Week ending Saturday 27th July

Mullingar 10 is the big local event this week

Volunteers (and food!) are needed for the Mullingar 10. We’re appealing for as much help as possible this Saturday from members and friends of the Club to help out at the Mullingar 10 mile road race in Dalystown. Online entries are well up on the same time last year and with the usual big number of entries expected on the day, numbers taking part are sure to be well up on the numbers in last year’s event. We need help with registration, parking, marshalling along the course, water stations etc. If you can spare a few hours, please let a Club official know. For those planning to run, you can still enter on-line at www.myrunresults.com. This is an important fundraiser for the Club and we’re asking everyone to row in behind the event and give a helping hand.

It’s really important to feed the hungry runners when they’re finished, so we’d really appreciate it if members and/or parents could bring sandwiches, buns, cakes, in fact anything edible, to the Clubhouse before Saturday or out to Dalystown on the day.

Strong performance by Jamie Battle at Euro u/20 T&F

On the final day of the European u/20 T&F in Borås (Sweden) last Sunday afternoon, Jamie Battle lined up for Ireland in the 5,000m. This was Jamie’s debut on the track at this level, but he has already competed at European and World u/20 Cross Country Championships within the past year, so he had plenty of experience at this level of competition to draw on. It was never going to be about medals for Jamie, his focus being to give as strong a performance as he could and to gain as much experience as possible for future events, and that he certainly did as he gave an excellent account. Wind and rain made conditions tough during the race, but a good strong pace from the start suited Jamie and he got stuck in and stayed well up with the field for much of the race. It was only in the closing stages that the leading group pulled away from him but he still pushed on to finish an excellent fourteenth place, only a few seconds off his personal best and in fact even if he had equalled his best, it would have gained him only two places, such was the quality of the competition. This was a very strong performance from Jamie, one that he can be proud of, and it shows that he is well able to perform up to his best in a Championship.

Schools International Gold for Matthew Glennon

Swapping the gold of the St. Finian’s vest for the green of Ireland at the Schools International T&F in Swansea (Wales) last Saturday morning, Matthew Glennon race walked to victory and the gold medal in the 3,000m race walk to earn maximum points for Ireland in the team competition.

AAI “B” T&F and Juvenile Relays

It was wet and windy and miserable in Tullamore last Sunday afternoon but that didn’t dampen the spirits of the small group from the Club that competed at the AAI “B” T&F and Juvenile Relays.

Orla Manning ran strongly in the girls 600m u/13 and even though she finished out of the medal places, a very respectable eighth place, improving her personal best by a whopping eight seconds was good consolation. Alex Lynch impressed in the boys 600m u/13 as he kept right in contention for much of the race and with a very determined performance he finished in fifth place, though he really deserved more from the race, such was his effort. Looking strong for much of the boys 800m u/14, Conor Sherwin was very unlucky to finish just out of the medals in fourth place, but he really ran a great race and left nothing on the track.

Qualifying as one of the fastest non-automatic qualifiers from the heats of the u/14 boys 4x100m relay thanks to fine running from Kyle Faherty, Callum Costello, Philip McCartan and Conor Liston, the Mullingar team drew the tight inside lane one in the final. A recurrence of a recent foot injury saw Callum substituted by Jamie Wallace in the final and though the boys ran to their utmost in driving wind and rain, they finished out of the medal places, but as most of the team was underage, they were always up against it, but top marks for effort.

Edenderry 10 Mile

Among the entry of just over four hundred for the Edenderry 10 Mile early last Sunday morning was Andrew Nevin. The wind and rain forecast for Sunday blew in later in the day, but with an early morning start, thankfully it was well after the last of the runners had completed the course. Andrew was Mullingar’s sole representative and he finished fifteenth overall in 59:11.

Open T&F Sports

The T&F season is over for most Club members now but some might like to extend it a bit by competing at the Boyne AC Open T&F Sports at the Lourdes Stadium in Drogheda on Sunday 4th August. There will be events for boys and girls from u/8 to u/17 and for junior men and women, starting at 1.30pm.

Finally, the Executive and members of the Club extend sincere sympathy to Robin Jackson and the entire Jackson family on the recent death of his father in Ballymena, Co. Antrim. May he rest in peace.

For the latest results, news and details of all upcoming fixtures check the Club’s website at www.mullingarharriers.com. You can also follow what is happening at the Club on our Facebook page.

PRO