Results round up and Cross Country Dates: September 15th, 2022
Road Races:
Kevin O'Leary made a fine return to racing after a significant time out injured with an impressive 71.33 in the Waterford Greenway half marathon. Kevin was 3rd overall.
Michael Furlong had a busy week coming 4th in the Grant Thornton 5k on Tuesday night in 17.35 then backed it up on Thursday in the St Lukes 5k in 17.13. Donal, Stephen and Eadaoin ran in St Lukes too. Donal edged Stephen out by 9 seconds for a 10th place in 16.41 with Stephen 11th in 16.52. Eadaoin ran a competitive 20.24 for 5th lady.
Cross Country Calendar - Winter 2022:
See fixture list below. I will update this if any changes.
Kevin O'Leary made a fine return to racing after a significant time out injured with an impressive 71.33 in the Waterford Greenway half marathon. Kevin was 3rd overall.
Michael Furlong had a busy week coming 4th in the Grant Thornton 5k on Tuesday night in 17.35 then backed it up on Thursday in the St Lukes 5k in 17.13. Donal, Stephen and Eadaoin ran in St Lukes too. Donal edged Stephen out by 9 seconds for a 10th place in 16.41 with Stephen 11th in 16.52. Eadaoin ran a competitive 20.24 for 5th lady.
Cross Country Calendar - Winter 2022:
See fixture list below. I will update this if any changes.
Calm before the storm - Sep 5th, 202
Stryker 4 Mile
The BHAA Stryker 4 mile was on last Thursday night on a good evening for racing. James was 3rd overall in 20:41. Michael Furlong was our next home in 22:41. Paul Cleary was 48th in 24:49 and Claire was 200th in 31:07.
Glengarriff 5 Mile
Fiona was first lady home and 2nd overall in the Glengarriff 5 Mile at the weekend. Interestingly she was 2nd to Darragh McElhinney. There are a few in the club that would give a lot to be second to Darragh in a race later on in the winter!
Cross Country Training and Races - Winter 2022:
We are back training in the normal winter venues now again. Market Green on Tuesday at 6pm and Welchtown on Saturday at 10am.
The East Cork Senior and Masters is on this Sunday hosted by St Catherines. The Junior and Senior Races will start approx 1pm.
The County Board will confirm their fixture list later this week and I will add a full schedule on the next post.
The BHAA Stryker 4 mile was on last Thursday night on a good evening for racing. James was 3rd overall in 20:41. Michael Furlong was our next home in 22:41. Paul Cleary was 48th in 24:49 and Claire was 200th in 31:07.
Glengarriff 5 Mile
Fiona was first lady home and 2nd overall in the Glengarriff 5 Mile at the weekend. Interestingly she was 2nd to Darragh McElhinney. There are a few in the club that would give a lot to be second to Darragh in a race later on in the winter!
Cross Country Training and Races - Winter 2022:
We are back training in the normal winter venues now again. Market Green on Tuesday at 6pm and Welchtown on Saturday at 10am.
The East Cork Senior and Masters is on this Sunday hosted by St Catherines. The Junior and Senior Races will start approx 1pm.
The County Board will confirm their fixture list later this week and I will add a full schedule on the next post.
August Round Up - Aug 29th, 2022
Fiona Santry - National Masters Track Gold!
The National Master Track and Field were on in Tullamore on August 13th. Fiona ran in the womens 3k and was 2nd overall and first F35 bagging herself a national individual track medal. To add some icing on the cake she also got a 2 second PB of 10.11.
Stephen and Donal ran in the mens 1500m and both ran strong competitive races. Stephen edged out Donal for 5th in 4.26 with Donal an agonising 1 second and 1 place behind his training partner.
Updated Club Record - Frank O'Brien
Frank continued his rich vein of form with another storming 800m at the Eltham BMC. Frank ran a gutsy 1:52.30 (hand timed) to win the B race on the night and lowers his own record by another second.
Road Races:
Lots of road races and great performances as well the last two weeks with people signing off their summers and others trying to limber up for cross country. The results of these are below.
The National Master Track and Field were on in Tullamore on August 13th. Fiona ran in the womens 3k and was 2nd overall and first F35 bagging herself a national individual track medal. To add some icing on the cake she also got a 2 second PB of 10.11.
Stephen and Donal ran in the mens 1500m and both ran strong competitive races. Stephen edged out Donal for 5th in 4.26 with Donal an agonising 1 second and 1 place behind his training partner.
Updated Club Record - Frank O'Brien
Frank continued his rich vein of form with another storming 800m at the Eltham BMC. Frank ran a gutsy 1:52.30 (hand timed) to win the B race on the night and lowers his own record by another second.
