Q3, 2026 News & Reports – July to September

September

Star of the Sea AC Open XC

Torrential overnight rain on Saturday night took a while to clear on Sunday morning 27th September making for a slower than usual journey in heavy rain to Meath for the Star of the Sea AC Open Cross Country, the traditional season-opener for Mullingar for many years. However, the rain stopped well before the first race and we only had a few spells of light drizzle now and then and when the sun eventually broke through it turned out to be a lovely day for racing.

A squad of over 40 Mullingar athletes made the journey and though the hilly course proved testing, the Mullingar athletes gave great accounts. The top 6 in each juvenile race received individual medals, just 3 athletes were required for team scores, and by the end of the day, Mullingar athletes had won 13 individual juvenile medals, and 6 juvenile teams won medals

A real treat for everyone at the event was meeting Andrew Coscoran, the bronze medal winner for 1,500m at the European T&F in August. Andrew is a member of Star of the Sea AC and competed on this very course many times over the years, a lesson for all our young athletes. Andrew was very generous with his time, chatting easily with the young athletes, posing for photos, and even allowing them to hold or wear his European medal in the photos! He showed himself to be a great ambassador for the sport.

The first race of the day was the u/9 girls 500m where Aoibh Spain and Maisie Grehan finished well up in the big field of runners, out of the medal places, but top marks for effort. We had three Mullingar athletes in the u/9 boys 500m too, Padraig Savage, Evan Clifford and Ciaran Fitzpatrick, who finished strong but unfortunately out of the medals, though a very creditable 4th Club.

We had a strong team in the u/10 girls 500m race, led home by Tara Coyne who raced to victory, followed in by Alana Spain in third place, then Eibhlin Reihill (eighth) narrowly missing an individual medal, and Laila Morgan, Evie Boyhan and Ciara Beirne packing strongly to see the girls place 1st Club by a big winning margin and get Mullingar on the team medal board. Robert Bohan raced to third place in the u/10 boys 500m, and with great team running by Joe Hickey, Senan Byrne, Jamie Smyth and Senan Finn, the boys placed an excellent 2nd Club.

We had our second individual gold medal of the day thanks to Cara Hickey who won the u/11 girls 1,000m race in a close finish. Meabh Doyle finished fifth, and with terrific support from Cliodhna Fitzpatrick, Sophie Whitelaw and Marie Harte, the girls finished 1st Club by just one point, showing how every place counts in cross country. On to the u/11 boys 1,000m where even though Liam McLoughlin, Rory Grehan, Peter Ahearne, Matteo Fitzpatrick and Cian Clifford didn’t win individual medals, thanks to their fine efforts and a good example of how cross country is all about the team, the boys finished 3rd Club, only a few points away from second place, and were delighted with their team bronze medals.

Emily Rose Coyne raced to an excellent second place in the u/12 girls 1,500m and with Heather Kelly also putting in a great effort to finish strong and well up, it’s a pity we didn’t have a third girl to make up a team or they would have been battling for third team, at least. Jack Ahearne just missed an individual medal in the u/12 boys 1,500m, followed in by Eoghan Savage, with both boys very happy with their races.

We had no team in the u/13 girls 1,800m, but top marks to Caitlin Doyle and Rose Harte for running so well on the tough hilly course. If we had a third girl, they would have definitely won team medals. We got in the team medals again in the u/13 boys 1,800m where we had three boys in the top 10 to easily win 1st Club, thanks to Olly Loughrey (fourth), Liam Ahearne (seventh) and Noah Morgan (ninth).

Aoife Dunne was our sole representative in the u/14 girls 2,000m where she put in a great shift and was very unlucky to just miss an individual medal, but can take great encouragement from her performance. On to the u/14 boys 2,200m where Conor Gavin and Cillian Gavin battled each other all the way to the finish, Conor crossing in fifth, Cillian in sixth and with Fintan Harte in an excellent tenth place, the boys finished an easy 1st Club.

Chloe Bell raced hard from the start of the u/15 girls 2,500m and though she had to let the eventual winner get away in the closing stages, she powered home to an excellent second place finish. It was a great second place finish too for Rian Gavin in the u/15 boys 2,500m where he began to close on the long-time leader on the last hill but the gap was too big to close, though he was still very happy to finish strong and take the silver medal.

With no u/16 race, Muirin Dunne and Emily Tully stepped up an age to race in the u/17 girls 3,000m. The Mullingar girls put in huge efforts out of age and were rewarded with individual medals, as Muirin finished third, followed by Emily in sixth. If only for a third girl to make up a team, Club team medals would have been easily won.

The final race of the day with a Mullingar interest was the women’s 3,000m, which was a combined race for u/20, senior and master women. It was great to see Claire Lennon Gavin, Gemma Kelly and Kelly Dunne put in tremendous efforts over two laps of the tough course, each finishing with personal best times for the distance and finishing a very creditable 4th Club, to round off a good day for Mullingar.

We showed at Star of the Sea that we have strong squads, but teams can only be successful if the team has scorers. In Leinster we’ll need 4 to score and we need all our athletes to represent us, so please come along to Belvedere this Saturday and the following Sunday so we can make up teams for the Leinsters. Quite a few fourth scorers could find themselves with a Leinster medal around their neck, but they need to run first.

This was an excellent opening fixture for Mullingar Harriers and everyone that took part will gain from the experience and bring it into the season ahead, especially our younger athletes, which for some was their first real taste of cross country racing with the Club. Thanks very much to the coaches that attended to look after the juvenile athletes, but especially the parents for bringing their children to the event [GD].

Westmeath Schools Cross Country

Results HERE.

On a beautiful dry, warm and sunny autumn morning, the Westmeath Schools Cross Country took place in Belvedere on Wednesday 23rd September. No surprise that the grounds in Belvedere looked absolutely beautiful and underfoot conditions were perfect for running. Thanks to the hard work put in by volunteers from the Club in setting up the course, everything was ready on the day. As always, we are indebted to the many volunteers, members, and friends of Mullingar Harriers, who turned up in big numbers to help and make the day a success. It was great to see such enthusiasm in the competitors from the young first class girls and boys to the older secondary school students, cheered on by a very big crowd of teachers and parents. The event remains one of the most popular of the year and the feedback from teachers and parents was very positive, so we look forward to continued support in future years.

Sincere thanks to Westmeath Civil Defence who attended to look after any first aid needs with their customary calm professionalism. The Management & Staff at Belvedere House and Gardens were also of great help in organising the day at a venue that is absolutely ideal for hosting such an event. Thanks also to An Garda Siochana for their invaluable assistance monitoring and controlling traffic on the N52, as cars and buses entered and exited Belvedere. Finally, our thanks to the teachers and schools for competing and ensuring that the event continues to be one of the most eagerly awaited sporting events on the calendar for those of school going age in Westmeath.

The Primary school top 20 individual finishers and team scores and the Secondary schools top 10 individual finishers are available HERE. Congratulations to all who took part and as usual, the standard of competition was extremely high and medals were hard won for all the competitors [GD].

Irish Life Dublin Half Marathon

Just under 6,500 runners took part in the second instalment of the Irish Life Dublin Half Marathon on Sunday 20th September. The race took place though the Phoenix Park and included some stretches of the upcoming Dublin Marathon route, ideal preparation for the big day at the end of October. For Mullingar Harriers, there was three competitors taking part. In bright sunshine on a humid morning Nick Laver and Matt Johnston were pleased to remain inside the 2 hour pace throughout the race. Both put in a strong last mile with Nick pulling away from his club colleague to record a time of 1:55:02, and Matt recording a finish time of 1:58:34. Lisa McEntee struggled a bit with the humidity but kept her pace consistent and finished in 2:12:29 [MO’S].

Athlone Half Marathon & 10k

Athlone AC staged their annual Athlone Half Marathon & 10k on Sunday morning 20th September. Conditions were perfect with a dry and bright morning and little breeze as the runners traversed the outskirts of the town and took in part of the Old Rail Trail Greenway, with start and finish on the outdoor track at the TUS Athlone campus. A total of 64 athletes completed the Half Marathon, including John Glennon who recorded a finishing time of 1:27:47. In the 10k Race, Mullingar Harriers had a quartet of runners, all making the podium. Leading home the 158 athletes that took part, Mark Darby won in style, pulling away from club colleague Kevin Moore in the last 1,500m to win in a time of 34:07. Kevin held on to take 2nd in 34:53. Eddie Lynch dominated the race in his master category, crossing the finish line to win in 39:24, while Alwyn Thornton took the honours in her master category finishing in a time of 44:09 [MO’S].

