Week ending Saturday 20th July
National medals for Fagan and O’Donoghue
The National Combined Events and AAI Games took place together in Santry last Saturday and Sunday. Conditions were ideal on Saturday when Aidan O’Donoghue competed in the masters pentathlon (long jump, discus, 200m, javelin and 1,500m), where competition for medals was very keen. Over the course of a long day, starting with the long jump early in the morning and finishing with the 1,500m in the late afternoon, Aidan came close to his personal bests in the long jump and discus, but personal bests in the 200m (28.76 seconds), the javelin (35.84m) and the 1,500m (6 minutes 16.83 seconds) gave him the edge to finish third overall to win National bronze, just 28 points ahead of the athlete in fourth place in a very tight finish.
Also on Saturday, Claire Fagan competed in the 10,000m at the AAI Games, which counted as the National 10,000m Championship. Starting conservatively, Claire tracked the leaders and stayed in fourth place up to 5k but then increased the pace to slowly reel the field in and move nearer the leader, going on to finish an excellent second place in 34:37.20 and win the National silver medal.
Aimee Wallace took to the start line on Sunday morning for the 1,500m looking to blow off the cobwebs in her first race since sitting the Leaving Certificate exams in June. It was a very tactical affair but Aimee sat in with the leading group and had plenty in reserve when the pace suddenly increased at the bell for the final lap. There was a tangle of bodies with 200m to go and Aimee was fortunate to keep her footing and not fall. Despite losing a bit of momentum she recovered well and finished strongly in fourth place in 4:38.85 and can face her next outing with confidence.
Finally, Patrick Leydon competed in one of four 400m races, which he won with ease in 49.65 seconds to continue his current run of good form [GD/AO’D].
Midland Inter-County T&F
Following up on a great event in May, Offaly Athletics organised another Midland Inter-County T&F Match last Friday evening that gave nearly 200 youngsters from Clubs in the midland Counties, including 26 from Mullingar, a great opportunity to compete in the top-class Tullamore Harriers AC stadium in a lovely low-key friendly competition.
This was similar to the event we attended back in May, but this time there were more ages and some different events. Girls and boys u/9 to u/16 could compete in 4 x 100m relay, shot, turbo javelin, javelin and 400m. As always, the relay races proved extremely popular and reflecting the friendly spirit of the event, teams could be made up of athletes from more than one club, so Mullingar borrowed others to make up teams, a number of Mullingar athletes helped to complete teams for other clubs, and in fact, one of our young boys even ran with a team made up of runners from four different clubs. Over the course of a very enjoyable evening, Mullingar athletes won a big number of medals across all the events, with some winning several medals, but medals won or not, they all enjoyed the event. Thanks to the parents for bringing their children and to those that helped as officials, but especially to Offaly Athletics for hosting a great event [GD].
Kinnegad 5k
Coralstown Kinnegad GAA staged their annual Kinnegad 5k last Wednesday evening. A cold but dry evening faced athletes as they took to the looped course on the west of the town, with the start and finish on the main street. A largely flat course meant it was an opportunity to record a fast time. Of the 150 finishers, Mullingar Harriers was well represented with 16 in action.
For the Glennon family, it was a very good evening with Matthew Glennon leading home the men race to win in a fine time of 15:37, John Glennon (17:02) was fourth, Susan Glennon (18:40) was first woman home, Gareth Glennon (18:44) was first u/16 boy and Daniel Glennon (19:09) was third u/16 boy. James Keegan followed Matthew in for second place overall in 15:55, while Mary Stuart was second woman behind Susan in 19:57. Other prize winners were Enda Seery (18:31) second in his master category, Zane Smukste (21:55) first in her master category and Amelie Kelly (23:23) first u/16 girl.
Also running in the Mullingar colours and happy with their performances were Kieran Nolan (19:13), Richie Kelly (21:43), Gemma Kelly (23:00), Kevin O’Brien (24:18), Joel Kelly (25:11) and Andy Boyhan on 27:01 [MO’S].
Oldcastle 5k
Padraig Beglin was Mullingar’s sole representative last Wednesday evening at the St. Brigid’s AC annual Oldcastle 5k around the streets of the Co. Meath village and was happy with a sub 20 minute finish, just getting under the mark with 19:59 in a competitive field of nearly 200 runners [MO’S].
Edenderry 10 Mile
The Peugeot Race Series continued with the annual Edenderry 10 mile last Sunday morning. Edenderry AC were excellent hosts with a well stewarded course, excellent post-race refreshments and results announced to everyone as they enjoyed the refreshments in pleasant sunshine at the end of the event. By race time, early morning drizzle had cleared and the sun appeared during the race from cloudy and overcast conditions. A course described as challenging with some sharp rises and some rolling hills, the 351 runners had their fitness and conditioning well tested. It was a good morning for a dedicated group from Mullingar Harriers who performed very well.
We had an excellent second Club place for the Mullingar men team with Kevin Moore fourth overall in 53:40, followed by Matthew Glennon fifth in 54:18, Andrew Nevin ninth in 55:14 and Andrew Glennon (65:16) providing the vital fourth team score. Andrew was also second in his u/20 category.
Tommy Byrne (68:23) had a very good race, breaking the 70 minute barrier for the second successive race over the distance, Mary Stuart (68:50) was second in her master category, as was Aisling Corcoran in her master category with 70:25 [MO’S].
Competition closing dates
Entries for day 3 of the National Juvenile T&F on Saturday 27 July close this week (Wed 17), so make sure you have your entry submitted in time. Day 3 is for 200m and 1,500m. If you qualified automatically from the Leinsters, you should have received an email from Athletics Ireland inviting you to pay for your entry. Anyone else using the open entry system has to be entered by the Club, so check with Greg that you have been entered.
Check the Club’s website at www.mullingarharriers.com or its Facebook page for all the latest news.
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