters and field event athletes, but very tough for the middle distance runners.

Daniel Cummins opened the action for Mullingar and looked very smooth in his heat of the u/14 boys 800m where he cruised to second place and qualified for the final later in the day where he made up a lot of ground over the last 200m making up several places to finish a very creditable 6th place. Chloe Bell battled hard in the u/15 girls 800m and after a close race she was unlucky to finish just out of the medal places in 5th, in a close finish. Finishing first and fourth in their heat of the u/15 boys 800m respectively for John McManus and Harry Flanagan meant they qualified for the later final. In the final, John was part of a two-man breakaway and reprised his pace from the 300m the day before to power to second place and win his second medal of the week-end, while Harry finished strong behind him but out of the medals. Oisin Clarke gave us plenty to cheer for when found himself in a two-way battle over the last 300m of his u/16 boys 800m battling all the way to the finish line to win silver for second place. Scott Cogan rounded off a third 800m silver for Mullingar when he raced himself to second in a tactical u/17 boys 800m.

Aoibhe Martyn was out sole representative in the longer sprints when she put in an excellent performance in the u/16 girls 200m but didn’t advance from the very tough heats. We only had one in the sprint hurdles too, Maisie Walsh in the u/12 girls 60m hurdles, where she gave a polished performance over the barriers to finish fourth in her heat, not enough to advance to the final but she was delighted to have competed in her first Leinster hurdles race.

It wasn’t all track of course, and over in the field events, Donnacha Doyle was disappointed to place 5th in the u/15 boys high jump on count-back but bounced back, literally, when he jumped to second place with a great series of jumps in the u/15 boys triple jump. Alice Hyland booked her places in the National finals with two excellent 4th place finishes, 4th in the u/15 girls javelin and 4th in the u/15 girls shot put. Injury forced Chloe Bell to withdraw from the u/15 girls long jump after just two jumps but she had still jumped far enough to place 4th, missing a medal only on count-back. Also competing in the field events but finishing out of the medal places was Clodagh Doran (u/16 girls shot put), Sophie Doran (u/12 girls long jump & turbo javelin), Aoibhe Martyn (u/16 girls long jump), Saoirse Peters (u/14 girls javelin & shot put) and Eanin Staunton (u/12 girls long jump), but all delighted with the experience of competing in a Leinster Championship.

The track programme ended with the 3,000m where Mullingar athletes were to the fore in every race they ran in, excelling despite the very warm conditions. Lily Walsh took on the u/16 girls 3,000m in familiar fashion and led the race from the gun. Eventually dropping all opponents, Lily solo-ran her way home to a second Leinster title of the weekend, with a second Leinster Championship Record, finishing in 10:15.07. Competing in his third race of the weekend, Oisin Clarke secured his second silver medal of the day in the u/16 boys 3,000m. Evan Nohilly and Cormac McGrath put in spirited performances in the u/17 boys 3,000m but had to settle for places out of the medals. Eleanor Kiernan had her second podium finish of the weekend in the u/18 girls 3,000m. Always in contention for medals and pushing hard over the final lap, she consolidated her third place and was delighted to win her second bronze medal of the weekend. In the last race of the day for Mullingar Harriers Conor Walsh rounded off a very successful weekend for the club on a high note. After a steady, championship style race in the u/18 boys 3,000m, the first three athletes were so close in the final 300m that the lead changed hands four or five times as they sprinted all-out to the finish line. Although Conor managed to take the lead with 80m to go, he was ultimately out-sprinted into third place, missing second by just 0.7 of a second. Disappointing for Conor, who came within touching distance of a Leinster title, but a podium finish to complete a fine weekend which saw quite a few Mullingar Harriers with top four finishes, and qualifying for the National T&F finals [CW/GD].

BMC Grand Prix, Loughborough

Colin P Smith produced a Club 1,500m record of 3:40.55 when winning the British Milers Club Grand Prix 1,500m in Loughborough on Saturday 13th June. Colin entered the race with a personal best of 3:44 but recent races suggested he was on the cusp of a breakthrough. He raced with confidence, remaining prominent in the leading group throughout, before unleashing a really strong finishing kick to take victory and a huge margin of improvement in his personal best by 4 seconds. The previous Club record was held by Cormac Finnerty with a time of 3:40.77 from 1995. This breakthrough is richly deserved by Colin who has been an active club member since the age of eight and is another of our current senior athletes continuing to improve, having graduated from the club’s juvenile programme. Jamie Battle also produce a personal best of 8:10.53 in the 3,000m at the Loughborough meeting and Eoin Quinn set a season’s best time of 1:50.64 in the 800m [JR].

Braveheart 5k

The annual Braveheart 5k organised by Trim AC on Friday evening 12th June and with a route along the banks of the Boyne in the vicinity of the town attracted a total of 524 athletes. John Glennon had an excellent run finishing 5th overall in 17:29. This was sufficient to win his u/20 category by over a minute. Barry White had a steady race and finished in 21:46 [MO’S].

Daingean 5k

The Offaly 5k series continued on Friday evening 12th June when 439 runners took to the start line of the Daingean 5k, as the local Naomh Mhuire AC hosted an excellently organised event. Weather conditions were dry, but with a stiff breeze very welcome, as it was a humid evening. The course was largely flat but did have a number of elevated stretches, which combined with some headwind off the canal made for a fair but challenging race. Mullingar Harriers was again well represented. Mark Darby led our 8 participants home taking 6th place in a time of 15:38. James Keegan returned a time of 16:35, edging out the fast-finishing Kevin Moore and Kedagh Geoghegan who both ran 16:40, with Kevin getting the decision of the stewards in a photo finish. Mark, James, Kevin and Kedagh combined to finish 2nd Club team. Eddie Lynch, with 18:41, again took the honours in his master category. Orlaith Flanagan returned a time of 19:06, finishing 2nd in the women’s race. Robin Jackson ran 20:48 with Claire Lennon Gavin running 23:38 [MO’S].

Newtowncashel 5k

Alan Crowley was among 129 runners who took part in the St Mary’s Newtowncashel NS 5k run on Thursday evening 11th June in the County Longford village. On a relatively flat course, Alan controlled matters at the front of the race. He was tested all the way by a local junior runner, just getting to pull clear in the final 400m to win with 6 seconds to spare in 17:05 [MO’S].

Leinster Combined Events

Well done to Chloe Bell who made her debut in the pentathlon at the Leinster Combined Events in SETU Carlow on Sunday 7th June, finishing an excellent sixth in the u/15 Girls Pentathlon. Taking on five events in one day, Chloe had wins in the long jump and 800m, helping her secure a large points tally of 2,145. She also competed in the high jump, shot put and 80m hurdles.

The day didn’t start well at all when Chloe fell in the first event, the hurdles, but ever the competitor, Chloe reset and in the high jump and shot put she gained valuable points, but the win in the long jump was a big boost going into the 800m where her win improved her points total significantly to see her finish sixth overall, only 43 points away from a medal which is just over a half a second in the hurdles, showing how costly the fall was but how good Chloe could be in the event.

Chloe only turned her attention to the multi-events in the last few weeks and in fact only the day before the competition was her first serious session over the hurdles, so definitely plenty of improvement to come. A brilliant result, and possibly a new calling for Chloe in the world of Athletics?

Also competing in Carlow and making his debut in the combined events too was Paddy Boyhan in the Master Men Pentathlon where he competed in long jump, javelin, 200m, discus and finished with the 1,500m to win Gold, so well done Paddy too [CW/GD].

Lightning 10,000m (Germany)

Diarmuid Fagan travelled to Stadtallendorf in central Germany on Sunday 6th June to compete in the Lightning 10,000m, which is a World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze Event and a highly regarded international event among distance athletes. Diarmuid finished 4th in 28:31.62, behind two Kenyan and a Ugandan athlete, best of the Europeans in the race and very satisfied with his performance in a quality race [GD].

Moylagh 50 Mile Challenge

A large group of ultra runners and walkers tackled the annual Moylagh 50 Mile Challenge on Saturday morning 6th June in very difficult wet and windy weather conditions around roads that covered parts of Westmeath, Meath and Cavan.

The JFK 50 Mile was first held in the spring of 1963. It was held as part of President John F. Kennedy’s push to bring the USA back to physical fitness. The event has become a global one and in Moylagh it has embraced the work of Cancer Services in Ireland, raising funds from the sponsorship obtained by participants in the event.

Two members of the club took on the challenge and walked the entire distance in a very creditable time of 13 hours and 54 minutes. Well done to Ger Langtry and Joanna Tyrrell on their endeavours. Both expressed their delight at the support and encouragement received along the way, including from some club members who travelled up from Mullingar [MO’S].