Marathon Relay Fund Raising Day sees sub-2-hour marathon

Young and not so young, past and present members and friends came to the Mullingar Harriers AC grounds on Saturday morning 19th September to witness the showcasing of the talents of our current juvenile, senior, and master athletes as they ran varying forms of a Marathon Relay. An overcast dry morning with a stiff breeze, but the sun emerging as the morning progressed, was ideal for runners and spectators alike. The centrepiece was the relay by the senior men and women who ran concurrently on the track, alternating with individual 400m runs by one athlete at a time. A total of 105 and a half laps of the track, with the men targeting a sub-2 hour time and the women targeting sub-2 hours 36 minutes.

The men team of Jack O’Leary, Michael Murphy, Kris Foster, Dan Morris, Luke Greene, Donagh Carey, Matthew Molloy, Euan Lagan, Vinny Connolly, Kevin Moore, Michael Moran and Cormac Dalton stuck to their schedule, watched closely by the timekeeper and lap counter. Excitement grew as the laps counted down and when the last handover took place it was clear we were going to witness a first sub-2 hour marathon on our track. The clock stopped at 1 hour 57 minutes 19 seconds, a well-executed and evenly paced run by the team, with the men averaging an impressive 66.50 seconds per lap.

With the senior men finished, our full attention turned to the women team who were still running with great pace. Having passed halfway in 1 hour 12 minutes, it was clear that the team of Niamh McEntegart, Catherine McGlew, Orlaith Flanagan, Sinead Whitelaw, Blathnaid Peters, Lydia McDonnell, Lisa O’Brien, Eleanor Kiernan, Tianna O’Leary and Grace Byrne were determined to make their own significant mark with an extremely fast marathon relay. On handing the baton to the last athlete it was clear that the time would be well ahead of the target and so it proved, with the clock stopping at 2 hours 23 minutes 3 seconds, which incidentally is just 40 seconds outside the National women record for the distance. The average time per lap was also very impressive, at 81.50 seconds per lap.

Earlier in the morning, a team of master women and master men completed separate marathon relays in varying combinations. Not to be outdone, our younger juveniles aged 9 to 12, ably tutored by lead coach for the morning, James Carton, completed a two-lap course on the outside tarmac track, running one kilometre each, to marginally surpass the classic marathon distance with their combined efforts.

Throughout the morning there was music to entertain the spectators and motivate the runners, and there was tea, coffee and a range of home baking and confectionary treats available for young and old. It was wonderful to see former members travel from Galway, Dublin and further afield to join in a morning of celebration not only of the current running talent in the club but to witness and view the existing facilities, which have advanced significantly in the past five years, while also hearing of club plans to further enhance and upgrade the clubhouse as well as the track and field event facilities [MO’S].

Rhode Half Marathon & 10k

Rhode AC staged the Rhode Marathon, Three Quarter Marathon, Half Marathon & 10k early on Saturday morning 19th September. Mullingar Harriers was represented in the Half Marathon by Enda Seery. On a tough course with several rolling hills Enda was always with the lead group. A tough headwind on the canal section took its toll on the early pace but he battled on to the finish, holding off a stiff challenge in the final kilometre, to finish in a time of 1:26:15 and take 3rd place overall of the 85 finishers. He’d been suffering with a head cold in the days leading up to the race, but was still happy to get a half marathon in his legs. In the 10k Race with a field of 111 runners, Ann Hall had a tremendous race, battling with three others for podium places in the women’s race, eventually finishing 4th woman overall in 45:24, but 1st in her master category [MO’S].

Castlegar International XC

UNREPORTED

Saturday 19th September, Galway Racecourse

Lily Walsh (u/17, 18, 20 Women) 1st.

Colm Walsh (u/17, 18, 20 men) 4th.

Charleville International Half Marathon

North Cork AC hosted the annual Charleville International Half Marathon, which attracted a field of just under 1,800 runners to the North Cork town on Sunday morning 13th September. Rated as one of the flattest courses for the distance in the country, many runners preparing for the Dublin Marathon use the race as a test of their training regime. Among them was Timmy Murphy. Timmy was always with he leading group until a surge came in the final 5k, but he was very pleased to hold on for 15th place in an excellent time of 1:10.42 [MO’S].

Mountmellick 5k

262 runners from across the midlands took part in the annual Mountmellick 5k on Sunday morning 13th September. On a humid and overcast morning where some patchy drizzle was also encountered, Mullingar Harriers had two athletes taking part. First home for the club in 14th place was Mark Ronan in a time of 18:33. Kieran Nolan was our second athlete and he was delighted to come home in 19:13, to capture first in his master category [MO’S].

Ratoath Half Marathon

UNREPORTED

Saturday 12th September

1,816 finishers

Barry White (1:35:30), Brendan Rice (1:50:48)

Longford Marathon & Half Marathon

At a festival of running in Longford, with an Ultra Marathon, Marathon, and Half Marathon, Mullingar Harriers Aideen Tansey took part in the Marathon on Sunday 6th September. Conditions were overcast but humid and a testing course, including a number of loops around the town at both the start and finish of the race, with long stretches out country roads westwards before returning on similar terrain to the finish on the main street. A total of 300 athletes completed the marathon. Aideen was delighted to finish in a time of 3:28:34. In the Half Marathon, Louise Callaghan ran 1:36.13 in a field of 550 runners [MO’S].

Ireland West Three Quarter Marathon

Swinford AC hosted the 2026 Ireland West Three Quarter Marathon, 10k and 5k on Saturday 5th September. The course situated in East Mayo passed through the iconic Meelick Round Tower, Ballylahan Castle and the beautiful River Moy. Dara O’Shea took in the Three Quarter Marathon as part of his preparation for the Dublin Marathon at the end of October. Dara was very pleased with his finishing time of 2:28:09 in a field of 590 runners [MO’S].

Dingle Half Marathon

Matthew Glennon took to the roads around the Dingle Peninsula on Saturday morning 5th September running the Dingle Half Marathon. A very difficult course with several steep climbs did not deter Matthew and he was pleased with his finishing tome of 1:55:02 in a field of 2,800m athletes [MO’S].

Mullingar Lions Club presents recognition award to Bobbie Begley

On Wednesday evening 2nd September ahead of the adult training session, we were visited by Frank Dillon and Noel Murphy of Mullingar Lions Club. The purpose of their visit was to make a presentation to Bobbie Begley. This was to mark Bobbie’s contribution to athletics and in particular the founding and development of Mullingar Harriers over 50 years ago in 1975. Frank Dillon made the presentation and in his address spoke of the contribution by Bobbie to the people of Mullingar through his work and that of his colleagues in the development of the club and its continuing place in the lives of so many in Mullingar and beyond. Frank set out that this award was first presented in 2024 and is named after the late Paddy Dunican, recognising individuals who contribute significantly to the Mullingar area in terms of people and community enhancement. It was, Frank set out, fitting to honour Bobbie Begley with the 2026 award, as Mullingar Harriers had just marked 50 years and is recognised for its excellence in the promotion of athletics and the continuing development of all members. Bobbie addressed those present and thanked the Lions Club for their acknowledgement of the club and its achievements. It is an award not for Bobbie Begley but for all who worked so hard and dedicated themselves to enhancing the facilities at Grange which started in the late 1970s in what was a field with a single container to house basic pieces of equipment. Today the club proudly operates from an ever-improving clubhouse and has both a fully operational tartan track, gravel surfaced outside track, along with field event throwing and jumping facilities to cater for members [MO’S].