Road Races:
Lots of road races and great performances as well the last two weeks with people signing off their summers and others trying to limber up for cross country. The results of these are below.
Like a fine Wine - National Senior Medal on the Track for Mike! - August 8th, 2022
Mike Harty - National Track Bronze!
The big news over the last few weeks was Mike Harty coming third in the national 10k track championships. It has been 9 years since James won our last Senior track medal, a bronze in the 5k in 2013. Mike was up against young guns Mathew Neil (Current U23 5K national champion) and Paul O'Donnell (who was 3rd in last years National Senior XC) in a tactical race that really hotted up over the last couple of laps. Just over 1 second separated them when the dust settled. Mike gamely hung right in there till the final meter and showed that age is just a number crossing the line in 30:44.71. Well done Mike you certainly deserved such a result, the past few years have been littered with many set backs but perseverance and determination shone true and you have clearly reaped the rewards this summer. Long may it last!
Road Races:
Fiona has certainly made her comeback felt locally gobbling up 1st places for fun at the Ballinameela 5k (17.43) and St Catherines 5k (17.58). Interestingly she also came 3rd overall in St Catherines the same position hubby Nicky came last year in the same race.
Tamzin was 3rd in St Catherines in 19.59 and Denis was 53rd in 23.21. Paul Cleary raced in Novartis and was 35th in 19.26. Annelise continued her strong form too with a 5th place in Mitchelstown at the GR8 8k with a time of 33.25. And finally Tim won a race in York at the weekend. Beating over 2500 in the process with a time of 30.48.
Training:
Currently training for the next few weeks is continuing at Welchtown on Tuesdays at 6pm and Saturday mornings at 10am. Towards the end of August we will transition Tuesday back to Market Green.
The big news over the last few weeks was Mike Harty coming third in the national 10k track championships. It has been 9 years since James won our last Senior track medal, a bronze in the 5k in 2013. Mike was up against young guns Mathew Neil (Current U23 5K national champion) and Paul O'Donnell (who was 3rd in last years National Senior XC) in a tactical race that really hotted up over the last couple of laps. Just over 1 second separated them when the dust settled. Mike gamely hung right in there till the final meter and showed that age is just a number crossing the line in 30:44.71. Well done Mike you certainly deserved such a result, the past few years have been littered with many set backs but perseverance and determination shone true and you have clearly reaped the rewards this summer. Long may it last!
Road Races:
Fiona has certainly made her comeback felt locally gobbling up 1st places for fun at the Ballinameela 5k (17.43) and St Catherines 5k (17.58). Interestingly she also came 3rd overall in St Catherines the same position hubby Nicky came last year in the same race.
Tamzin was 3rd in St Catherines in 19.59 and Denis was 53rd in 23.21. Paul Cleary raced in Novartis and was 35th in 19.26. Annelise continued her strong form too with a 5th place in Mitchelstown at the GR8 8k with a time of 33.25. And finally Tim won a race in York at the weekend. Beating over 2500 in the process with a time of 30.48.
Training:
Currently training for the next few weeks is continuing at Welchtown on Tuesdays at 6pm and Saturday mornings at 10am. Towards the end of August we will transition Tuesday back to Market Green.
Club Record (A real one!) and BHAA 5k - July 22nd, 2022
Frank O'Brien - Club Record:
The British Milers Club is always a race to get good fields and fast times. Frank took full advantage of this last Wednesday night running a 3 second PB and in the process breaking the long standing club record from Santry Stadium August 17th, 1986. It remains to be seen if Liam will be pleased or otherwise to see one of his club marks chalked off. However his PB of 1.51 still will be brought up at family dinners for the time being no doubt.
Frank ran a tactically astute race sitting at the back of the group conserving energy but still went through in about 57 seconds. As he kicked around the pack with 300m to go the long time leader started to fade and Frank was in perfect position to pounce on that weakness. He held his speed and form right through the line to stop the clock in an impressive 1:53.89. For the record books legitimate dragonfly spikes were used. The Youtube video is below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD8yQMguzow&feature=youtu.be
Road Racing:
The Gas Networks Ireland 5k was held in the Marina on Wednesday night as well. Kenneth had a great race to clock 15.50 and finish 3rd. Interestingly and impressively he first broke 16 mins for 5k about 25 years ago and is still going strong. Lot to be said for healthy living! Stephen ran a PB of 16.35. Donal will have to counter that when he's home again. Paul Cleary was next home in 19.37. Annelise was in the hunt for a PB form the very start and was rewarded with her first (official) sub 20 min clocking of 19.47. From winning a beach half marathon last week to a sub 20min 5k is showing some great range. Niamh also broke the 20min barrier for the first time too with a 19.50 just behind Annelise.