Leinster Juvenile Inter-Club Relays

The Leinster Juvenile Inter-Club Relays took place in SETU Carlow on Saturday 6th June and it was great to have three teams travel down to represent Mullingar Harriers at the event. The heavy rain didn’t deter our young Mullingar athletes and they all enjoyed this opportunity to practice their relay skills, though it was certainly as day of mixed fortunes, with disappointment in the morning and celebration in the afternoon.

We had two teams in the u/11 girls 4x100m relay heats in the morning session. The first team to compete was Cara Hickey, Meabh Doyle, Fodhla Hughes and Mia Barry. The girls put in a fantastic performance and despite finishing second in their heat unfortunately they were disqualified for passing the baton outside the zone on one of the changes, which is always a risk in relay racing. Our second team was Cliodhna Fitzpatrick, Sophie Whitelaw, Hannah-Mae Ledwith and Aoibheann Dixon. The girls worked very well together as a team and put in a great performance for their first relay event but didn’t advance from the very competitive heats.

In the afternoon session, we had a very strong team in the u/10 girls 4x100m relay with Tara Coyne, Laila Morgan, Alana Spain and Eibhlinn Reihill. The team ran a very strong race to win their heat comfortably and qualify for the final where they ran even faster to claim second place in a thrilling and very close race and bring the Leinster silver medals home to Mullingar.

This was a great achievement for a young team who now qualify for the National finals in Tullamore in two weeks and they can hopefully keep working together to achieve more success [SW/GD].

IMC Outdoor T&F Meet #2

The Irish Milers Meeting in Irishtown Stadium in Dublin on Saturday 6th June was held in far from ideal wet and windy conditions but the three Mullingar Harriers in action didn’t let that faze them.

Running in the 400m A race, Patrick Leydon stormed to 4th place in 48.62 seconds, a new personal best. Eoin Quinn ran his first race of the season when he toed the line for the 800m A race and was happy to finish 5th in 1:51.32, a good season-opener for him. Conor Sherwin had been hoping to better his performance from Belfast two weeks before but the conditions weren’t conducive for fast running in the 1,500m B race but still finished strong in 2nd place in 4:00.14, good running in the conditions [AS/GD].

Portumna Forest Half & Ultramarathon

Despite taking place in a forest, there was no escaping the weather on Saturday 6th June in Portumna Forest in Co. Galway where runners had a choice of 10k, Half Marathon, Marathon or 50k Ultramarathon. Whatever the distance, it was a very difficult course with lots of tight U-turns at cones but that didn’t prevent Mark Darby winning the Half Marathon in 1:20:49, pulling clear in the closing stages to win by just over 30 seconds, leaving nearly 200 others in his wake. Among the 85 that chose the 50k Ultramarathon was Susan Glennon who dug deep to finish an excellent 4th overall in 3:41:30, the 1st woman to finish. Very well done to Mark and Susan [GD].

Bohermeen 5k

The 40th annual Patrick Bell & Nicky Philips Memorial Bohermeen 5k took place in wet and windy conditions around the local roads of Bohermeen near Navan on Saturday morning 6th June. 460 took part on a course that was described as consisting of several rolling hills with a number of long flat stretches. A head wind and some driving rain showers tested the runners that included six from Mullingar Harriers. Vinny Connolly was always in contention at the front of the race before having to settle for 3rd place in a furious race to the line over the last 600m, recording a time of 15:29. Paul O’Reilly was next in from Mullingar with a time of 17:00, followed by Joe Doherty running 18:48, then John Long in 20:16, followed closely by Orla Gillespie in 20:29, which earned her 3rd place in her master category. The Mullingar group was completed by Niamh Doherty who came home in 21:40. After the race, the runners were treated to a plenty of refreshments and expressed their satisfaction with a well organised event by Bohermeen AC [MO’S].

May

Leinster Children’s Games (u/9, 10, 11) and u/12 & u/13 T&F

Occasional heavy showers on an otherwise lovely day didn’t dampen the spirits of the hundreds of athletes, including 40 from Mullingar Harriers, that competed in the Leinster Children’s Games (u/9, 10, 11) and u/12 & u/13 T&F in Tullamore on Sunday 31st May. The younger under 9, 10 and 11 year olds competed as a “pair”, meaning that the best two times by our athletes in a race or throws in the turbo javelin or shot putt or jumps in the long jump were added together to give a team total or score, while the older under 12 and under 13 year olds competed as individuals. The level of competition was fierce and medals were very hard to win but all our young athletes competed to the very best of their ability and medals won or not they all thoroughly enjoyed the day and the fun of competition.

The first track event was the u/12 girls 600m where only the top 3 in each of the three heats were guaranteed to advance to the final, so competition was very tough. Maisie Walsh was fifth in her heat to just miss a place in the final and join Emily Rose Coyne who finished second in her heat to advance to the final. No luck either for Eiva Berzinyte and Aoibhinn Baker who both ran well in their heats. In the final, Emily Rose ran quicker to finish second in a very close race and win the Leinster silver medal. In the u/13 girls 600m Rose Harte competed well in her heat and despite running well she didn’t advance to the final.

Mia Barry won her race in the u/11 girls 600m, Cara Hickey was second in hers, Meabh Doyle won her race, and Sophie Whitelaw and Marie Harte ran well in their races. When the “pairs” team scores were calculated after, it was gold for Mia and Cara, comfortably clear of second place. In the corresponding u/11 boys 600m races, Rian Healy, Shay Gavigan, Tadhg Smith and Aaron Crowley gave good accounts in but finished out of the medals. On to the u/10 girls 500m where Tara Coyne and Alana Spain won their races, Eibhlinn Reihill was second in her race, and Ciara Baker also ran very well in her race. When the team scores were calculated, it was gold for Tara and Alana by a good distance, to add to Mullingar’s growing medal tally. Joe Hickey, Senan Byrne and Darragh Byrne competed in the u/10 boys 500m where they ran very well in the tough races but finished out of the medals.

Of course it wasn’t all track events and Mullingar athletes were very busy in the various field events. Heather Kelly leaped to a fine silver in the u/12 girls high jump, where Maisie Walsh and Eanin Staunton also competed and enjoyed the competition. Ryan Corroon and Senan Whelehan were very unlucky to finish just out of the medals in 4th place in the u/11 boys turbo javelin but top marks for effort. Another notable performance came from Eanin Staunton who finished a very creditable 6th place in the u/12 girls shot put. Also in action in the field events was Rocco Galvin and Aidan Buckley (u/10 boys long jump), Meabh Doyle, Lana Bekvalac, Fodhla Hughes and Cliodhna Fitzpatrick (u/11 girls long jump), Tiernan Martyn and Shay Gavigan (u/11 boys long jump), Padraig Savage and Ciaran Fitzpatrick (u/9 boys turbo javelin), Aida Keane (u/10 girls turbo javelin), Aoife Gavigan and Hannah-Mae Ledwith (u/11 girls turbo javelin) and while there were no medals won, they all thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Attention then moved back to the track for the sprints. There were so many in the u/12 girls 60m it needed nine heats. Emily Rose Coyne won her heat, running quicker in the semi-final to place second and book her place in the final. Eiva Berzinyte also won her heat, ran quicker in her semi-final to finish 4th, narrowly missing a place in the final. Running well in their heats was Laurie Keane and Heather Kelly but didn’t advance to the semi-finals. In the final, Emily Rose found another gear and ran even faster to finish 6th, an excellent result after such a tough schedule of races. Michael Kiernan was our sole entrant in the u/13 boys 80m where he gave a good account but didn’t advance from the very competitive heats.

Tara Coyne was second in her race of the u/10 girls 60m, Alana Spain won her race, Eibhlinn Reihill was second in her race and Aida Keane raced to fourth in her race. When the “pairs” team scores were reckoned, Tara and Alana combined to win the gold medal by a narrow margin of just three hundredths of a second, such was the level of competition. Joe Hickey, Rocco Galvin, Jamie Smyth and Senan Byrne ran well in their u/10 boys 60m races and while they won no medals, a shout out to Joe and Rocco who combined for a fine 6th place.

There were twelve races in the u/11 girls 60m where Fodhla Hughes finished second in her race, Mia Barry won hers, and Cara Hickey, Cliodhna Fitzpatrick, Lana Bekvalac and Hannah-Mae Ledwith ran well in their races. Unfortunately, the girls didn’t win any medals. though Fodhla and Mia combined for a very creditable 6th place. In the u/11 boys 60m, Conor Kiernan won his race in a tight finish and Senan Whelehan and Tiernan Martyn competed well in their races, but unfortunately there were no medals for the boys.

The day finished with the excitement of the Inter-County relays. Mia Barry, Meabh Doyle, Cliodhna Fitzpatrick and Cara Hickey combined well in the u/11 girls 4x100m to finish a creditable 6th place, out of the medals, but the but the experience will stand to them. Congratulations to everyone for giving their best, they did themselves, their families, their coaches and Mullingar Harriers proud [GD].