World Masters T&F

Among over 6,000 athletes from 105 Countries at the World Masters T&F Championships in Daegu, South Korea is a team of 28 master athletes from Ireland, including Sean McMullin who competed in the 10k Race Walk on Saturday morning 22nd August. Despite the early 9am start, it was already over 30degC and the humidity was a sticky 90%. Sean’s race included athletes from seven age categories, so a very big field of 72 athletes toed the line. Unfazed, and drawing on his vast experience in International competition, Sean knew to focus on his own race and only those in his own age category and he set about the task with his usual determination. The judges were busy, with four disqualifications, and as a measure of how tough the hot and humid conditions were, fifteen couldn’t finish the race, many a lot younger than Sean, but Sean is made of stern stuff and after a terrific well-paced race he crossed the finish line in 1:15:17 to win his master age category by over 16 minutes, a truly dominant performance, adding yet another World Masters title to his very large collection of titles.

It was raining heavily on music fans at Electric Picnic in Laois on Friday night 28th August, but at the same time on the far side of the World in Daegu (South Korea) it was early on Saturday morning 29th August and it was absolutely lashing rain, definitely no picnic for the 83 men who took to the start line for the 20k Race Walk. As well as the rain, the men had to endure hot 28degC temperatures and high humidity, very tough conditions for a 20k endurance event.

Sean McMullin was looking to add to his gold medal from the 10k race walk the previous Saturday and set about the task with his customary grit and determination. Sticking to his race plan, always under the vigilant eyes of the judges, he carefully controlled his pace and using all the water stations to keep well hydrated, he battled on and crossed the finish line 2:41:51 later to win his age category by over 10 minutes and add his second World Masters title of these Championships. This is a great result for a dedicated Mullingar Harrier on the World stage [GD].

Sean McMullin won his 3rd gold medal on Wednesday morning 2nd September. This was in the 5,000m track walk, adding to the gold medals he had won earlier in the Championships in the 10k and 20k road race walks.

Conditions were again hot and muggy on the track for Sean’s race but in typical style he navigated through the field as the laps passed in the Daegu Stadium, emerging victorious in his age category. His time for the 5,000m was 36:22.97, over two and a half minutes ahead of the silver medallist. Another dominant performance on the World stage by Sean. He is now looking forward to returning to the autumnal weather conditions in Mullingar after over two weeks in the heat and humidity of South Korea [MO’S].

August

Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon (incorp. Leinster Half & Westmeath Half)

The annual BnM Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon took place on Saturday morning 29th August. It was damp and overcast following heavy overnight rain. The humidity was a significant factor for the 1,174 finishers, with many remarking on the difficulties at times from the constant heat like conditions. Plenty of well serviced drinking stations along the route helped the athletes. The half marathon incorporated the Leinster Half, and for the first time, the Westmeath Half Marathon too. 55 athletes from Mullingar Harriers completed the half marathon, our largest ever group in this race.

Pride of place goes to our senior ladies’ team of Niamh McEntegart, Jacintha Reilly, Orlaith Flanagan and Criona Reid who won the Phyllis Delaney Cup for first women Club team. This was for the overall top team in the open race that included athletes from across the Country with 4 athletes to score. Our men’s team of Dan Morris, Kris Foster, Griffen Kearney and Johnny Morrissey placed an excellent third Club.

The big Mullingar squad was led home by Dan Morris in an excellent tenth place in 1:11:26. In the women’s race, Niamh McEntegart (1:23:08) finished third woman overall, but as she was the second woman from Leinster, she was awarded the individual Leinster senior silver medal. With Niamh winning a senior medal, Jacintha Reilly (1:30:01) moved up to third place in her master category to win the bronze medal. Leinster master gold medals in their age categories were won by Dan Morris, Eddie Newman (1:22:56), Criona Reid (1:33:23) and Mary Stuart (1:36:39), and silver was won by Marie Louise Johnston (1:38:32).

In the Leinster Team events, the senior men team of Dan Morris, Kris Foster (1:15:08) and Griffin Kearney (1:17:16) were third club, and the senior women team of Niamh McEntegart, Jacintha Reilly and Orlaith Flanagan (1:33:05) went one better and finished second club. The over 35 master women team of Criona Reid, Mary Stuart and Aeilish McGovern (1:37:49) was third club, a mere five seconds away from the silver medals.

There were county teams too and the master women over 35 team were victorious by a big margin thanks to the combined times of Niamh McEntegart, Jacintha Reilly, Criona Reid, Mary Stuart, Aeilish McGovern and Orla Gillespie (1:37:33) and in the master women over 50 with just four needed to score, Marie Louise Johnston led the Westmeath team to victory by a big margin thanks to terrific support from Athlone AC’s Rosie Greene, Maura Shine and Triona Kinane. It was victory too for the Westmeath senior men team of Dan Morris, Kris Foster, Griffin Kearney Johnny Morrissey (1:17:17), Alan Crowley (1:17:24), and Ken Whitelaw (1:18:42)

Also competing was John Long (1:17:12), Andy Boyhan (1:19:25), Steven Underwood (1:23.01), Dara O’Shea (1:25:15), Alan Coyne (1:28:02), Declan Claffey (1:32:18), Conor Collison (1:30:18), Conor Corcoran (1:31:49), Timmy Mescall (1:31:53), Gerard Gavin (1:32:17), Declan Claffey (1:32:18), Ger Feerick (1:32:25), Darren Carroll (1:33:11), Tommy Byrne (1:34:34), Mick Fagan (1:34:42), Darragh O’Donoghue (1:35:56), Jason McKevitt (1:36:16), Barry White (1:36:20), Tom Byrne (1:37:34), Niamh Doherty (1:38:49), Richard Carey (1:39:25), Shaun Mills (1:41:03), Emer O’Hanlon (1:41:15), Zane Smukste (1:41:38), Aisling Corcoran (1:42:55), Mark Dunne (1:43:24), Joanna Bula (1:43:32), Matt Creagh (1:44:27), Eva McMorrow Byrne (1:45:39), Patrick Healy (1:46:07), Caroline Mullen (1:46:38), Mark Geoghegan (1:46:47), Ciara Dillon (1:50:00), Jillian O’Grady (1:50.47), Linda Cunningham (1:53:04), Brendan Rice (1:54:49), Claire Lennon Gavin (1:55:46), Matthew Johnston (1:57:52), Rodney Farry (1:59:12), Kevin O’Brien (2:03:58) and Megan Whiley (2:08:27).

In the Westmeath Championships it was gold for Niamh McEntegart in the senior ladies’ race, Jacintha Reilly taking silver and bronze going to Orlaith Flanagan. The men’s race was won by Dan Morris, with silver to Kris Foster and the bronze to Griffen Kearney. Female Over 35 saw gold to Niamh Doherty, silver to Elisha McDonnell (Coralstown – Kinnegad 1:51.02) and bronze to Gina O’Neill (Athlone 2:25.29). The men’s over 35 saw gold to Johnny Morrissey, silver to Andy Boyhan and bronze to Steven Underwood. Over 40 females, was gold for Lisa Fahy (Athlone 1:48.39), silver Lisa Coleman (North Westmeath 1:53.26) and bronze to Rebecca Rushe (Athlone 1:55.23). Over 40 men, gold for Alan Crowley, silver for Kieran Shine (Athlone 1:24.37) with the bronze to Conor Collison. Over 45 females, gold to Orla Gillespie, silver to Aeilish McGovern and bronze to Zen Smukste. Male over 45, gold to Ken Whitelaw, silver to Dara O’Shea and bronze to Daragh O’Brien (North Westmeath 1:36.35). Female Over 50 – gold to Marie Louise Johnston, silver to Maura Shine (Athlone 1:39.15) and bronze to Triona Kinnane (Athlone 1:40.17). Male Over 50 – gold to Pauric Whelehan (Athlone 1:28.10), silver to Gerard Gavin and bronze to Mick Fagan. Female over 55 – gold to Criona Reid, silver to Emer O’Hanlon and bronze to Caroline Mullen. The men’s over 55 resulted in gold for Andrew Bracken (Coralstown Kinnegad 1:42.18), silver to Matt Creagh and bronze to Denis Bergin (Athlone 2:07.02). Female over 60 saw gold to Mary Stuart, and silver to Rosie Green (Athlone 1:39.05). The men’s over 60 resulted in gold to Eddie Newman, silver to Mel Leahy (North Westmeath 1:50.27) and bronze to Eamonn Campbell (North Westmeath 1:50.25) [MO’S]

Longford 5k Race Series – Day 4

The fourth and final night of the Longford 5k Trail Run Series took place on Wednesday evening 26th August with Newcastle Woods the host venue on this occasion. A total of 154 athletes completed the run. For Mullingar Harriers, Darragh O’Donoghue finished 7th overall in 19:40, with Maura Dervin running strongly to record a time of 22:07. Kieran Dodrill ran 22:17, with Therese Glynn coming home in 25:02. Aidan O’Donoghue recorded a time of 26:30 [MO’S].