The British Milers Club is always a race to get good fields and fast times. Frank took full advantage of this last Wednesday night running a 3 second PB and in the process breaking the long standing club record from Santry Stadium August 17th, 1986. It remains to be seen if Liam will be pleased or otherwise to see one of his club marks chalked off. However his PB of 1.51 still will be brought up at family dinners for the time being no doubt.
Frank ran a tactically astute race sitting at the back of the group conserving energy but still went through in about 57 seconds. As he kicked around the pack with 300m to go the long time leader started to fade and Frank was in perfect position to pounce on that weakness. He held his speed and form right through the line to stop the clock in an impressive 1:53.89. For the record books legitimate dragonfly spikes were used. The Youtube video is below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD8yQMguzow&feature=youtu.be
Road Racing:
The Gas Networks Ireland 5k was held in the Marina on Wednesday night as well. Kenneth had a great race to clock 15.50 and finish 3rd. Interestingly and impressively he first broke 16 mins for 5k about 25 years ago and is still going strong. Lot to be said for healthy living! Stephen ran a PB of 16.35. Donal will have to counter that when he's home again. Paul Cleary was next home in 19.37. Annelise was in the hunt for a PB form the very start and was rewarded with her first (official) sub 20 min clocking of 19.47. From winning a beach half marathon last week to a sub 20min 5k is showing some great range. Niamh also broke the 20min barrier for the first time too with a 19.50 just behind Annelise.
National U23's East Cork 5k, Road and Beach Racing - July 18th, 2022
Championship Races (Two Victories):
On the championship side of things we had the East Cork 5k champs on in MTU track last Wednesday night. We took gold and bronze in both the mens and womens races. Frank won his first medal for the club running a controlled race to finish in 16.04 (with a 59 second last lap). Michael Furlong opened his account with East Cork with a well executed run for 3rd overall in 17.24. Fiona was next home and in the process won the womens section in a superb time of 18.03. Niamh O'Connor and Annelise had a ding dong battle for 3rd with Niamh edging away in the final couple of laps to take the bronze in 20.17. Denis was 14th in 25.20.
The National U23's took place on Sunday. Frank was our sole representative and ran a solid race for 5th in the 1500m with a time of 4.08 in a slow tactical race with a last lap burn up.
Road Racing (Three Vicories):
Michael had another excellent run and win in the Dundrum 10k last week. Stopping the clock at 30.13 it sets him up really well to have a right good crack at the National 10k coming up soon.
Frank also ran and won the Corkbeg 4 mile last week in 20.30 with Niamh taking out 3rd in 27.13. Others running were Nicky 3rd, Kenneth 4th, Eric 20th, Avril 5th and Tom 71st. Thanks to all in the club who helped out on the night.
Annelise had a well deserved sandy victory in Kerry in the Brandon Bay Half Marathon on Saturday too and Michael Furlong ran the Dungarvan 10k in 36.32 for 6th.
On the championship side of things we had the East Cork 5k champs on in MTU track last Wednesday night. We took gold and bronze in both the mens and womens races. Frank won his first medal for the club running a controlled race to finish in 16.04 (with a 59 second last lap). Michael Furlong opened his account with East Cork with a well executed run for 3rd overall in 17.24. Fiona was next home and in the process won the womens section in a superb time of 18.03. Niamh O'Connor and Annelise had a ding dong battle for 3rd with Niamh edging away in the final couple of laps to take the bronze in 20.17. Denis was 14th in 25.20.
The National U23's took place on Sunday. Frank was our sole representative and ran a solid race for 5th in the 1500m with a time of 4.08 in a slow tactical race with a last lap burn up.
Road Racing (Three Vicories):
Michael had another excellent run and win in the Dundrum 10k last week. Stopping the clock at 30.13 it sets him up really well to have a right good crack at the National 10k coming up soon.
Frank also ran and won the Corkbeg 4 mile last week in 20.30 with Niamh taking out 3rd in 27.13. Others running were Nicky 3rd, Kenneth 4th, Eric 20th, Avril 5th and Tom 71st. Thanks to all in the club who helped out on the night.
Annelise had a well deserved sandy victory in Kerry in the Brandon Bay Half Marathon on Saturday too and Michael Furlong ran the Dungarvan 10k in 36.32 for 6th.
Runaround Update July 6th, 2022
Many many races to catch up on. The summary below should have most on it.. If there are any missing please let me know.