Cork City Half Marathon (incorp. National Half Marathon)

The Cork City Half Marathon on Sunday 31st May incorporated the National Half Marathon, adding an extra edge to the competition with National honours up for grabs. The race attracted a big entry of over 4,300 including four athletes from Mullingar Harriers, led home by Eddie Newman in 1:23:21 placing third in his master category in the National event to win the National bronze medal. He was followed in by Criona Reid in 1:34:27, second in her master category in the National event to win the National silver medal, Mary Stuart in 1:34:50, first in her master category in the National event to win the National gold medal, and Joan Hickson in 1:42:49. In the team event, Criona, Mary and Joan combined to place 3rd Senior Women team, a fantastic result.

The Marathon had an entry of just over 2,100 runners and Dan Morris was very happy with his finishing time of 2:32:37, second in his master category, followed by Dara O’Shea in 2:58:24, delighted to break the 3 hour barrier for the first time.

There was also a 10k Race that saw 3,400 toe the line, including Kate Plunkett who finished in 47:05 [GD].

All-Ireland Schools T&F

The All-Ireland Schools T&F took place in Tullamore on Friday evening 29th May and all day Saturday 30th May, continuing an excellent innovation begun a few years ago to reduce an overly long programme on Saturday by holding some events on the evening before. Friday’s programme included events for 5 of the 7 Mullingar Harriers members that were competing for their schools and colleges over the two days. This is regarded as one of the toughest underage T&F Championships in Ireland, and the road to the finals is very hard, so even reaching the finals is a huge achievement.

First up on Friday evening was Gareth Glennon (St. Finian’s College) in the Junior boys 1,200m walk. Right from the gun, Gareth went quickly to the front and was never challenged as he raced to what looked like victory by a margin only to incur a 30 second time penalty after the race, which relegated him to second place and the silver medal, very unfortunate, but always a risk in this very technical event.

Moving to the Senior boys 3,000m walk where the early leader and eventual winner had set a blistering pace right from the gun. John Glennon (St. Finian’s College) knew the pace was too fast for him, so he wisely tracked him and was on course for second place when he was stopped in the home straight to serve a 30 second time penalty, which meant he had an anxious wait to see if he was clear enough of third place. Thankfully he was and when his 30 seconds was up he still had enough of a lead to race to the finish line to take second place and the silver medal.

There was no such drama for Daniel Glennon (St. Finian’s College) in the Intermediate boys 2,000m walk. He went out very fast to the front, pushing on to lead by nearly 50m after the first lap. Maintaining his form and pace, Daniel was simply too good for the opposition and raced to victory in 8:38.15, a new personal best by a narrow margin of just over one second, about 250m clear of second place to win a coveted All-Ireland Schools title and gold medal.

Away from the track, Chloe Bell (St. Finian’s College’s) won a fantastic silver in the Junior girls long jump. Chloe jumped 5.07m, a big personal best, to equal the eventual winner’s best jump, but the judges split the girls’ standings based on next best jumps. 5.07m was an improvement on her Leinster performance and saw her out-jump the girls she had shared a podium with at the Leinster Schools T&F.

Back on the track again, Tianna O’Leary (Ursuline Convent, Thurles) competed in the Senior girls 1,500m steeplechase. She was right in contention for the bronze medal up until the last lap when a mistake at the water jump proved critical, losing ground and falling back out of the medal places to 5th place. This was still a great performance from her in a new event and she’ll take the experience forward to the rest of the outdoor season ahead.

We ended the evening with the Senior boys 5,000m where Jamie Wallace (Colaiste Mhuire) stayed with the leading group of four up to 3,000m but then began to fall off the back of the group. Despite his best efforts to get back in contact, unfortunately he had to call it a day with four laps to go and made the difficult decision to stop.

The first event on Saturday morning was the Intermediate girls 3,000m and Lily Walsh (Loreto College) was one of the youngest girls in race, giving away a year to most of her opponents. Such was the standard in the race that the times recorded by first and second place were inside the European u/18 T&F qualifying standard. But a confident, tactically astute race ensured Lily a place on the podium with a third place finish and the bronze medal, in a new personal best time 9.52:38.

We rounded off a very successful week-end for Mullingar athletes with another medal, courtesy of Cillian Galvin (Colaiste Mhuire) in the u/16 boys mile. Tactically very aware, Cillian kept to the back of the pack out of trouble but keeping a close eye on the race as it unfolded. He was never far from the action at the front and going down the backstraight on the final lap he began to move up the field. With 200m to go he hit the gas and swept to the front and looked to be running to victory but was caught shortly before the finish and ran in second for the silver medal in a very close finish. A brilliant effort in a brilliant race.

That wraps up the schools competitions for everybody except Lily Walsh, Daniel Glennon and Cillian Galvin who have been selected to compete for Leinster in the Tailteann Inter-Provincial T&F in three weeks [GD/CW].

Ballyskenach 5k

Ballyskenach AC hosted the Ballyskenach 5k, the latest in the Healthy Offaly 5k series on Friday evening 29th May. In warm humid conditions, 370 competed on a circular course that brought them through the grounds of the Cistercian College in Roscrea, and along a mainly country road network with a combination of flat stretches and a number of steep climbs. Two Mullingar Harriers took part, with Kevin Moore who was always in contention with the lead group finishing 4th in 16:03, and Eddie Lynch finishing in 18:23 and continuing his successful performances in the Offaly series by again winning his master category [MO’S].

Coralstown NS 5k

The Coralstown NS 5k was held on Wednesday 27th May on a beautiful sunny and warm summer evening. Over 250 finished, a great number for a local race, and being so local, it’s no surprise that Mullingar Harriers was out in force and nearly 50 club members took part. Race winner was local club man Andy Nevin (Coralstown Kinnegad AC) in 16:34, followed by brothers Conor Leech and Ciaran Leech (Na Fianna AC). First Mullingar finisher was Gareth Glennon in 7th place (17:47) 1st u/16 boy too, followed by Enda Seery 9th (18:09) and Andrew Glennon 10th (18:22). In the women race it was a 1-2-3 for Mullingar Harriers with Sinead Whitelaw 12th overall and 1st woman in 18:42, followed by Niamh McEntegart 2nd woman in 19:15 and Orlaith Flanagan 3rd woman in 19:31.

Mullingar athletes were prominent in the results, winning category prizes from u/16 to master men and women, including Criona Reid (21:02) and Mary Stuart (21:33) winning their master categories, and Muirin Dunne (22:04) 1st u/16 girl.

Also competing was Darren Carroll (19:36), Conor Collison (19:45), Alan Crowley (19:58), Tom McGrath (20:06), Olly Loughrey (20:15), Tommy Byrne (20:46), Dara O’Shea (20:50), Aeilish McGovern (21:09), Richard Carey (21:19), Mark Dunne (21:30), Robin Jackson (21:35), Marie Louise Johnston (21:40), Colm Brennan (21:44), Philip Burke (22:20), Shaun Mills (22:32), Zane Smukste (23:06), Brendan Rice (23:09), Matt Creagh (23:17), Lorraine Claffey (23:30), Eva Ross (23:31), Leona Behan (23:38), Michael Purdue (23:53), Eva McMorrow (23:57), Michael O’Sullivan (24:19), Ciara Dillon (24:46), Trijol Bhattacharjee (24:49), Senan Whelehan (25:39), Nollaig McEntegart (25:39), Olivia Cronin (26:33), Nuala Moran (26:38), Declan Costello (26:43), Kevin O’Brien (26:51), Anna Redmond (29:10), Estere Skrastina (30:11), Aisling Corcoran (36:56), Pauline Troy (41:17), Ger Langtry (45:09) and Marna Groenewald (46:35) [GD].

Leinster u/20, Senior and Masters T&F

A small but talented group of Mullingar Harriers athletes competed in the Leinster u/20, Senior and Masters T&F in a hot and sunny SETU Carlow on Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th May. Early on Saturday morning Paddy Boyhan leaped to gold in his category in the masters high jump. He then moved to the masters long jump where after a cautious start taking two jumps to settle into the competition, he made a big improvement in round 3, which was to be the best of his four jumps and enough to win his second gold medal of the day. Paddy made it three medals on Sunday when he jumped to second place in the masters triple jump to win the silver medal. In her first outdoor competition of the year, Ramona Carey competed in the masters shot put where she put together a good series of throws but was unlucky to finish just out of the medals in 4th place.

On the track, Linda Cunningham raced to second place and the silver medal in her category in the masters 1,500m, delighted to record a time of 6:04.21, a new personal best by 3 seconds. Conor Walsh competed in the u/18 boys 2,000m steeplechase, which was a non-Championship event so there were no medals to be won, but that didn’t prevent Conor Walsh putting in a great effort in what is still a new event for him and while he would have liked to have run quicker, was still happy to take the win.