Antrim Coast 5k

On foot of his excellent sixth place finish in the 5,000m at the National Senior T&F in Santry a month before (26 July), Jack Moran was selected for the Irish team to compete over 5k at the Antrim Coast Half Marathon & 5k in Larne, Northern Ireland on Sunday 23rd August. While the course is billed as a fast one, Jack admitted his twelfth place finish in 14:43 wasn’t his best race this year, but it’s been a long season and he was happy to finish it in an Irish singlet and be part of the Irish team that finished first. It’s been eleven years since Jack made his International debut in 2015 and it’s great to see him still competing on the International stage [GD].

Celbridge 5k

A huge field of 654 athletes completed the Celbridge AC 5k on Thursday evening 20th August. Run in showery conditions, the course was largely flat but with a steep incline after 2k and a nice downhill in the final kilometre. Enda Seery was the sole participant from Mullingar Harriers, recording a time of 17:42 (MO’S).

Longford 5k Race Series – Day 3

The third night of the Longford 5k Trail Series took place on Wednesday evening 19th August with Derrycassin Woods the host venue on this occasion. Mullingar had 5 athletes competing in the field of 112, led home by Darragh O’Donoghue in a fine 4th place with a time of 20:11. Finishing well up in 17th place overall and 3rd woman to finish was Maura Dervin in 22:13. Following her in was Kieran Dodrill (22:34), Therese Glynn (22:58) and Aidan O’Donoghue in 26:31 (MO’S).

St. Coca’s AC 10 Mile

On a course traversing the roads around Kilcock, with the start and finish in the town, the St. Coca’s AC 10 mile took place last Sunday week (16 Aug). Described as mildly challenging, with the occasional steep climb, followed by some long stretches interspersed with a few downhills, 431 runners completed the distance, including five from Mullingar Harriers. Kris Foster was first Mullingar man home, running a time of 56:22. Johnny Morrissey won a great battle with fellow Harrier, Alan Crowley, running a time of 57:29, just 5 seconds clear of Alan in 57:34. Rachel Killalea completed the run in 1:13:24, and Joan Hickson covered the distance in 1:54:05 (MO’S).

Birr 5k

Sunday 16th August saw the final race in this year’s Healthy Offaly 5k Series, when the Birr 5k was held on a dry and humid morning with little wind. Among the 293 runners, Mullingar Harriers was represented by 4  members, one recording a podium position. Eddie Lynch was first in his master category with a time of 18:47, Kieran Nolan completed the distance in 19:37, Conleth Mullen was delighted with a personal best and dipped under 20 minutes, recording a time of 19:48, and Martin Mullen completed the quartet from Mullingar and ran a time of 25:10 (CM).

European T&F Championships

It was a very early 7.30am start on Saturday morning 15th August for Oisin Lane when he competed in the Half Marathon Race Walk at the European T&F Championships in Birmingham. The race was held in the city centre and being so early, temperatures were not as high, but it was still quite warm. With both men and women races starting together, only a minute ahead of the men and women marathon race walk, the course soon became quite crowded and it was quite a spectacle for the large crowd of supporters, including a lot of Irish and a terrific number from Mullingar Harriers, to watch over 100 athletes racing on the tight looped course that meant the athletes came around regularly and could be cheered on enthusiastically every time they passed. Oisin stuck to his race plan and carefully negotiating the tight turns, uphill and downhill sections, differing surfaces, always under the scrutiny of the judges, was in the middle of the pack for much of the race but moving through field over the final few kilometres raced home in a brilliant eleventh place in 1:27.09, a personal best for the distance by a whopping four minutes, which is a brilliant result.

The evening session at the Alexander Stadium included the 10,000m where Jack O’Leary toed the line with 24 others in very warm conditions. The near full attendance generated a terrific atmosphere and the roar from the very large Irish contingent when Jack was introduced at the start was spine tingling. Settling in quickly to the pace, Jack kept right in the thick of the action in the big field and moved up and down the pack as needed to keep himself well placed. Even though this was his first European senior track competition, Jack ran like a seasoned pro and kept working all the way, wisely ignoring a mid-race surge by a small group that would go on to contest the medals. With 3k to go he raced to the front of the chasing pack, to push the pace and roared on by the Irish crowd he raced hard to the finish to cross the line in tenth place in 28:24.89, a season’s best, a brilliant result.

There’s no doubt, both Oisin and Jack can be extremely proud of their performances at the top level in Europe, which will drive them on for future competitions, at European and World level [GD].

Rathkenny 5k

UNREPORTED

Saturday 15th August, Rathkenny, Co. Meath

Barry White 36th of 231 finishers in 21:54

Frank Duffy 10 Mile

UNREPORTED

Saturday 15th August, Phoenix Park

Cormac Dalton (49:17) 1st of 3,680 finishers

Castlepollard 5k

Hosted by North Westmeath AC, the annual Castlepollard 5k attracted a field of 339 runners on Wednesday evening 12th August. Conditions were warm and humid, but a slight breeze was helpful to the runners. The course, which is relatively flat, brought the athletes on a looped course from the town through the grounds of Tullynally Castle and returning on the same route to finish in the Market Square.

Like the sun going behind the moon for the eclipse that took place during the race, from the start, Cormac Dalton began to disappear into the distance but reappeared again less than 15 minutes later, nearly a minute ahead of the pack, to win comfortably in 14:09. It has been a difficult few months for Cormac, but he has come through impressively from injury and was very happy to record a comfortable win. Next home for Mullingar Harriers was Mark Darby with his time of 16:09 taking 4th place ahead of Shane McLoughlin in 5th on a time of 16:58. James Keegan was 6th in 17:09, with Kedagh Geoghegan following him over the line in 17:24. Andy Boyhan finished strongly in 17:36, Timmy Mescall completed the distance in 19:11, and there was a great battle just behind him between Kieran Nolan and Tommy Byrne, both credited with the same time of 19:37, giving Kieran 2nd place in his master category and Tommy on his first outing in his new master category was delighted to make a podium finish in 3rd place.

Jacintha Reilly was our first lady home, finishing 3rd in the senior women race in a time of 19:44. Joe Doherty completed the event in 21:18, while Laura Fitzpatrick came home in 22:49. Following them in was Leon Murray (22:50), Paul Plunkett (22:55), Michael Purdue (23:27), Ciara Dillon (23:42), Kevin O’Brien (24:30), while Jennifer Bourke completed her run in 26 minutes even. Aidan O’Donoghue ran 26:50, Louise Gordon completed the course in 27:23, with Breda McDonnell delighted to race walk the distance and win her master category with a time of 58:43 [MO’S].

Longford 5k Race Series – Day 2

Round 2 of the Longford 5k Trail Series hosted by Longford AC took place on Wednesday evening 12th August on Corlea Bog. The organisers arranged for a special viewing of the solstice before the start of the race, which was enjoyed by all 107 athletes who completed the trail run through pathways around cutaway boglands.

As in Round 1, three athletes from Mullingar Harriers took part. Darragh O’Donoghue was our first finisher, coming home in 5th place in 19:21, followed by Therese Glynn and Kieran Dodrill who worked together and crossed the finish line side by side with the same time of 22:46 [MO’S].

Streets of Galway 8k

UNREPORTED

Sunday 9th August

3,140 finishers

Ciara Foy 42nd overall, 2nd woman (27:28); Eddie Lynch 1st M60 (30:21), Linda Cunningham (36:22)

Ballinamore 5k & 10k

Ballinamore AC hosted their annual Ballinamore 5k & 10k road race on Sunday 9th August where Shane McLoughlin continued his recent good form and broke the tape in the 5k race in 17:27 to take the win ahead of just over forty others in the race. In the 10k race, among the nearly eighty competitors was two from Mullingar Harriers and Mark Darby was happy with his 2nd place finish in 34:20 on the hilly course. Darragh O’Donoghue also found the course tough but was delighted to finish in 10th place and record a personal best of 42:53 for the distance [AO’D].