Championship Racing:
The main highlights were from the championship races. Paul and Frank went to Santry for the National Championships on June 25th. Frank was one place off making the final in his very competitive heat coming 5th in 4.02. Paul ran a 4.03 for 10th in his heat. Well done lads this is the place to aiming for especially as the 1500m is probably the deepest event in the whole programme.
The other championship race was the other end of the spectrum. Held on Carrig na Bhfears fine grass track we were very successful on the night. The main winner was double gold medalist Donal who doubled down in the 1500m and 3000m M35 category. Stephen won the 300m and was second in the 1500m. Annelise and Eadaoin were 2nd and 3rd in the Senior 3000m with Nicky 2nd in the mens senior 3000m.
Cork City Sports:
Frank was our sole representative in the Cork City Sports were he recorded a nice PB of 8.39 for 6th place in the Open 3k.
Upcoming Races:
- Corkbeg 4 Mile: This is on tomorrow night July 7th with a 8pm start in Whitegate. This is hosted and organised by East Cork AC so if you are not running and have a hour to spare to help out please do. Also it must be noted this is only a €5 entry on the night. One of the rare races left that still is held to a high standard but for a low price. Even more of a reason to support.
- St Catherines 5k: Our friends in St Catherines are having their annual 5k on July 29th. Tim has the mens course record from last year and there is a prize for breaking it. Race starts and ends in Ballynoe and is always well organised and supported.
Championship Racing:
The main highlights were from the championship races. Paul and Frank went to Santry for the National Championships on June 25th. Frank was one place off making the final in his very competitive heat coming 5th in 4.02. Paul ran a 4.03 for 10th in his heat. Well done lads this is the place to aiming for especially as the 1500m is probably the deepest event in the whole programme.
The other championship race was the other end of the spectrum. Held on Carrig na Bhfears fine grass track we were very successful on the night. The main winner was double gold medalist Donal who doubled down in the 1500m and 3000m M35 category. Stephen won the 300m and was second in the 1500m. Annelise and Eadaoin were 2nd and 3rd in the Senior 3000m with Nicky 2nd in the mens senior 3000m.
Cork City Sports:
Frank was our sole representative in the Cork City Sports were he recorded a nice PB of 8.39 for 6th place in the Open 3k.
Upcoming Races:
- Corkbeg 4 Mile: This is on tomorrow night July 7th with a 8pm start in Whitegate. This is hosted and organised by East Cork AC so if you are not running and have a hour to spare to help out please do. Also it must be noted this is only a €5 entry on the night. One of the rare races left that still is held to a high standard but for a low price. Even more of a reason to support.
- St Catherines 5k: Our friends in St Catherines are having their annual 5k on July 29th. Tim has the mens course record from last year and there is a prize for breaking it. Race starts and ends in Ballynoe and is always well organised and supported.
Weekly Update June 16th, 2022
Track Races:
Frank has been limbering into the track season the last few month and showed again some good for the past week. Firstly at the Birmingham BMC meet Frank ran 4.00 for the 1500m and then the Watford Open 800m he nudged his PB down another little bit to a very respectable 1.56. Paul had a big breakthrough in the 1500m too at the Leevale Open Sports, breaking 4 mins for the first time with an excellent 3.57 for 4th.
Musgrave 5k:
Stephen and Donal ran in the Musgrave 5k last night up in the Marina. Stephen broke the 17 min barrier for the first time with a 16.49 for 17th and Donal broke 17min for the second time with 16.57 for 19th. The last time was over three years ago in May 2019 at the John Buckley 5k. Hopefully he won't have to wait as long again!
Eadaoin also ran.
East Cork T&F:
Reminder that the East Cork Athletics Division Senior, Junior & Master T&F Championships is on Tuesday, 21st June at Colaiste an Chroi Naofa, Carraig na Bhfear. List of events and start times below.
Entries should be sent to Eadaoin by Friday 17th June.
Frank has been limbering into the track season the last few month and showed again some good for the past week. Firstly at the Birmingham BMC meet Frank ran 4.00 for the 1500m and then the Watford Open 800m he nudged his PB down another little bit to a very respectable 1.56. Paul had a big breakthrough in the 1500m too at the Leevale Open Sports, breaking 4 mins for the first time with an excellent 3.57 for 4th.
Musgrave 5k:
Stephen and Donal ran in the Musgrave 5k last night up in the Marina. Stephen broke the 17 min barrier for the first time with a 16.49 for 17th and Donal broke 17min for the second time with 16.57 for 19th. The last time was over three years ago in May 2019 at the John Buckley 5k. Hopefully he won't have to wait as long again!