We finished Saturday back at the field events where Tom Walsh was competing in the masters weight throw, also called the heavy hammer. This is a new event for Tom and three foul throws meant the pressure was on to record a mark on his fourth and final attempt, but being the true competitor he is, Tom settled himself and threw the 16 pound weight out to 9.42m to win the silver medal in his category. He hadn’t much rest before he moved to the masters weight for distance where he threw the heavy 28 pound weight out to 7.70m, which was enough to take silver in his category. Tom rounded off his week-end on the podium again on Sunday when he comfortably won his category in the masters weight for height to take his third Leinster medal, a gold.

Saturday was warm, but Sunday was an absolute scorcher and while sprinters and field event athletes loved it, the conditions were brutal for the distance athletes. Despite the challenging hot conditions, Matthew Glennon put in a great performance in the senior 5,000m racewalk and while he had to concede to Olympian David Kenny who won the race, ahead of Matthew in second, as David was competing as a guest, the Leinster title and gold medal was awarded to Matthew. In the u/20 men 5,000m racewalk, Daniel Glennon showed his class and didn’t let the heat get the better of him and he raced to gold and the Leinster title too.

By the time Kris Foster toed the line for the senior 5,000m the temperature was 24degC and climbing, though felt much higher on the track itself, which proved to be extremely difficult over the twelve and a half laps of the race. Kris was in a medal place with three laps to go and though he dug deep he had to surrender his medal hopes in the closing stages and fell back to 4th place, which was disappointing for him but he still took a positive view and was very satisfied with his effort battling the heat [GD].

European 10,000m Cup

It’s been over three years since Jamie Battle ran for Ireland, the last time being at the European Cross Country in Turin where he won a bronze medal with the under 23 team. He returned to Italy on Saturday 23rd May to make his senior International debut at the European 10,000m Cup in La Spezia. Even though the race was in the evening, it was still very warm and conditions were tough. Competing in the B race, Jamie dug deep and delighted to be making a return to International competition raced to an excellent 12th place finish in 30:11.63. Gaining selection to represent Ireland at senior International level is a tremendous achievement and Jamie should be extremely proud to wear the Irish singlet [GD].

British Milers Meeting, Belfast

The British Milers came to Belfast on a lovely dry Saturday 23rd May and Mullingar Harriers had three athletes competing in the mile races. First up was Conor Sherwin but his race didn’t pan out the way everyone expected, as only one runner decided he would go with the pacemaker over the first lap, leaving the remaining group of runners well off the pace for three laps and the race only really started with one lap to go and turned into a 400m sprint, which didn’t suit Conor on the day coming home in 7th place.

The next race had two Mullingar men in action, Colin P Smith and Jamie Wallace. This was the last race of the day and the feature race with four of the field being sub-4 minute mile men, so it was expected to be fast from the gun and it didn’t disappoint. Colin went through the first lap in 57 seconds and Jamie further back in 59 seconds. Colin got himself into a lovely position during the race in the middle of the pack and Jamie sat out the back knowing this was a fast race. With one lap to go, Colin unleashed a serious turn of pace and flew home to finish 3rd in 4:01.03 just outside a sub-4 minute but a big personal best by over 2 seconds. Jamie took a more conservative approach to his race as he was running against the best milers in Ireland and with 300m to go started moving from the back of the field closing all the way to the finish and ran a massive personal best of 4:08.39, which was over 5 seconds better than his previous best [TW].

Comeback 5,000m

Competing at the Comeback 5,000m in Battersea Park in London on Friday evening 22nd May, Diarmuid Fagan put in a great performance and had enough in reserve to pull clear in the closing stages after a close race to win in 13:44.13, a new personal best by a massive 23 seconds, a great result for all his hard work in training and this will give him a huge confidence boost for the season ahead [GD].

Leinster Schools T&F

The Leinster Schools T&F finals were held over two exciting days of top class competition in Tullamore on Monday 18th & Wednesday 20th May. The Senior and Intermediate athletes competed on Monday, and the u/16, Junior and Minor athletes, and all the race walkers, competed on Wednesday. The 12 athletes from Mullingar Harriers competing for their schools and colleges performed to their customary very high level and were to the fore across a range of events. At the end of the two days, 8 of the 12 had secured places in the All-Ireland Schools T&F finals at the end of May.

First up on Monday morning was Mathew Molloy (St. Finian’s College) who decided to try a different event, the Senior 2,000m Steeplechase and it almost paid off with him finishing 4th after an exceptional race, unlucky not to have gained a medal but he did gain valuable experience. We followed with Lily Walsh (Loreto Mullingar) who won the Intermediate girls 3,000m with a polished performance, dipping under the 10 minute mark, to qualify for the All-Ireland Schools finals and she’ll also represent Loreto College at the Inter-Provincial T&F to be held in late June where she’ll race for Leinster. We ended the day with Jamie Wallace (Colaiste Mhuire) who lined up in the Senior boys 5,000m a distance he had never ran before on the track and his aim was to qualify for the All-Ireland finals with as little effort as possible keeping in mind he planned to race in Belfast five days later and that’s exactly how his race panned out. Jamie followed the pace in third until 400m to go then took the lead and when challenged with 80m to go he wisely let the winner go and held 2nd place comfortably and qualify for the All-Ireland finals.

The race walks started the programme on Wednesday morning and it no surprise that it was a clean sweep of titles for the Glennon brothers competing for St. Finian’s College, gold for Gareth Glennon in the Junior boys 1,200m walk, gold for Daniel Glennon in the Intermediate boys 2,000m walk, and gold for John Glennon in the Senior boys 3,000m walk and all three advance to the All-Irelands finals.

Chloe Bell (St. Finian’s College) was in the middle of her Junior girls Long Jump competition when she had to step on to the track for the Junior girls 800m. Concentrating on one event is tough enough but two at the same time was a little bit much to ask. Although the 800m got away from her and she finished out of the medals, Chloe leaped to 3rd place in the long jump, earning a place at the All-Ireland finals. John McManus (St. Finian’s College) raced in the Junior boys 800m where he finished a very creditable ninth place in a good time of 2:20. Oisin Clarke (Colaiste Mhuire) was very unlucky in the Intermediate boys 1,500m where he just missed out on a medal and a place in the All-Ireland finals with a fourth place finish in a close race. Donnacha Doyle (Colaiste Mhuire) cleared 1.45m in the Junior boys High Jump to finish a fine eighth place in a tough competition.

After a very sedate early pace in the u/16 boys Mile, Cillian Galvin (Colaiste Mhuire) settled in the middle of the pack and let the race develop around him. Then, with 500m to go he shot up on the inside lane and just ran away from the rest of the field in impressive fashion. An added bonus to winning the Leinster title was his invitation to join the Leinster team for the School’s Inter-Provincial finals. Antonio Bertolo (Colaiste Mhuire) had us looking towards the podium one more time when he earned a fine silver with a second place finish in the Junior boys 1,500m [TW/CW].

Mas 5k Berlin

Regarded as one of the fastest 5k road courses in Europe and therefore attracting some of the very best distance runners, Jack O’Leary toed the line for the Mas 5k in Berlin on Wednesday evening 20th May, a World Athletics ranking event. Right from the gun, Jack raced out with the leading group, tracking the early leader closely. When the time came, he moved to the front and pushed on to the finish at the iconic Brandenburg Gate to win in 13:31, an impressive time for the road and actually a personal best for Jack for 5k on the road. This was a notable victory for Jack as he continues his build up to the season ahead [GD].

Bob Heffernan & Mary Hanley 5k

The annual Bob Heffernan & Mary Hanley 5k race hosted by Na Fianna AC took place on Tuesday 19th May on a mild but wet evening over a fast, flat course on roads around Johnstownbridge, Co. Kildare. This race always attracts a quality field and this year was no exception as nearly 700 athletes chased fast times. The first six runners were home in under 15 minutes with the next 40 athletes finishing in under 16 minutes, giving an idea of the quick times achieved. Mullingar Harriers had 15 participants in the race and Euan Lagan had the honour of leading them home in 15:29. Ross Killalea was in close pursuit in 15:37. Also with great finishing times were Mark Ronan (16:54), Enda Seery (17:49), Joseph Doherty (18:53), Dara O’Shea (18:58), Conor Corcoran (19:03), Mark Dunne (20:34) and Thomas Gilligan (20:52). Orla Gillespie was our first woman home in 21:15, followed closely by Niamh Doherty (21:16), Laura Fitzpatrick (21:20) and Linda Cunningham (21:23) only seconds behind her. Leona Behan ran strongly finishing in 22:45, as did Kelly Dunne in 24:11 in preparation for the busy race season ahead [LC].