National Masters T&F

The National Masters T&F was held in a warm but breezy Santry on Friday evening 7th August and on Saturday 8th August where the small group from Mullingar Harriers made their presence felt, with each taking home a medal. Given the increase in numbers taking part in masters T&F, the programme was getting too big for one day, so to reduce the length of the programme, some events were held on the Friday evening and the rest on Saturday.

First into action on Friday evening was Paddy Boyhan in the Master Men High Jump where he leaped to gold in his age category to add to his growing collection of National titles. Also winning a National title was Ramona Carey in the Master Women Shot Put, delighted to take the win and claim gold. Staying with the field events, Tom Walsh competed in the Master Men Weight For Distance, hurling the heavy 28 pound (12.7kg) with great consistency over the four throws to win gold and take another National title with ease.

Moving to the track, Aidan O’Donoghue put in a good performance in the Master Men 100m Hurdles, negotiating the barriers with great skill to finish second and win the National silver medal. We finished the evening with the Master Men 5,000m Race Walk where Colm Walsh and Sean McMullin put in their customary flawless performances to win gold in their respective age categories to round off an excellent medal-winning evening for Mullingar Harriers.

Paddy Boyhan returned to action on Saturday and in warm sunny conditions jumped to gold in the Master Men Long Jump and win his second National title of the Championships. On the track, Aidan O’Donoghue had been targeting a sub-30 second 200m all season to help his multi-event points. A stiff headwind on the home straight made for less than ideal sprinting conditions for the Master Men 200m but undeterred, Aidan gave it his best effort and while he finished out of the medals in fifth place, was delighted to record a time of 29.96 seconds, reaping the rewards of all the work put in at training. Dan Morris led out the early laps of the Master Men 5,000m to set up a great race. He was passed after about 2k but kept to his task in third place, continuing to work hard and while he was passed on the final sprint on the home straight to cross the line in fourth place overall, he was first in his age category and delighted to win gold and the National title to round off an excellent competition for the Mullingar masters [GD].

Kells Heritage 5k

The Kells Heritage 5k on Friday evening 7th August attracted a good entry of nearly 490 athletes, including six from Mullingar Harriers, led home by Mark Darby in 5th place in 16:09, followed by Kris Foster 7th in 16:45 and Shane McLoughlin 9th in 16:55 to take the team prize for 1st Club. Also competing well was Johnny Morrissey (17:00), Darragh O’Donoghue (19:29) and Barry White (21:21) [GD].

Longford 5k Race Series – Day 1

Hosted by Longford AC and taking place on the four Wednesday evenings in August, Round 1 of the Longford 5k Trail Series took place on Wednesday evening 5th August. The first round was along the Royal Canal in Longford Town. Among the 117 finishers was three from Mullingar Harriers, led home by Darragh O’Donoghue with a fine 6th place finish in 19:38, followed in by Therese Glynn and Kieran Dodrill crossing the finish line together in 23:24 [GD].

Battle of Clontarf 10 Mile

Due to essential maintenance work in St. Anne’s Park, Raheny at Easter, the Raheny Shamrock AC “Battle of Clontarf” 10 Mile, which incorporated the Athletics Leinster 10 Mile Championship, had to be rescheduled from its usual Easter Monday date to the August Bank Holiday Monday 3rd August. Very warm and humid conditions on the morning made what is already a testing race even more of a battle for the 322 finishers. Mullingar Harriers was well represented with full men’s and women’s teams at the start line.

The first home for Mullingar was a determined Eddie Newman in 61:49, winning the Leinster gold medal in his master category. Kieran Nolan ran strongly in 67:15, as did Gerard Gavin (69:42). Mary Stuart could be relied on to lead the women’s team home (73:25) and won her Leinster master category with ease. Also running well was Barry White (76:35), Zane Smukste (77:51) with a fine fourth place in her master category and just missing an individual medal, Paul Ginnell (79:11) and Mark Dunne (80:18). With the temperature rising with each mile, Linda Cunningham (83:17), Claire Lennon Gavin (86:33) and Kelly Dunne (87:29) fought hard all the way to the finish line. Joan Mulvihill had a very solid, steady run, finishing in 90:31 and was thrilled when she was awarded the Leinster bronze medal in her master category.

When the team scores were sorted, Mullingar really proved their strength and depth. The o/35 master women team of Mary, Zane and Linda was 2nd Club and awarded Leinster silver medals. The full team of Mary, Zane, Linda, Claire, Kelly and Joan finished 2nd Senior County. The o/50 master men team of Eddie, Kieran and Gerard took the gold medals for 1st Club. Our full team of Eddie, Kieran, Gerard, Barry, Paul and Mark was 2nd Senior County and also awarded the Leinster silver medals, meaning everyone who ran received at least one Leinster medal. There was a very impressive 21 Leinster medals in total awarded to these 12 athletes, who all placed in the top 10 in their respective age categories among the Leinster competitors [LC].

IFAM Outdoors

Three Mullingar Harriers athletes were in action at the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze IFAM Outdoors Meeting in Oordegem, Belgium on Saturday 1st August. Colin P Smith continued his excellent recent form with fourth place in his 1,500m in a time of 3:42.19. While this is outside Colin’s club record, it was a fine run against quality international opposition.

Cormac Dalton raced the 5,000m and was rewarded with a season’s best time of 13:33.04. Despite missing a lengthy spell through injury earlier in the season, Cormac has progressed well over the summer and his commitment is rewarded with moving closer to his best again. Jamie Battle recorded his third consecutive personal best and sub-14 minute performance for 5,000m with a time of 13:52.58 and can be very pleased with such consistency.

This is the first time in the clubs history that four members have broken fourteen minutes for 5,000m in the same season with Cormac Dalton, Jack O’Leary, Diarmuid Fagan and Jamie Battle all bettering the mark in recent weeks [JR].

Trasna Naas 5k

The Trasna Naas 5k on Saturday morning 1st August attracted a field of over 300 runners. The course was almost entirely on the Grand Canal path, with a 200m loop to give a natural exit and re-entry to the canal on an out-and-back course. Weather was ideal with a very light breeze and dry bright conditions. Mullingar Harriers had three athletes racing, with Mary Stuart finishing in 21:31, followed by Joan Hickson in 23:26 and Michael O’Sullivan completing the race in 23:29 [MO’S].

July

Streets of Athboy 5k

Fr. Murphy AC staged the annual Streets of Athboy 5k on Friday evening 31st July when conditions were dry and overcast with a light breeze. The course was largely flat except for a few rolling hills on the return run back to the town centre. Just short of 400 athletes completed the race.

Mark Darby led the Mullingar Harriers contingent home finishing fourth with a time of 15:43, just a few seconds away from a podium finish. For Shane McLoughlin it was another impressive outing, just back running after taking a few years out, he was pleased to dip under 17 minutes when coming in with a time of 16:53. Eddie Lynch has enjoyed a very successful year and this was no exception with his finishing time of 18:22 earning him the win in his master category. Siomha Leonard had a very good run dipping under the 20-minute mark, with a time of 19:55 and winning the u/20 woman race. Brendan Rice, using the race as a tempo run as he builds up to a marathon in September, was very happy with a time of 23:33 [MO’S].

Dublin Graded Meeting – #8 of 8

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 29th July, Santry

Donagh Carey (1,500m Grade C) 4:21.35

National Senior T&F Championships

The elite of Irish athletics, including a small squad of eight athletes from Mullingar Harriers, gathered in a blustery Santry on Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th July for the National Senior T&F Championships.

Aisling Lane lined up for the 5,000m race walk on Saturday as a serious medal prospect and gave her all and matched the current nine times National Champion stride for stride lap after lap as the large field shrank back bit by bit. By 3,000m the field was down to a tightly packed quartet, with Aisling the dominant athlete on the shoulder of the defending Champion. A lap out from the 4,000m mark disaster struck for Aisling as a sudden bad stitch threw her off her stride and she dropped back to fourth place with the other three pulling away from her. For most athletes that would be the end of their challenge but not Aisling and after two slower laps she got her form back and gave chase. She attacked with all of her might and showed fantastic turn of speed as she pulled back a deficit of over 50m to sail pass the stunned third and then second place athletes, and closing hard and fast, she almost caught the winner on the line as they all collapsed to the ground with exhaustion. A silver medal for Mullingar and huge accolades given to Aisling for her magnificent never say die attitude and determination.