Eadaoin also ran.
East Cork T&F:
Reminder that the East Cork Athletics Division Senior, Junior & Master T&F Championships is on Tuesday, 21st June at Colaiste an Chroi Naofa, Carraig na Bhfear. List of events and start times below.
Entries should be sent to Eadaoin by Friday 17th June.
*RACE ALERT* East Cork T&F - Carraig na Bhfear June 21st 2022
Entries are now open for the East Cork Athletics Division Senior, Junior & Master T&F Championships on Tuesday, 21st June at Colaiste an Chroi Naofa, Carraig na Bhfear.
This is always a fun night and a great opportunity for people to try their hand at T&F in a relaxing atmosphere as well as giving the more seasoned track athletes a chance to see how their training is going.
Please respond to Eadaoins email if you would like to be entered for any events. Poster below!
Entry Fee €5.00. Entry Fee will be taken at the gate.
This is always a fun night and a great opportunity for people to try their hand at T&F in a relaxing atmosphere as well as giving the more seasoned track athletes a chance to see how their training is going.
Please respond to Eadaoins email if you would like to be entered for any events. Poster below!
Entry Fee €5.00. Entry Fee will be taken at the gate.
Munster T&F, Cloyne 5 mile and Cork Marathon - June 7th, 2022
Munster Masters T&F:
Stephen was again our sole representative at the Munster track and field on Monday in MTU. He ran the 1500m and got the bronze medal in the M35 category, running 4.35 on the day in damp conditions.
Cloyne 5 Mile:
The inaugural Cloyne 5 mile was held last Thursday night. Michael continued his great recent form with another convincing win in 24.27. Donal and John battled for 11th place with Donal besting John on this occasion. Eric was next home in 31.26. Tamzin finished 8th in 33.10. Avril had a great run to beat Annelise and clocked 34.41 with Annelise just behind in 35.00. Lorna was next in 36.17 just ahead of Denis in 36.30. Claire O'Brien and Dave Muldowney rounded off our results with 37.27 and 40.14 respectively. Also running very impressively was Emma Leahy McGrath who has won numerous cross country medals with us over the years. Emma was third on the night and interestingly was the only person on the podium for men and women who was not wearing supershoes.
Cork Marathon:
June Bank holiday weekend in Cork and marathon fever took over the city as usual. This is one of the few races each year that brings the athletic community and the general public together on the same page. Tim took full advantage of this and proceeded to improve his finishing position from 2019 by one place to step at the top of the podium this time. Tim set a course record and convincingly broke the 2.20 barrier with his 2:18.37 finishing time. His splits were 10k 33.48, Half 69.08, 30k 1:38.28, 40k 2:11.20. This is the second time we have had a winner at the race. Roy Fahy won it as well back in 2008 with a time of 2:33.55.
Kenneth also had an excellent race finishing 8th in his first ever marathon in 2:35.39. Chris McGrath (without much training) ran around in 3:46.03. Well done all.
We also had an East Cork (and Friends) ladies relay team who finished 3rd ladies team. Fiona ran the first leg to Silversprings, Avril the second to Mahon and passed the band to Tamzin who had a fine run to past to Jen Preston for the 4th leg and Lorna took the glory leg and brought them home in 2:59.
Thanks to all those who helped out from the club on the day with stewarding and assisting at the relay changeovers.
Stephen was again our sole representative at the Munster track and field on Monday in MTU. He ran the 1500m and got the bronze medal in the M35 category, running 4.35 on the day in damp conditions.
Cloyne 5 Mile:
The inaugural Cloyne 5 mile was held last Thursday night. Michael continued his great recent form with another convincing win in 24.27. Donal and John battled for 11th place with Donal besting John on this occasion. Eric was next home in 31.26. Tamzin finished 8th in 33.10. Avril had a great run to beat Annelise and clocked 34.41 with Annelise just behind in 35.00. Lorna was next in 36.17 just ahead of Denis in 36.30. Claire O'Brien and Dave Muldowney rounded off our results with 37.27 and 40.14 respectively. Also running very impressively was Emma Leahy McGrath who has won numerous cross country medals with us over the years. Emma was third on the night and interestingly was the only person on the podium for men and women who was not wearing supershoes.
Cork Marathon:
June Bank holiday weekend in Cork and marathon fever took over the city as usual. This is one of the few races each year that brings the athletic community and the general public together on the same page. Tim took full advantage of this and proceeded to improve his finishing position from 2019 by one place to step at the top of the podium this time. Tim set a course record and convincingly broke the 2.20 barrier with his 2:18.37 finishing time. His splits were 10k 33.48, Half 69.08, 30k 1:38.28, 40k 2:11.20. This is the second time we have had a winner at the race. Roy Fahy won it as well back in 2008 with a time of 2:33.55.