Ashling Murphy 4 Mile

Offaly Athletics hosted the fifth staging of the Ashling Murphy 4 Mile race on a cool breezy morning on Sunday 17th May. Just over 700 runners and nearly 100 walkers took to the roads around the town. The opening 600m was a steady rise bringing runners past O’Connor Park GAA Ground. The course levelled off and took a left into the Sragh Industrial Estate, reaching 1 mile. It was flat running through the Business Park, on to the 2 mile mark, and beyond with a little downhill bringing the runners to the 3 mile mark. A stiff climb past the railway station tested everyone before turning back towards the town centre and a welcome downhill finish.

Mullingar Harriers was well represented by 8 runners, led home by Mark Darby in an excellent 4th place in 20:36 after a great battle among the leading group upfront. Next in from Mullingar was Eddie Lynch in 24:19, delighted to win first prize in his master category, followed by Orlaith Flanagan (25:09), Jason McKevitt (25:56), Richard Carey (27:24), Philip Burke (28:44), Zane Smukste (29:38) and the Mullingar group was completed by Jennifer Bourke (37:51) making her debut in the Mullingar colours [GS].

Munster Schools T&F

UNREPORTED

Saturday 16th May, Castleisland, Co. Kerry

Tianna O’Leary (Ursuline Convent Thurles) Senior girls 1,500m steeplechase 3rd

National Road 5k

The 2026 Athletics Ireland Race Series began on Saturday morning 16th May with the National 5k Championships in the Phoenix Park. In ideal cool and dry conditions in a very competitive field, 10 athletes from Mullingar Harriers competed alongside over 2,000 finishers. Eddie Newman had the honour of leading the Mullingar squad home in a time of 18:50, 4th in his master category narrowly missing a medal. Sharon O’Dowd was next in, leading the women’s team home in a swift 19:22, winning the National bronze medal in her master category. Joan Flynn was close behind her in 19:47 and also won the National bronze medal in her master category, with Ann Hall (20:10) close behind her in 4th place in the same master category, just missing a medal. Criona Reid (20:30) battled hard throughout and finished inside the top 5 in her master category. Also running well were Mary Stuart (21:11), taking the National silver medal in her master category, Linda Cunningham (21:50) and Eva Ross (23:14). Brigid McCabe finished in 25:09, winning the National silver medal in her master category, with Nicky McCabe (26:19) completing the group with a fine 4th place in his master category. In the team results, the Master Women o/35 team of Sharon, Joan and Ann finished 3rd Club, and the Master Women o/50 team of Criona, Mary and Brigid won the silver medals for 2nd Club [LC].

Athlone 10 Mile

Organised by Athlone AC, the Athlone 10 Mile on Saturday 16th May started and finished in Clonown Village in Co. Roscommon on what was described as a very flat course. The race attracted a good entry of 270, including two members of Mullingar Harriers. Paulius Patackas was very happy to finish 4th overall in 59:51, which was enough to win his master category, and he was followed in by  Mick Fagan in a fine 21st place and he was very happy with his time of 1:07:22 [GD].

The Belfast Classic International

UNREPORTED

Saturday 9th May, Mary Peters Track Belfast

3,000m International Jack O’Leary 3rd 7:48.50, Diarmuid Fagan 5th 8:01.20, Jamie Battle 14th 8:17.97

400m Race C Patrick Leydon 3rd 49.08 seconds

1,500m International Colin P Smith 3:44.17

1,500m Race A Jamie Wallace 3:50.57

1,500m Race B Euan Lagan 4:04.11

1,500m Race C Conor Sherwin 3:57.40

Ferbane 5k

The Healthy Offaly 5k series reached Ferbane on Friday evening 8th May when Ferbane AC staged their annual Hugo Smith Memorial 5k. Over 340 runners completed the race on an overcast but humid evening and a stiff headwind with some rolling hills made for challenging but fair conditions in the first 2k. There was a pleasant downhill final kilometre with the wind assisting for most of the final 500m. Five members of Mullingar Harriers completed the race, led home by Eddie Lynch in 18:23, winning his master category, followed by Sharon O’Dowd in 18:57, the second woman finisher, then Orlaith Flanagan (19:09) fourth woman, Lorraine Claffey (22:43) and Michael O’Sullivan (23:35) [MO’S].

Leixlip 5k

Patrick Muldoon was the sole representative from Mullingar Harriers among just over 200 others at the Leixlip 5k on Friday evening 8th May. Hosted by Le Cheile AC, the race took place in overcast and humid conditions, and the course looped around the town, with the finish on the club’s all-weather track, followed by a fine spread of refreshments in the club house after the race. Patrick was happy to finish well up in his master category in 22:22 [GD].

Drogheda 10k

Drogheda & District AC staged their annual Drogheda 10k road race on Sunday afternoon 3rd May, attracting over 1,500 runners. Ran on a picturesque course out of town along roads going parallel to the River Boyne and taking in some great views of the countryside before looping back to the town centre, Mullingar Harriers was represented by Kieran Nolan who had a very strong race finishing well up in the top 50 finishers and recording a time of 39:38 [MO’S].

Dublin City Half Marathon

Starting on O’Connell Street, the Dublin City Council Dublin Half Marathon on Sunday morning 3rd May took runners on a route out through the North of the city before returning for a city centre finish. It was a bright and dry morning in the city for the race. Conditions were described as ideal for the race with no headwind and yet a light breeze helping to keep the runners from getting overheated. Over 13,000 runners completed the course, including five from Mullingar Harriers.

Conor Collison was first home for the Club, very happy to finish in 1:31:27. Mary Stuart was our first woman finisher, winning her master category with a time of 1:37:33. Joan Hickson was pleased with a season best time for the distance of 1:43:14 with John McNamara running a time of 1:43:46. Matt Creagh was delighted with a personal best for the distance, dipping under the 1 hour 50 mark very well and recording a time of 1:48:33 [MO’S].

West of Ireland Women’s 10k Mini Marathon

Over 1,600 ladies took to the streets of Ballina, Co Mayo for the West of Ireland Women’s 10k Mini Marathon on Sunday morning 3rd May, among them was Mullingar Harriers Sinéad Whitelaw. Sinéad tucked into the lead pack for the first 3 to 4k before the pace increased, and she unfortunately fell back off the group, which was led by 2016 Rio Olympian, Breege Connolly. Sinéad continued to fight hard over the remainder of the hilly course, and finished in 4th position, with time of 39:06. The race was won by a young 13 year old Mayo athlete, Roxanne Sands, who is certainly one to watch in the future.

Sophie Whitelaw also completed in the Mini-Mini Marathon, which saw 1,000 primary school children enjoy a fun run along a 2k route through the town [SW].

Belfast Marathon

Starting at Stormont and finishing at Ormeau Park, the Phoenix Energy Belfast City Marathon was held in bright and warm conditions on Sunday morning 3rd May. With a slight breeze that was helpful to keep temperatures under control, it was as always a noted race where large crowds of spectators lined much of the route giving encouragement to all participants. Among them was Barry White of Mullingar Harriers who was delighted to achieve a personal best for the distance coming home in a time of 3:21:30 [MO’S].

Great Limerick Run Marathon

The Regeneron Great Limerick Run was a festival of races offering a marathon, half marathon and 10k distances on Sunday morning 3rd May. Four runners from Mullingar Harriers took part in the Marathon, which was run on a course mainly on the outskirts of the city, after a start and finish in the docklands area. Just over 1,800 runners completed the marathon in overcast but hot and humid conditions. Packing well as a group the four Mullingar Harriers finished within 2 minutes of each other, having shared much of the race together. First home was James Keegan in 2:45:50, followed by Kris Foster with a time of 2:46:19. Alan Crowley returned a time of 2:47:03 with Kedagh Geoghegan finishing in 2:47:41 [MO’S].

Prague Marathon

The 31st running of the Vodafone Prague Marathon took place on Sunday morning 3rd May. The course was through the streets and alleyways of the ancient quarter of the city with a spectacular city centre start and finish area. It was warm and sunny in the Czechia capital as 11,000 runners took on the marathon, among them Ger Feerick of Mullingar Harriers. Ger has put in a strong training regime over the past 3 months and was well rewarded with a steady run always within a minute or so of his target time. He was very pleased when his finishing time was confirmed at 3:36:46 [MO’S].

Leinster Novice & Masters Road Championships

With so many other races on a crowded fixture list over the May Bank Holiday weekend, it’s little surprise that in contrast to the normal more than 20 athletes from Mullingar Harriers, we had just 8 competing at the Leinster Novice & Masters Road Championships on Saturday afternoon 2nd May in Gowran, Co. Kilkenny.

