FABULOUS FIONA
Kilmore athlete wins All-Ireland cross country crown
KILMORE athlete Fiona Kehoe blitzed her rivals to win the All-Ireland Novice cross country crown in Dundalk IT over the weekend.
Fiona bagged her biggest success in athletics as she destroyed a top class field, dominating her rivals from the starting gun, with what seasoned observers described as a devastating run.
Having taken an early lead, she went on to dominate the race, leaving many frustrating runners in her wake, who were unable to step up to the challenge laid down by the South Wexford athlete.
Having kicked off the race she stretched out in front, brilliantly racking up the yards, leaving it a very lengthy race for some fancied runners who had to be content to remain in the chasing pack.
This is the first individual win for many, many years, in national cross country for any Wexford adult athlete.
This follows on from her impressive silver medal in the Leinster senior cross-country.
So, it’s Fiona (Kehoe) who has brought middle distance running and cross country back to the fore in the club, having recorded so much success during her career.
It helps maintain a tradition for Kilmore Athletic Club, the seeds for such success being laid some 70 years ago, when the club was formed, with many star athletes coming through in the intervening years.
In the juvenile events, Con Mernagh (DMP) was 12th in Under-11, in the process scoring on the Leinster team.
The Boys Under-13 cross-country finished in second place, as did the United Striders Under-13 club team.
Two further United Striders runners also performed excellently. Myles Hewitt finished 11th, while Aidan Shannon, ran a fantastic race to take fourth spot in the Under-13, while both also won Leinster individual medals.
Wexford athletes have been in sparkling form this season.
These are a brilliant set of results to take into the festive season, leaving the athletes to look forward to further success in 2017.