Kenneth also had an excellent race finishing 8th in his first ever marathon in 2:35.39. Chris McGrath (without much training) ran around in 3:46.03. Well done all.
We also had an East Cork (and Friends) ladies relay team who finished 3rd ladies team. Fiona ran the first leg to Silversprings, Avril the second to Mahon and passed the band to Tamzin who had a fine run to past to Jen Preston for the 4th leg and Lorna took the glory leg and brought them home in 2:59.
Thanks to all those who helped out from the club on the day with stewarding and assisting at the relay changeovers.
Weekly Round Up and Cloyne 5 Miler - May 31st, 2022
Cork County T&F Champs (Day 2):
Day 2 of the County T&F was on last week. Stephen O'Brien was our sole representative. He ran in the 1500m and wsa 11th in 4.34.
Other Track and Road:
Frank was 5th in the Eltham BMC 1500m running an impressive 3.56. With his 800m PB as well recently this is a nice breakthrough spell for him so let the good times keep rolling!
The Ballymacoda 4 Mile was the main local road race on last week. Nicky continued his purple patch and won the race in convincing fashion, leading from the gun to the tape in a new course record and PB of 20.30. John Spelman took some time out from his studies to finish 8th overall and first junior in 22.30. Donal was just behind him in 22.41. Stephen was next in 23.00 with Tim O'Mahony racing for the first time this year and showed he still has a bit of fitness with a solid 21st in 23.56.
Niamh O'Connor was our first lady home just outside the 27 min mark (by a mere 2 seconds!), Lorna was next and had a nice improvement from Ballintotis in 28.33. Conor launched his trademark sprint finish to keep Denis at bay and finished in 28.56 with Denis just behind in 29.18.
Cloyne 5 Mile:
The Cloyne 5 Mile is on this Thursday at 8pm sharp. It is being supported by East Cork AC so if you would like to race/help out etc please let Liam or Brian Harty know.
Day 2 of the County T&F was on last week. Stephen O'Brien was our sole representative. He ran in the 1500m and wsa 11th in 4.34.
Other Track and Road:
Frank was 5th in the Eltham BMC 1500m running an impressive 3.56. With his 800m PB as well recently this is a nice breakthrough spell for him so let the good times keep rolling!
The Ballymacoda 4 Mile was the main local road race on last week. Nicky continued his purple patch and won the race in convincing fashion, leading from the gun to the tape in a new course record and PB of 20.30. John Spelman took some time out from his studies to finish 8th overall and first junior in 22.30. Donal was just behind him in 22.41. Stephen was next in 23.00 with Tim O'Mahony racing for the first time this year and showed he still has a bit of fitness with a solid 21st in 23.56.
Niamh O'Connor was our first lady home just outside the 27 min mark (by a mere 2 seconds!), Lorna was next and had a nice improvement from Ballintotis in 28.33. Conor launched his trademark sprint finish to keep Denis at bay and finished in 28.56 with Denis just behind in 29.18.
Cloyne 5 Mile:
The Cloyne 5 Mile is on this Thursday at 8pm sharp. It is being supported by East Cork AC so if you would like to race/help out etc please let Liam or Brian Harty know.
Wicklow Way Relay - May 25th, 2022
Follow the yellow man they say!
Where to start.. Firstly well done to all from the club that helped make this work. While this might not be a championship race or even an Athletics Ireland event (God forbid!) it is one of the few events that as a club we get big numbers together with a common purpose. The Wicklow Way Relay brings out all the best characteristics of East Cork AC. The race is long, hard, tricky to get right and needs a big team effort to pull off a result.
Luckily on our 3rd attempt we managed to have a clean race with nobody getting lost or missing the start. In the end we finished 2nd overall just behind Rathfarnham AC.
We had two route records on the day. Congrats to Kenneth on Leg 4 and Tim on Leg 7. There is comprehensive database on the IMRA site with course and route times over the years.
The Race itself:
The race started just outside Marlay Park at 7am on Saturday May 14th. Graham only 2 weeks after the Limerick marathon was on the first leg and completed it 62.02 in touching distance of the leaders in 5th position. Graham handed over to his marathon friend Donal who maintained the 5th position on the 2nd hardest leg of the route, a 15km mostly uphill run from Prince Williams Seat to Lough Tay carpark. Donal ran a decent 75.58. Fiona was on the third leg and luckily had reccied the route the night before as apparently there were some questionable junctions.... Fiona made up one place for the team and got us into 4th 12 minutes down on the leaders TT Racers. Kenneth over the years has owned leg 4 and this year proved no different. Kenneth blitzed his leg to get us into 2nd with only a 7 minute deficit on Rathfarnham with still more than half of the way to go.