The weather was really good for racing, nice and mild, and with only the occasional light misty rain, everyone could stay outside near the finish area to cheer others on in every race. The course in Gowran is made up of 1,500m laps, with a downhill start followed by a gradual long climb, an excellent course for a Championship race. Gowran AC again proved excellent hosts for the event with every facility provided, including a large hall for registration, bag drop and medal presentation, toilets, public address, lead car, lots of race marshals and stewards, some on bikes, and plenty of refreshments after. While we had no teams, after four excellent competitive races, Mullingar won 4 individual masters medals, 1 individual novice medal, good results for the Club.

The first race was the Master Women 3,000m, covering two laps. Finishing fast and inside the top twenty overall was Linda Cunningham to win the silver medal in her category. Brigid McCabe followed Linda in and was delighted to win the gold medal in her category.

Always the biggest race of these Championships, we had four Mullingar men in the Master Men 6,000m. With 4 laps of the course, everyone got plenty of encouragement as they passed the finish area. Leading the Mullingar trio home was Enda Seery who had targeted a sub-22 minute finish, so he was delighted to finish well under it in 21:44. In the “Battle of the Eddies” behind Enda, Eddie Newman had the edge on Eddie Lynch, and with both in the same category, it was great to see Mullingar winning the gold and silver medals in the category. Nicky McCabe completed the Mullingar quartet and he expressed satisfaction afterwards with his race.

We had no entries from Mullingar in the novice women race, but we had two men in the final race of the afternoon, the Novice Men 6,000m where both were always to the fore throughout the four lap race. Keeping right up with the lead group was Mark Darby and he was rewarded for his efforts with an excellent second place finish to win Leinster silver, a great result for a man that only recently joined Mullingar Harriers. He was followed home by Mark Ronan who finished strong and crossed the line well up in a fine 11th place [GD].

IMC Outdoor T&F Meet #1

Mullingar Harriers had three under 20 athletes competing in TUS Clonmel on Saturday 2nd May at the first Irish Miler’s Club (IMC) Outdoor T&F meeting of the year. First up was Matthew Molloy in the 3,000m where he ran a solid race in the middle of the pack and came home extremely strong, running a huge personal best of 8:54.22.

Donagh Carey toed the line in one of three 1,500m races on the day and despite a brave effort going with the pacemaker early, Donagh fell back as the last lap approached. It’s early in the season and juggling track racing and studying for the Leaving Cert can be challenging but his season opener should set him up nicely for the North Leinster schools T&F this week.

Our final Mullingar Harriers runner on the day was Jamie Wallace who was in the 1,500m A Race and he settled into second place from the gun, following the pacemaker until he dropped out, when Jamie found himself in front and pushing the pace, just surrendering the lead in the homestretch but running a personal best of 3:52.50 [TW].

April

Westmeath Juvenile T&F

The Westmeath Juvenile T&F was held in TUS Athlone on Sunday 26th April, which gave an ideal opportunity for some of our younger members to taste some outdoor competition ahead of the Leinster T&F in late May and early June. Like the indoors last January, the event was held in conjunction with the Roscommon Juvenile T&F, and this time there was also athletes from Longford taking part, so there was a great buzz on the track and lots of exciting action to follow. Though three Counties were taking part, each County awarded medals to its own athletes. Westmeath was represented by Mullingar and Athlone AC and it was great to see the rivalry in each event and Mullingar certainly didn’t have it all its own way, with fierce competition in some events between the two Clubs.

From the first event to the last, everyone had a brilliant time, and it was great to see so many Mullingar athletes participating in so many events, with some taking the opportunity to try new events too. By pooling officials from the three counties, the programme ran very smoothly and efficiently and starting on the dot at 10am, the last track event was finished shortly after 3pm and only the high jump was still going on then, though it was nearing completion too. During an action packed day, the younger ages 8, 9 and 10 competed in the morning, and the older 11 to 19 years competed in the afternoon, it was great too so many Mullingar athletes run, jump and throw. To speed things up it was decided to finalise all the results in the days after the event and we’ll present medals won by our Mullingar athletes at training.

Hopefully our athletes will use this competition to spur them on for the rest of the season. It was a fun day and a lot of athletes tried something new, which is great to see, and everybody got some valuable competition experience ahead of the upcoming Leinster T&F. Very well done to everyone who took part, especially to all the medal winners, and thanks to the parents for bringing their children to Athlone to take part, and of course to the coaches and parents from the club that volunteered to officiate [GD].

London Marathon

The 46th London Marathon took place in very warm conditions on Sunday morning 26th April. A record field of just under 59,000 completed the race. Beginning at Greenwich Park the course took runners past many historical sites across London including Tower Bridge, Canary Wharf and Big Ben. The finishing straight on The Mall, sees runners pass by Buckingham Palace before the finishing line. The headlines were the first two men finishing under 2 hours, an incredible barrier to break, a world record in the women’s race too in an all-woman race, and a terrific Irish record of 2:06:08 by Peter Lynch (Kilkenny City Harriers AC) when finishing ninth, the first non-African finisher.

Mullingar Harriers had Eoin Clarke and Declan Claffey participate this year. Eoin completed the distance in 3:00:20, happy to finish given some injury setbacks he suffered in the weeks leading up to the race, with Declan recording 3:50:43 on his marathon debut, both delighted to achieve their times in the warm and challenging conditions, and both commenting on the absolutely electric atmosphere generated by the huge crowds of spectators as they loudly cheered all the runners all the way to the finish [MO’S].

Bangkok Defence Run 10k

On a family holiday in Thailand, Eddie Lynch took in the annual Bangkok Defence Run 10k on Sunday 26th April, a race that attracted an entry of just over 1,400 runners. Part of a running festival that included a marathon, half marathon and 10k, Eddie decided on the shorter distance, a wise move as temperatures soared in the early morning from mid-teens to reach 30degC before the completion of the 10k. With a strict hydration plan and help along the course from friends and family, Eddie maintained a steady pace throughout on the flat streetscaped course to finish in 41:14 and was thrilled to take first place in his master category, proudly wearing the Mullingar Harriers singlet through the streets of the Thai capital [MO’S].

Royal Canal Run

Saturday morning 25th April saw a large attendance at the Royal Canal Run on the outskirts of Longford town, where there was four races on offer, a marathon, half marathon, ultramarathon, and a 10k. The races were staged over a 5.2km course on a flat surface including tarmac and tightly packed gravel sections. Mullingar Harriers had athletes competing in the half marathon and the 10k. Over 200 runners took part in the Half Marathon where Jacintha Reilly had a very strong race, finishing 7th overall in 1:19:14, enough to win the women race. Mick Fagan was next home for Mullingar in 1:34:19, just one second ahead of Criona Reid in 1:34:20 to earn her a prize for 2nd woman. Darren Carroll recorded 1:36:14, Orla McLaughlin ran 1:41:07, Jane Creevy 1:50:49, and Jessica Crowley finished in 1:59:46. The 10k Race attracted an entry of 420 and Mary Stuart was Mullingar’s first finisher, placing 3rd woman in 43:53, followed by Marie Louise Johnston (45:48), Joan Hickson (46:51), and Naomi Battle (48:33) [MO’S].

Roscommon Harriers 5k Series – Race #4

The fourth and final race in the Roscommon Harriers AC 5k series took place in Roscommon town on Friday evening 24th April. Weather conditions were excellent with sunshine and blue skies greeting the 160 runners. This week Mark Darby had to settle for 2nd place, with just a few seconds depriving him of a second straight win in the series. Mark was happy to record 16:22, in his third race over a busy nine day period. Following Mark in was Enda Seery with 17:54, followed by Maura Dervin winning her master category in 21:19. Brigid McCabe and Nicky McCabe also ran their third races in nine days, with Brigid continuing her consistent racing with another run in the low 25 minutes, 25:16 this time, while Nicky came home in 27:46 [MO’S].

Mullingar Harriers Juvenile Spring T&F Meeting

The weather couldn’t have been nicer on Sunday 19th April when we held the 6th edition of the Mullingar Harriers Juvenile Spring T&F Meeting. In glorious sunshine and calm conditions, our younger members age 9 to 15 years had an ideal opportunity to compete in a sprint, middle distance, long jump, and turbo javelin or javelin, and we also had an u/16 girls mile and u/16 boys mile, with trophies to be won, which should give our younger members something to aspire to competing for in the years ahead.

A very big number of youngsters competed in over 40 events and it was very busy from the start, but thanks to great assistance from a big team of coaches and parents, everything went to plan and everyone got to compete in the events they wished to. This was a great opportunity for our younger members to take part in track and field competition and introduce newcomers in particular to the ins and outs of competition, including assembly and check in at the start line, waiting in lane or in line at the finish for results to be recorded, and even attending a medal ceremony when called. We hope they gained from the experience and also learned that the officials at any competition, not just this one, are there to help the athletes to take part and enjoy the event and there is nothing to fear in taking part.