Earlier in the day, Matthew Glennon had a fabulous opportunity to also take some National honours in the 10,000m race walk but he made the fatal mistake of going head to head from the gun with a former Champion and Olympian who was in the excellent form. Against the very best, Matthew’s technique was soon torn apart and the judges quickly took action and he was disqualified before the half way mark. A bitter disappointment but always a risk in this very technical event.

Cormac Dalton dropped down to the 1,500m and with only the first three in each of the four heats to qualify for Sunday’s final, it came down to a burn up in the last lap and among the three leading the charge was Cormac, who ran in third with a well-judged controlled effort to book his place in the final. Jamie Wallace put in a spirited effort in his heat and despite leading in the early laps, was run out of the top three places over the final lap.

We ended Saturday with an excellent performance by Patrick Leydon in the 400m. With five heats, only the winner and the three fastest non-automatic qualifiers would qualify for Sunday’s final, so making the final was always going to be extremely tough. Undaunted, Patrick put in a spirited performance in his heat, finishing strongly in third, unfortunately outside the time needed to advance to the final, but he was very happy to record a new personal best time of 48.54 seconds.

On Sunday afternoon, Donagh Carey contested the u/20 men 3,000m where he put in a good effort but finished out of the medal places. There was three races in the men 5,000m and running in the A race was Jack O’Leary and Jack Moran. After a cautious opening two laps, Jack O’Leary surged to the front and quickly opened a sizeable gap on the field over the next few laps. Sensing the danger that Jack would continue to pull further ahead, Darragh McElhinney (Bantry AC) finally began to give chase. It took him nearly three laps to close down on Jack, leaving the rest of the field split wide open. The leading two ran together until four laps to go when Darragh made his long run for home, with Jack in tow. Unfortunately for Jack, he was unable to keep with Darragh who ran on to victory, but Jack kept pushing hard behind him and was delighted to finish in second place and win National silver, admitting after the race that he knew he really just needed to give it a go and see what happened. Meanwhile, Jack Moran continued to race hard with the pack and was rewarded with an excellent 6th place finish in a time in or around his personal best.

Between the women and men 1,500m finals late on Sunday evening, there was a very special event organised by Athletics Ireland. Every club in Ireland had been invited to nominate two juvenile athletes to represent their club in a special on-track celebration of Ciara Mageean’s remarkable achievements as European Champion, Olympian and Irish record holder, while inspiring the next generation of athletes. We invited the parents of every juvenile member in Mullingar Harriers to let us know if their child was interested and we held a draw last week to select one girl and one boy. Sophie Whitelaw and Shay Gavigan were drawn to represent Mullingar Harriers and together with over 400 juvenile athletes from other clubs, Sophie and Shay proudly wore their Mullingar Harriers colours in a 150m race with Ciara. Well done Sophie and Shay for being such excellent ambassadors for the club.

After that excitement, we finished the evening with the men’s 1,500m final where Cormac Dalton, who is better known as a 5,000m and 10,000m specialist, put a good effort against the very best milers in Ireland, finishing strongly to round off a very good week-end of action for Mullingar Harriers [ML/GD].

Anne-Marie Comey 5k

The second running of the Anne-Marie Comey 5k took place on Friday evening 24th July in Summerhill, Co. Meath. All proceeds went to the Irish Cancer Society, so the event drew a fantastic entry of over 630, including Mullingar Harrier Siomha Leonard who finished in a swift 20:30, a brilliant 28th place overall and 3rd woman, to win a very well-deserved prize for her efforts [GD].

National 10 Mile

In contrast to the heatwave conditions in the week leading up to the race, a more moderate 18degC with a light breeze was welcomed by the more than 1,600 runners who faced the National 10 Mile in the Phoenix Park on Sunday morning 19th July. With some stiff climbs, combined with some long undulating stretches on the course, it was a fair but challenging race for everyone, but it was still very warm and that added to the challenge. Mullingar Harriers had eight athletes competing.

Our masters women were chasing team medals as well as having Mary Stuart and Criona Reid in the chase for individual medals. It was bronze for Criona in her master category with a time of 1:11:15, Mary comfortably won gold in her master category with a time of 1:13:12, and with Marie Louise Johnston providing the vital third score for the team with her time of 1:14:37, earning a fine 8th place in her master category, when their three times were combined, the team finished 2nd Club to take home team silver.

Emer O’Hanlon came agonisingly close to a podium finish in her master category with her time of 1:16:49, just missing the bronze medal place, but still a fine run to take 4th  place. Linda Cunningham ran 1:17:03, finishing a very creditable 12th in her master category.

In the men’s race, newcomer Shane McLoughlin raced to an excellent 58:41, Eddie Newman continued his consistency in National events, winning gold in his master category with a time of 1:03:41, while Ger Gavin’s time of 1:09:30 saw him finish in the top 20 places in his master category [MO’S].

AAI Outdoor Games

Jamie Wallace dropped down to the 800m on Sunday 19th July at the AAI Outdoor Games in Santry, to sharpen up for the National Senior 1,500m. Jamie went through 400m in 55.5 seconds, on the inside, mid-pack and happy to be pulled along by specialist 800m runners. With 200m to go Jamie started to close and came home strongly in a time of 1:54.04, which is a big personal best for a distance he hasn’t raced in over 2 years [TW].

National Masters Combined Events

The National Masters Combined Events took place in a warm and sunny Santry on Saturday 18th July, where Mullingar had two master men competing in the Pentathlon, five events spread across a long day of competition.

Aidan O’Donoghue competed alongside master men that were five years younger than him, but he still scored in his own masters age category. Clearly spurred on and encouraged by competing with younger men, Aidan revelled in the competition, placing third overall in the long jump (first in his age), first in the javelin, fifth in the 200m (first in his age), first in the discus, and fifth in the final event the gruelling 1,500m (first in his age). After a long day, his points total placed him third overall but first in his age group to win the National gold.

Paddy Boyhan also had the benefit of competing alongside master men five years younger than him, which also spurred him on to give his best. He began with second in the long jump (first in his age), third in javelin, 200m, discus and 1,500m but first in his age in these events too, and his total score placed him third overall but first in his age to win National gold too.

Congratulations to Aidan and Paddy on their successes [GD].

European u/18 T&F Championships

It was already 30degC and rising at 9.30am on Saturday morning 18th July in Rieti (Italy) when Daniel Glennon toed the line for the 5,000m race walk at the European u/18 T&F Championships, his first Major European Championship race. Running the first kilometre bang on schedule set him up for a good race and he stuck to his pre-race plan up to the half way point but as the laps wound down, the heat took its toll. He began to suffer tightness in his legs but he pressed on as best as he could to finish a very creditable 15th place in 22:52.49, about a minute and a half off his best, but not surprising given the tough conditions he had to race in. Very well done to Daniel and the valuable experience gained will stand to him for future competitions [GD].

FISEC-FICEP Games

Mullingar Harriers AC was represented by brother and sister Conor Walsh and Lily Walsh at the annual FISEC-FICEP Games in Budapest, Hungary. This was the 76th edition of the Games, which has an International participation of over 1,000 athletes under the age of 18 years from Catholic schools around the World. The Games, consisting of multiple sports, are a week-long event and will have given both Conor Walsh and Lily Walsh a huge experience in the formalities and routines of an International Championship event, including opening and closing ceremonies, visiting the track for practise sessions and competition, and daily life in the athlete village passing time and mixing with groups from across the globe.

Conor, a student at Colaiste Mhuire, represented the Irish team in the 3,000m. The race was held on Thursday morning 16th July, but not quite early enough to escape the hot weather being experienced across central Europe. Although the morning was slightly overcast, the temperatures were creeping up on 30degC as the sun broke through the light cloud cover. Regardless, Conor set about his race with purpose immediately sitting in behind a small lead pack. As the race unfolded, Conor’s team mate, Irish 3,000m u/18 Champion, Alex Downey, pushed for glory and spread the field wide open. A long, hard race ensued with the temperatures starting to take their toll before the finish line came into sight. Conor, making his first International outing in an Irish vest, finished in a brilliant fifth place, crossing the line exhausted from the efforts of racing in the heat. A fine debut in green, and one to remember as Conor will have done himself, his school and his Club proud.