Kevin was up next and ran a solid 61 mins up and over Mullacor to hand to Nicky still in 2nd place. Nicky during his reccie had assessed the route and knew the fastest way to go. He had a great run in 57 mins to claw back another few minutes on the leaders and then it was down to set loose our trump card Tim to see how much damage he could inflict on the longest leg of the course. A 21km leg with about 600m of climbing. Tim failed to disappoint. He had a 9 minute disadvantage when he took off from Iron Bridge and started as if he was running the Cloyne Commons 4k. At the 14km mark of his leg he had completely closed the 9 minutes and had 7km left to go. At the final handover point Tim had clawed us to first place with a buffer of 4 minutes. Tim ran the leg in 72.30 (a sickening 3.33 min/km) Annelise on the anchor leg had a tough task ahead of her as despite the lead, she was up against Laura McDonnell a 35min 10k runner. Annelise gave it everything to stay ahead but was passed on the very hilly road section coming into Shillelagh village, the finish of the race.
In the end we finished in a well deserved 2nd position in an very exciting tight race in 7 hours 34 minutes.
A huge thanks also goes out to Lavinia, Lorna and Eadaoin who supported during the race and volunteered for some car parking duties that was necessary. Eibhlin and Ger were a massive help too providing logistics on the day and keep a close eye on the splits and keep the whole crew aware of the race situation as it was unfolding. At one point Ger got so caught up in the event he thought we were competing in the Tour De France, as he was roaring in French out the car window. And last but not least a huge thanks to Rosemary Hutch for provide sponsorship towards the race entry fee too.
Hopefully we can get another team together again next year and give it another go.
Where to start.. Firstly well done to all from the club that helped make this work. While this might not be a championship race or even an Athletics Ireland event (God forbid!) it is one of the few events that as a club we get big numbers together with a common purpose. The Wicklow Way Relay brings out all the best characteristics of East Cork AC. The race is long, hard, tricky to get right and needs a big team effort to pull off a result.
Luckily on our 3rd attempt we managed to have a clean race with nobody getting lost or missing the start. In the end we finished 2nd overall just behind Rathfarnham AC.
We had two route records on the day. Congrats to Kenneth on Leg 4 and Tim on Leg 7. There is comprehensive database on the IMRA site with course and route times over the years.
The Race itself:
The race started just outside Marlay Park at 7am on Saturday May 14th. Graham only 2 weeks after the Limerick marathon was on the first leg and completed it 62.02 in touching distance of the leaders in 5th position. Graham handed over to his marathon friend Donal who maintained the 5th position on the 2nd hardest leg of the route, a 15km mostly uphill run from Prince Williams Seat to Lough Tay carpark. Donal ran a decent 75.58. Fiona was on the third leg and luckily had reccied the route the night before as apparently there were some questionable junctions.... Fiona made up one place for the team and got us into 4th 12 minutes down on the leaders TT Racers. Kenneth over the years has owned leg 4 and this year proved no different. Kenneth blitzed his leg to get us into 2nd with only a 7 minute deficit on Rathfarnham with still more than half of the way to go.
Kevin was up next and ran a solid 61 mins up and over Mullacor to hand to Nicky still in 2nd place. Nicky during his reccie had assessed the route and knew the fastest way to go. He had a great run in 57 mins to claw back another few minutes on the leaders and then it was down to set loose our trump card Tim to see how much damage he could inflict on the longest leg of the course. A 21km leg with about 600m of climbing. Tim failed to disappoint. He had a 9 minute disadvantage when he took off from Iron Bridge and started as if he was running the Cloyne Commons 4k. At the 14km mark of his leg he had completely closed the 9 minutes and had 7km left to go. At the final handover point Tim had clawed us to first place with a buffer of 4 minutes. Tim ran the leg in 72.30 (a sickening 3.33 min/km) Annelise on the anchor leg had a tough task ahead of her as despite the lead, she was up against Laura McDonnell a 35min 10k runner. Annelise gave it everything to stay ahead but was passed on the very hilly road section coming into Shillelagh village, the finish of the race.
In the end we finished in a well deserved 2nd position in an very exciting tight race in 7 hours 34 minutes.