Whether they won medals or not, everyone had fun and will have learned a lot about T&F competitions, which we hope will encourage them to compete over the coming season. Thanks to those that brought buns, cakes and other goodies and of course to the volunteers who manned the refreshment table and looked after the catering needs of the thirsty and hungry athletes, coaches, officials and parents.

A big thank you to the parents for taking the time to bring their children to the event and staying to provide great vocal support and encouragement, to all the children for taking part, but a very special thanks to Colm Walsh who put in many hours of preparation in the days leading up to the event to make it a success [GD].

Rhode 5k

The third of the Healthy Offaly 5k series, the Rhode 5k took place on Sunday morning 19th April. Weather conditions were ideal, with bright sunshine and little or no breeze. The course took a reverse figure of 9 out of the village towards Daingean, crossing the Grand Canal before turning right and running parallel with the canal, it then turned back at 3k, and back along the greenway beside the canal before emerging 800m from the village and back to the finish.

Mullingar Harriers had 14 runners taking part in a field of 380 athletes. Mark Darby had a great run, challenging at the front all the way, just pipped at the end but delighted with 2nd place in a time of 15:53. Next home was Conor Walsh, winning the u/20 men race in 16:43, then Mark Ronan in 10th place overall with a time of 17:04, and Eddie Newman won his master category in 18:30. Mark Darby, Conor, Mark Ronan and Eddie combined to place 3rd team. Joe Doherty was next in for Mullingar Harriers in 18:41. Orlaith Flanagan was involved in a great race for the women’s title, just missing out to two others to finish third but pleased with her time of 18:52. Jason McKevitt ran 19:42, followed by Conleth Mullen (20:31), Leona Behan (23:12), and Claire Lennon Gavin was very pleased with her first 5k of the season, running 23:20. Michael O’Sullivan returned a time of 23:42, followed by Brigid McCabe who had a very steady run and her time of 25:34 earned her victory in her master category, and Nicky McCabe (26:23) and Catherine Walsh (30:15) completed the Mullingar group [MO’S].

Connemara Marathon & Ultra Marathon

The annual Connemara Marathon and Ultra Marathon took place on Sunday morning 19th April, on tough courses around the mountain wilderness of Connemara. Given the terrain, the Marathon is regarded as one of the toughest marathons in Ireland but Ciaran Mulkerrins dug deep and was delighted to finish well up of 566 finishers in 21st place in 3 hours 13 minutes 51 seconds, completing his first official marathon. The Ultra Marathon was 64k on a course that meandered past bogs, hills, lakes, and the Twelve Pin mountains rising up over Killary Lough, through Leenane village, around the Maam Turk Mountains and all the way back up to Maam Cross, certainly not a course for the faint hearted but at least the weather was beautiful. Brendan Rice were up for the challenge and battled through along with over 1802others to finish in 7 hours 53 minutes 42 seconds, and while he was understandably exhausted after, was very pleased with his run [GD].

Jamie Wallace presented with 2025 National Juvenile Star Award for Westmeath

At a star studded Gala Lunch in the Mullingar Park Hotel on Saturday 18th April, Jamie Wallace was honoured by Athletics Ireland when he was presented with the 2025 National Juvenile Star Award for Westmeath. This award comes on the back of an outstanding year for Jamie in 2025, when he won the National 3,000m u/19, won silver in the National 1,500m u/19, silver in the National u/19 cross country, and bronze in the 3,000m u/20. He also recorded personal bests for 1,500m, 800m, and 3,000m in 2025 to crown a memorable year.

Athletics Leinster also won the McGuinness Cup for Best Region in T&F and Jamie played a big part in securing valuable points to help Leinster win the trophy.

Congratulations to Jamie from everyone at Mullingar Harriers on receiving this award [GD].

Westport 10k & Half Marathon

Westport played host to a Running Festival on Saturday 18th April, with a Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k attracting over 2,500 runners across the 3 events. Mullingar Harriers was well represented in the 10k with 5 athletes and in the Half Marathon with 17 athletes.

First up for the Mullingar contingent was the 10k. It proved to be a great return to competitive action for Niamh McEntegart as she led the women home in a field of nearly 1,400 runners, finishing 14th overall and winning the women’s race in a time of 39:05. Next home for Mullingar Harriers was Darren Carroll recording 40:22 and earning third in his master category. Nuala Moran was thrilled to win her master category as she came home in a time of 54:42, with Terri Greene taking 2nd spot in the same category with 55:37, and Pauline Troy completed the Mullingar contingent for the 10k and recorded a finishing time of 60:04.

In the Half Marathon, with just over 920 competitors, Conor Corcoran was first home for Mullingar in 1:29:44, followed by Tommy Byrne in 1:31:47, with Orla Gillespie next, covering the distance in 1:35:50. Following them in was Niamh Doherty (1:40:27), Joe Curley (1:41:11), John Long (1:41:18), Mark Dunne (1:43.23), Paul Ginnell (1:43:41) and Shaun Mills (1:46:30). Caroline Mullen was 3rd in her master category with a time of 1:47:57, with Philip Burke next in 1:49:50, followed home by Matt Creagh (1:51:00), Aisling Corcoran (1:53:55). Kelly Dunne (1:56:19), Mark Geoghegan (1:58:20), Tom Byrne (1:59:36) and Martin Mullen (2:05:39). The group spent a relaxing evening in Westport to round off a great weekend in the West [MO’S].

Irish Universities T&F

UNREPORTED

Friday 17th / Saturday 18th April, MTU Cork

Aisling Lane (UG) 1,500m Walk GOLD

Mohammad Al Bashir (TUS Athlone) 400m heat DNF (due to injury)

Matthew Glennon (DCU) 3,000m Walk GOLD (11:24.08, IUAA Record)

Oisin Lane (UL) 3,000m Walk SILVER

Andrew Glennon (TUS Athlone) 3,000m Walk 4th

Conor Sherwin (DCU) 5,000m 8th (15:23.80)

Roscommon Harriers 5k Series – Race #3

Mark Darby was an impressive winner of the third race in the Roscommon Harriers 5k Series on Friday evening 17th April, completing the course in 16:47 ahead of just over 130 finishers. Maura Dervin ran 22:04. Brigid McCabe ran 25:13, and Nicky McCabe ran 26:39 [MO’S].

World Race Walking Team Championships

Held every second year, for the first time ever the World Race Walking Team Championships moved to the Southern Hemisphere and to the city of Brasilia. Brasilia is the planned modern city specially designed as the relatively new political capital of the vast South American country that is Brazil. Being a long way inland it required three flights to get there. So, on Easter Monday, John Glennon began the arduous long haul flight journeys which took up the best part of two days in order to arrive at the Irish team hotel in downtown Brasilia. Arriving five days in advance was essential in order to overcome the fatigue of jet lag and to allow him acclimatise to the local conditions and in particular the 1,100m altitude.

John followed the carefully laid out adjustment plan prepared for the team, and by the very early 7.15am race time for the u/20 men 10,000m race walk on Sunday morning 12th April, he was ready to race with the best young racewalkers from all over the World. The powerful European teams are normally more to the fore in this event but in this different environment it became obvious that the Chinese, Japanese, Australian and Central and South Americans were dominating. However this did not stop John from walking a solid pre-planned pace and holding his own on the extra-long 2k laps. John kept walking very solidly along with a fellow team mate and reached the half way point in close to 22:30 and on schedule. This was excellent, as John Glennon was in the middle of the pack and holding rhythm and safe racewalking technique in front of the highest World level International racewalking judges. John held this rhythm and pace until well past the 7k mark but then his two recent hard 10k international races began to take their toll on his tiring legs but with true Irish and Mullingar Harriers grit he fought for all his worth and with amazing determination he refused to yield to that tiredness and fought tooth and nail for every place right to the finish line. John finished in 25th place, just one place behind his fellow Irish competitor. With this battling spirit the Irish team finished 8th team overall and 3rd European team. Well done John. After the arduous two day trip home, John can now recuperate and focus on his upcoming Leaving Certificate examinations, content in the knowledge that he can compete with the best in the World, anywhere in the World [ML].

Great Ireland Run (incorp. National 10k)

The Great Ireland Run in the Phoenix Park on Sunday morning 12th April incorporated the National 10k and just over 3,200 runners completed the race. It was very windy, and the hills in the Phoenix Park are never easy, but at least the rain held off. The conditions didn’t lessen the enthusiasm of the athletes though and with the race incorporating the National 10k there were podium places to be raced for across all categories. Mullingar Harriers had nine athletes participating.