On Friday 17th July the temperatures had climbed even more. As Lily, from Loreto College, made her way to the track for the late afternoon 1,500m, the official forecasts predicted temperatures of 34degC but the thermometer at the venue was displaying a blistering 37degC. Ice-cold drinks, wet towels, portable fans, and every other trick her coach could think of were utilised to keep her body temperature down during pre-race preparations. But when the starter’s gun sounded, all focus was on the race itself and Lily sat in the leading group waiting until the main moves unfolded. The Irish girls were to the fore in this race and when the bell rang for the last lap, a group of five athletes broke from the pack and began an all-out sprint for the finish. Amazingly it was the three Irish girls who crossed the line in first, second and third for a clean sweep with Lily, at just 15 years of age, splitting the two u/18 to finish in second place.

This was Lily’s fourth time representing Ireland and no doubt her highest profile event. In each of Lily’s previous Internationals she helped Irish teams to podium finishes, but this time round she picked up her first individual International medal, a great sign of progress at a high level of competition. In addition to two great performances, Conor and Lily helped the Irish boy and girl teams to overall team victories in the T&F events. Congratulations to both Conor and Lily on two great races, and they’ll be sure to cherish the memories.

Now that Conor has made his International debut, his name will be added to the Club’s International Roll of Honour, the 136th club member to represent Ireland in International competition [CW].

Dublin Graded Meeting – #7 of 8

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 15th July, Lucan Harriers

Donagh Carey (3,000m Grade A) 9:28.33

Oldcastle 5k

Hosted by local Club, St. Brigid’s AC, the Oldcastle 5k on Wednesday 15th July attracted a big entry of 320 runners on a warm and sunny evening. Being reasonably local, no surprise that Mullingar Harriers had athletes taking part. Andy Boyhan was very happy with his race, finishing strongly in 10th place in 17:52. Big shout out to young Siomha Leonard who finished an excellent 32nd place overall in 20:38, 3rd woman and 1st u/20 woman to finish [GD].

Connaught Outdoor T&F

The Connaught u/20, Senior & Masters T&F Championships took place in sun drenched Claremorris on Wednesday evening 15th July. Athletes from outside the province were welcome to compete and their attendance added to the great atmosphere on a very warm sunny evening. Aidan O’Donoghue was delighted to pick up gold in his master category in the 200m in a time of 30.04 seconds, running into a stiff headwind of -2.8m/s. He also secured silver in the Javelin with a good series of throws, his best of 33.80m coming in the fourth round [AO’D].

National Juvenile “B” T&F

The final National juvenile T&F fixture of the season, the National Juvenile “B” T&F was held in a very hot and sunny Tullamore on Sunday 12th July when keeping in the shade as much as possible, drinking plenty of fluids, and timing your warm up carefully was the order of the day. The National “B” Championships are a slightly more relaxed National Championships but are still very valuable in teaching athletes how to perform on the National stage. Even though only one medal was won, our young Mullingar athletes coped extremely well with the conditions and took full advantage of the experience, which will stand to them.

With five heats of the u/13 girls 80m, only the top 8 fastest girls advanced to the final, and though Alannah Rice raced to 3rd in her heat, one of the faster heats, she missed out on a place in the final, but a great performance against tough opposition. There was a very big entry too for the u/14 girls 80m, so places in the final were reserved for the fastest eight girls from the four heats. Aoife Dunne finished a very creditable 5th in her heat, well up overall, but not quick enough to qualify for the final. We finally saw a Mullingar athlete in a sprint final thanks to Liadan Gavin who powered to 2nd place in her heat of the u/15 girls 100m, one of the eight fastest from the four heats to advance to the final. Racing close to her time again, a mark of a Championship performer, wasn’t enough to get among the medal places but the experience will stand to Liadan.

In the field events, Clodagh Doran placed a very good 6th place in the u/16 girls shot put. Maisie Walsh competed really well in the u/12 girls high jump, coming close to the height she jumped in Leinster, which was very good given the heat of the day out in the open sunshine and a testing cross wind. Aoibhe Martyn and Clodagh Doran competed in the u/16 girls long jump and despite reporting some difficulty with their check marks to hit the board properly, both turned in solid performances, especially Aoibhe who finished a very creditable 5th place. Aoibhe more than made up for any disappointment later in the u/16 girls high jump where she leaped to second place to win a National silver medal, a great result. Also competing in the field events and gaining great experience was Sophie Doran (u/12 girls shot put and long jump).

By the afternoon, it was very hot and sticky, terrible conditions for the middle-distance races but the show had to go on. Maisie Walsh raced hard in the u/12 girls 600m to finish well up after a great race. Two laps in the burning sun for the u/14 boys 800m but Cillian Gavin and Conor Gavin were more than able for the challenge, Cillian racing to a terrific 4th place, followed in by Conor in 6th, no medals won but fantastic efforts. We finished with the u/16 girls 800m where Muirin Dunne battled well and though finishing out of the medals, was still satisfied with her efforts. Very well done to all the Mullingar athletes that competed in Tullamore, and thanks to their parents for bringing them too [GD].

Edenderry 10 Mile

Despite the early morning start, it was still very warm and humid on Sunday morning 12th July for the 350 runners who took part in the Edenderry 10 Mile. Given the very warm conditions, the race organisers set up additional water stations, 7 in total, and their excellent race pacers for those that needed them. Notwithstanding the tough conditions, Mark Darby raced to an excellent 9th place in 57:13. Oisin Lane race walked the 10 miles before heading away this week for a spell of altitude training in preparation for the European Championships in August, completing the distance well up in 1:06:26, which must have raised some eyebrows among the runners, but he is a World class race walker, so it shouldn’t be any surprise he was able to keep up so well. Aideen Tansey had a great race to finish 8th woman in 1:11:39, ahead of Susan Glennon in 1:24:47 and Kevin O’Brien in 1:38:49. Once finished, the Mullingar group were delighted to avail of some cold drinks and reward themselves with some ice cream after the race [GD].

National Juvenile T&F – Day 3

Day 3 of the National Juvenile T&F was held in a very warm and sunny but windy Tullamore on Saturday 11th July, where the focus for Mullingar was on the 1,500m races in the afternoon.

There was a big field of 17 in the u/16 girls 1,500m so Lily Walsh lost no time getting out fast to avoid the early congestion where the risk of tripping up was high. The race soon settled into a good pace, with Lily sitting comfortably just off the leaders and carefully watching every move up front. She found herself boxed in on the kerb for some time, but kept her nerve and waited patiently for a gap to open to allow her to make her move. With 300m to go, Lily found a gap and began to push for home, driving hard all the way, with the pack in chase. The race came down to a 4-way sprint over the last 200m, with all 4 girls finishing within 0.26 seconds and the medals more-or-less being decided on who had the better dip on the line, Lily winning silver in 4:38.78, missing the gold by just six hundredths of a second in a thrilling finish to a great race.

The u/16 boys 1,500m got off to a very fast start, but Cillian Galvin made the right decision to go with the early leader and quickly opened a sizeable gap to the rest of the field. With 600m to go, the leader made a surge in pace that Cillian was unable to match, but by then the gap back to the rest of the field was big and he kept pushing along in second place. Inside the final lap, the pack began to chase him hard but Cillian had more than enough in reserve to hold the gap, coming home in second place in 4:09.44, delighted to win the National silver medal.

We finished the afternoon with the u/18 girls 1,500m. With an entry of over 20, too many for one race, the medals were decided on the fastest times over two timed races, with Eleanor Kiernan running in the second and faster race. Despite running in the u/20 women mile at the Morton Games only the evening before, Eleanor showed no signs of fatigue and ran an excellent race to finish 6th in her race in 4:53.67, a very creditable 12th overall on times from the two races, which was a good three seconds quicker than she went through 1,500m in the mile at the Morton Games the evening before, showing great strength and determination [GD].