A huge thanks also goes out to Lavinia, Lorna and Eadaoin who supported during the race and volunteered for some car parking duties that was necessary. Eibhlin and Ger were a massive help too providing logistics on the day and keep a close eye on the splits and keep the whole crew aware of the race situation as it was unfolding. At one point Ger got so caught up in the event he thought we were competing in the Tour De France, as he was roaring in French out the car window. And last but not least a huge thanks to Rosemary Hutch for provide sponsorship towards the race entry fee too.
Hopefully we can get another team together again next year and give it another go.
National M40 Record (Deja Vu), National League and Road Races - May 25th, 202
National Road M40 5k Record:
Micheal had a sense of history correcting itself where he reclaimed the national M40 road record that was cruelly taken away from him after Kilkenny when they realised the course was 50m short course. In another top quality field Michael was 3rd home in 14.20. Congrats again Michael and well deserved.
MTU and National League Round 1:
Paul raced in the MTU Day 2 in the 1500m. Paul had a solid run in 4.04 for 7th.
Paul also represented the East Cork division in the 800m at the National League in Templemore, where he ran another sub 2 (1.59:67) for 4th. Matt stepped up after his holidays to run the 5000m. He was also 4th in 16.45.
Frank ran in the Watford Open in the UK. He won his 800m race in a new PB of 1.57:46.
Road Races:
Again the summer season of road racing is hectic this year. We had a good few race the Cheetah Run 5k (organised by Eagle AC). Nicky had a solid run for 4th in 16.05. Ger Lynch was next in 20.54. Lorna reversed the result from Ballintotis and pipped Conor by 7 seconds this time finishing in 22.10. Eibhlin ran 27.38 but would have finished faster if she wasn't too distracted by the animals along the very scenic route.
The John Buckley 5k was also on last week. Usually a well organised fast race and this year didn't disappoint again. Donal ran 17.08 for 35th, Stephen 17.40 for 47th and Avril ran a huge PB of 21.27 for 206th.
Micheal had a sense of history correcting itself where he reclaimed the national M40 road record that was cruelly taken away from him after Kilkenny when they realised the course was 50m short course. In another top quality field Michael was 3rd home in 14.20. Congrats again Michael and well deserved.
MTU and National League Round 1:
Paul raced in the MTU Day 2 in the 1500m. Paul had a solid run in 4.04 for 7th.
Paul also represented the East Cork division in the 800m at the National League in Templemore, where he ran another sub 2 (1.59:67) for 4th. Matt stepped up after his holidays to run the 5000m. He was also 4th in 16.45.
Frank ran in the Watford Open in the UK. He won his 800m race in a new PB of 1.57:46.
Road Races:
Again the summer season of road racing is hectic this year. We had a good few race the Cheetah Run 5k (organised by Eagle AC). Nicky had a solid run for 4th in 16.05. Ger Lynch was next in 20.54. Lorna reversed the result from Ballintotis and pipped Conor by 7 seconds this time finishing in 22.10. Eibhlin ran 27.38 but would have finished faster if she wasn't too distracted by the animals along the very scenic route.
The John Buckley 5k was also on last week. Usually a well organised fast race and this year didn't disappoint again. Donal ran 17.08 for 35th, Stephen 17.40 for 47th and Avril ran a huge PB of 21.27 for 206th.
Munster and National Medals - A compilation by James McCarthy and Denis McCarthy
James and Denis have spent a lot of time and effort compiling results from Munster and National championships from the start of time (well 1986). It is very well put together and shows the success the club has had over the years. Thanks to both for this. It might be a trip down memory lane for some people or a source of inspiration to others!
There are one of two gaps that perhaps you might be able to help with. Mainly these are:
- 1989: National Road Relays 3rd team - Missing 3 members of the team.
- 1991: Intermediate Cross Country 2nd team - Missing one member of the scoring team.
- 1996: Munster Cross Country Junior Men 3rd team - All missing!
- 2000: Munster Cross Country Junior Men 3rd team - 2 missing
One wonders if we will have a junior mens or womens team compete again in the near future..
The file can be downloaded below and is also saved in the Club Records section.
There are one of two gaps that perhaps you might be able to help with. Mainly these are:
- 1989: National Road Relays 3rd team - Missing 3 members of the team.
- 1991: Intermediate Cross Country 2nd team - Missing one member of the scoring team.
- 1996: Munster Cross Country Junior Men 3rd team - All missing!
- 2000: Munster Cross Country Junior Men 3rd team - 2 missing
One wonders if we will have a junior mens or womens team compete again in the near future..
The file can be downloaded below and is also saved in the Club Records section.
| east_cork_medal_winners_1986-2018.docx |