Eddie Newman running 38:26, came home 2nd in his master category to earn another National medal, a silver. Orlaith Flanagan continues her very steady progress and with a time of 39:50 was in the top 10 finishers in the women race. Joan Flynn ran a time of 41:40 to win the National bronze medal in her master category, Ann Hall finished in 42:02, while Maura Dervin was always in contention and her finishing time of 44:14, placed her 3rd in her master category to win the National bronze medal. Orlaith, Joan and Maura combined to place a very creditable 7th Club. There were also very good running performances from Claire Ross (47:46), Lorraine Claffey (48:11), Eva Ross (51:50) and Lisa McEntee (56:34) [MO’S].

Cootehill 5k & 10k

East Breffni AC staged their annual Cootehill 5k & 10k road races in Co. Cavan on Sunday morning 12th April. The course consists of a loop circuit starting and finishing in the main street, while bringing athletes on a circuit through the town out to the countryside on rural roads with a few rolling hills, and back to the town centre to finish.

In the 5k race there were 116 finishers and Mark Ronan was always at the head of affairs, pulling away in the final 400m to win in 17:50. Not far behind and finishing fourth overall was Gareth Glennon winning the u/20 race in 18:10.

In the 10k race there were 94 finishers, with Susan Glennon in control of the women race and winning in 39:57. Her brother Andrew Glennon was just ahead of her and came home third in the men race in a time of 38:56 [MO’S].

Milan Marathon

Starting from Corso Sempione and finishing in Piazza Del Duomo, the Milan Marathon welcomed over 40,000 participants on Sunday morning 12th April. The event is Italy’s fastest marathon and is staged along a course that touches the city’s most iconic landmarks. Run on mainly flat even surfaces through the city streets, it is an open-air celebration, with cheering zones, and the energy of the crowd supporting the runners every step of the way. For Andy Boyhan it proved to be a very special morning, as he dipped below the 3 hour barrier, recording an excellent time of 2 hours 56 minutes 38 seconds [MO’S].

National Juvenile Indoors – Day 3

The final day of this season’s indoors, Day 3 of the National Juvenile Indoors, took place on Saturday 11th April in TUS Athlone where the focus for Mullingar was the 1,500m on the track and the triple jump in the field events.

After a wet and muddy cross country season that stretched from September to March and included two appearances in an Irish singlet, Lily Walsh was happy to focus on her favourite distance of 1,500m, racing in a dry, sheltered TUS Indoor Arena. Amazingly, there were five other Irish International athletes toeing the start line of the u/16 girls 1,500m, ensuring a very competitive race lay ahead. From the gun Lily ran straight to the front of the field and set into a quick tempo. Her fast pace had the rest of the girls strung out in single file very early into the race. Holding her nerve, Lily held the lead from gun to tape, eventually gapping any competitors who had managed to stay close with a fast kick into the last lap. After a confident, brave run, Lily was delighted to win her third National 1,500m title, adding to victories over the same distance at u/14 and u/15 outdoors.

Oisin Clarke was a little more familiar with the indoor 200m track having raced the National 800m just two weeks previously, and it was his 800m speed that helped him win his first National individual medal. Following the early leaders closely in the u/16 boys 1,500m Oisin adapted a tactical, Championship approach. Covering all the moves throughout the race, he waited patiently until one lap to go when he surged to take the lead. A furious last lap ensued, with Oisin very unlucky to be outsprinted and passed with just 60m to go. A strong, wise effort ensured Oisin secured his first visit to a National podium, with a well-deserved second place finish and a National silver medal.

Daniel Horohoe was in the busiest of all the 1,500m competitions where twenty five entries in the u/17 boys 1,500m required two races with the fastest times over the two races to decide the medals. Racing in what unfolded to be the fastest of both races, Daniel set off with the leaders at a quick tempo. The fast pace was a little too much on this occasion but Daniel ran a strong 1,500m to finish tenth in his race.

For Eleanor Kiernen, despite running not far off her time in the Leinsters, she had to settle for a place out of the medals in the u/18 girls 1,500m. Conor Walsh’s indoor season was hampered by illness during the early weeks but, with one eye on preparation for the upcoming outdoor season, he committed himself to the u/18 boys 1,500m. Two time trial races were needed to decide the medals and Conor found himself in the faster of the two. The race set off at a very tough pace in the early stages. It wasn’t long before gaps started to open, and when the leaders broke clear, Conor was in a fight for the minor placings. After putting up a good battle he eventually finished ninth, and just outside the top ten after the results of both races were amalgamated. We finished with the u/19 boys 1,500m where Matthew Molloy ran an excellent race, finishing strong on the last lap to cross the line in a very creditable seventh place.

Donnacha Doyle has performed well in both the high jump and long jump in recent seasons but was concluding his first season of triple jump in the u/15 boys triple jump. Being new to the event didn’t seem to bother him and all the hard work in training over the two months since he won bronze in Leinster definitely paid off as he hopped, skipped and jumped nearly half a metre further to finish just out of the medals in fourth place, a very impressive result in a new event for Donnacha [CW/GD].

Moynalty AC 4 Mile

The annual Moynalty AC 4 Mile race took place on Easter Monday 6th April. Starting in Moynalty Threshing field, the race route takes a 4 mile loop along the local quiet country roads and returns to the Threshing field for the finish. A strong headwind on the day made for difficult racing conditions throughout the hilly course. Among nearly 500 finishers, Linda Cunningham was our sole representative on the day and she was more than happy to achieve a personal best for the distance, crossing the line in 29:15 [LC]

Roscommon Harriers 5k Series – Race #1

The annual Roscommon Harriers 5k race series got off to a lively start on Good Friday evening 3rd April. A bright sunny but very windy evening greeted the athletes as they assembled at the start just outside the county GAA grounds, fondly nicknamed “The Hyde”. Taking in a looped route on the outskirts of the town, a very strong headwind for over 3k made for a challenging race, mixed in with s few steady climbs. Mark Darby who has just joined the Club, revelled in the conditions and was always in the mix with the leaders. Indeed, with Mick Fogarty from Ferbane AC, they pulled away from the rest with just over 2k to go. In the race back into the town centre Mark had to give way to his more experienced rival but was delighted with a second place finish in a time of 16:55. Maura Dervin was always to the fore in the women race, eventually coming home in 21:40 to comfortably take first place in her master category. Brigid McCabe was very satisfied with a solid run finishing in 25:25, with husband Nicky McCabe the fourth member from the club to compete, running a time of 26:34. A field of 137 runners took part, with the series continuing each Friday evening during the month of April [MO’S].

Streets of Kilkenny 5k

The annual Streets of Kilkenny 5k is a popular annual race, this year scheduled for Holy Thursday evening 2nd April. Taking in a two-lap circuit around the medieval city, it is a fast flat course with a carnival atmosphere. Street closures and a number of supporter areas with live music added to the atmosphere. Among the field of 924 runners was Enda Seery. He was very pleased with his finishing time of 17:34, just a few seconds outside his best for the distance [MO’S].

European Masters Indoors

Most people can only dream of standing for their anthem with a medal around their neck. No stranger to this honour is Sean McMullin who dominated the 3,000m race walk in his age category with a polished display on Friday evening 27th March at the European Masters Indoors in Torun, Poland, finishing just over a lap ahead of second place to win, his eighth European masters gold medal in a glittering career.

Even though it’s the European Masters Indoors, there are still some outdoor road events, and even cross country, which would be difficult to hold at another event given the pressures on the International fixtures list.

Having won gold in the 3,000m race walk on the indoor track just three days before (27 Mar), Sean was back in action again on Monday evening 30th March in the tough 5,000m road walk and despite incurring a 30 second time penalty, he was simply too good for the opposition and he won the gold medal in his age category by just over 80 seconds, his second gold medal of the Championships. As if that wasn’t satisfying enough, the race included a team event and Sean dropped down to make up an over 70 team and was the second Irish man to finish for the team that won silver, behind a very strong Czechia team.

No rest for Sean though, and showing his athletic versatility and team spirit, he was out again on Wednesday morning 1st April for the 6,000m cross country where he won his age category by just three seconds in a very close finish. Of course, there’s always a team element in cross country and Sean was a vital score on the Irish over 75 team that finished 1st team, securing his fifth medal of the Championships – four gold and a silver – a magnificent haul for Sean over six tough days of competition.

Also in Poland for the masters indoors was Aidan O’Donoghue, who competed in the Pentathlon on Monday 30 March. Over thirty men in Aidan’s master age category started the competition at lunchtime with the 60m hurdles, where Aidan was delighted to record a best time for the distance. He followed with the long jump, shot put and high jump over a very busy afternoon, before gathering any energy he had left for the gruelling 1,000m race to finish the competition at 8pm, seven hours after he began. The standard is extremely high at this level and while Aidan didn’t feature in the medal places, he was still very satisfied to have taken part [EC/GD].