Kinnegad 5k

Coralstown Kinnegad AC held their annual Kinnegad 5k in near tropical conditions on a warm sunny evening in Kinnegad on Wednesday evening 8th July. The start and finish in the town centre, over 160 runners, and many locals and visitors out enjoying the sunshine, added to the carnival atmosphere. The race took place on a looped course through roads off the town centre and there was plenty of refreshments for the athletes at the finish, a very welcome respite from the warm and humid running conditions.

Mullingar Harriers was well represented. Vinny Connolly won the race to the line in a time of 15:34, followed in 4th place by Dan Morris (15:47), John Glennon (17:00), Andrew Glennon (17:49), Andy Boyhan (17:54), Gareth Glennon (18:08) 2nd u/16 boy, Enda Seery (18:09), Dara O’Shea (19:24) and Kieran Nolan (20:07). Mary Stuart was our first woman finisher in 22:15, with Aisling Corcoran next home in 22:31. Brendan Rice finished in 24:40, Kevin O’Brien ran a time of 26:32, and Aidan O’Donoghue came home in 28:04 [MO’S].

Cork City Sports

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 8th July, MTU Cork

A World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze event

Cormac Dalton 3,000m 5th in 7:54.88

Morton Games

UNREPORTED

Friday 10th July, Santry

A World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze event

Senior Men 5,000m – Jack O’Leary 10th (13:35.99), Cormac Dalton 15th (13:55.85)

u/20 Men Mile – Jamie Wallace 3rd in 4:17.33 (went through 1,500m in 3:59.61)

u/20 Women Mile – Eleanor Kiernan 11th in 5:17.69 (went through 1,500m in 4:56.55)

Senior Men Mile – Colin P Smith 16th in 3:58.34 (went through 1,500m in 3:41.19)

FISEC-FICEP Games – International Selection for Walsh Siblings

Conor Walsh and Lily Walsh have been called up to the Irish squad competing at this year’s FISEC-FICEP Games. The Games will be held in Budapest, Hungary from 13th to 19th July and will host participants from around the World, including from countries such as Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Czechia, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Spain.

The FISEC-FICEP Games are an annual, week-long International multi-sport event for young athletes aged under 18 years attending Catholic schools. They bring together over 1,000 participants from across the globe to compete in sports like athletics, swimming, basketball, futsal and volleyball. The games are jointly organized by two Catholic international sports organizations, namely FISEC (International Sports Federation for Catholic Education) and FICEP (International Catholic Federation of Physical Education and Sports).

The FISEC Games began in 1948 and are recognised by the International Olympic Committee. Ireland has hosted the FISEC Games on five occasions, the last time being in 1983. FICEP Games have an even longer history, being founded between 1906 and 1911, emerging under the banner of UIOCEP. One of Ireland’s earliest participations in this group was in 1908 when an Irish team competed in Rome with teams from France, Belgium, Canada and Italy. Over time, membership of the organization grew and it was renamed as FICEP in 1947. In 2014 FISEC and FICEP began jointly organising the FISEC-FICEP Games.

Selection to the Irish team was made by the Asicus School Sports Federation (ASSF), the official Irish national representative body in FISEC. Joining a strong squad of over twenty athletes from Ireland, Conor Walsh (Colaiste Mhuire) will race in the boys 3,000m on Thursday 16th, while Lily Walsh (Loreto College) will line up for the girls 1,500m on Friday 17th. For Conor, this will be his International debut, a great honour for Conor, his family, his school, and Mullingar Harriers [CW].

Clara 5k

The Healthy Offaly 5k series continued with the Clara 5k on Sunday morning 5th July. Cloudy and overcast, it was a pleasant morning for the circular 5k route through the town and looping around its outskirts on what was described as a stiff but fair challenge for the 300 runners taking part. Mullingar Harriers had 8 athletes participating.

There was a notable 1 and 2 in the women’s race where Sharon O’Dowd pulled away from Club colleague Orlaith Flanagan to take the win in 18:56, with Orlaith coming in just 15 seconds back in 2nd place with a time of 18:56. Meanwhile in the men’s race, Mullingar Harriers had 3 athletes in contention for the senior race podium places until the final kilometre, with Mark Darby hanging on bravely but just missing out on first place, though still happy with a 2nd place finish in 16:10. James Keegan placed 4th with a time of 17:04, followed shortly after by Alan Crowley whose time of 17:12 earned him 2nd place in his master category. Enda Seery was next in 17:51, earning 4th place in his master category.

The team of Mark, James, Alan and Enda just missed out on first team by an agonising 3 places, but 2nd Club was a notable performance in a strong competition. Eddie Lynch again dominated his master category, winning in a time of 18:34, and Claire Lennon Gavin finished 6th in her master category in a time of 23:58 [MO’S].

National u/20 and u/23 T&F

The National u/20 and u/23 T&F took place in a warm but windy Tullamore on Saturday 4th & Sunday 5th July, where Mullingar had three race walkers in action on the Saturday afternoon, each delivering excellent performances on the National stage.

Aisling Lane contested the u/23 women 3,000m walk, which was combined with the corresponding u/20 women race, so the start line was very crowded. With such a busy start line, Aisling took no chances and went out hard from the gun to take the early lead and stay out of trouble, with only one other u/23 athlete trying to go with her. Showing her class and dominance, Aisling kept the pressure on and as the laps unfolded, the gap to the field increased and it wasn’t long before she began lapping some of the back markers. Continuing to push on, Aisling never looked back and powered to a fine win in a time very close to her own Championship Record that she set last year, which was excellent in the windy conditions.

The u/20 men 5,000m walk went out very fast too, as Seamus Clarke (Moy Valley AC) raced to the front, followed closely by Matthew Newall (Castlegar AC). Showing why both have qualified for the World u/20 T&F in Oregan (USA) in August, they set a fierce early pace, so Mullingar’s John Glennon and Daniel Glennon wisely stuck to their own race plans and didn’t try to stay with the leading pair. Always under the vigilant eyes of the judges, John and Daniel turned in excellent performances to finish third and fourth respectively, John in 21:25.52, which is close to his best time for the distance, and Daniel in 22:24.92, once more well under the qualifying standard for the European u/18 T&F in Rieti (Italy), where he has already been selected to compete in mid-July, and showing great form in his final race in preparation for Rieti [GD].

Clontarf Half Marathon

A huge field of over 4,000 runners took part in the annual Clontarf Half Marathon on Saturday morning 4th July. While the rain stayed off, the swirling wind coming in off the sea set a challenging backdrop, especially in the areas around the Clontarf Promenade. Two runners from Mullingar Harriers took part. Barry White recorded a time of 1:38:41 and Matt Creagh completed the course in 1:47:10 [MO’S].

Achill Half Marathon

The Achill Half Marathon took place in very strong winds, with driving rain showers, on a challenging course in Mayo on Saturday morning 4th July. There was little respite for the over 830 runners who took part in the race, which takes a circular route across the island encountering several sharp inclines. Eight athletes from Mullingar Harriers made the trip west for the event. First home was Paul O’Reilly in a time of 1:27:00. Tommy Byrne battled through the conditions and recorded a fine time of 1:34:30. Criona Reid was our first woman home in 1:38:59 to place 3rd in her master category. She was followed by  Maura Dervin, rewarded with victory in her master category as she posted a time of 1:42:50. Marie Louise Johnston was close behind and finished in a time of 1:43:40, with Joan Hickson completing the course in 1:45:36, followed by Mark Geoghegan (1:51:22) and Jane Creevy (1:54:40) [MO’S].

Rooskey 5k

UNREPORTED

Wednesday 1st July

281 finishers

Eddie Lynch 9th (18:47), 1st in master category

European u/18 T&F  – Daniel Glennon selected to compete (1st July)

A little over a year since he made his International debut, Daniel Glennon gets to wear the green of Ireland again. On Wednesday 1st July, Athletics Ireland announced the team to compete at the European u/18 T&F Championships in Rieti (Italy) and selected to compete in the 5,000m race walk is our own Daniel Glennon. This is a big step up from his debut at the SIAB Schools International in Derby (England) in July 2025, but Daniel has made terrific progress in his event and is more than able to meet the challenge. This is a great honour for Daniel, his family and Mullingar Harriers and everyone at the Club wishes him the very best of luck in Italy.