Mighty run from Myles
Striders athlete secures gold medal in Navan
ARCTIC WINDS blew across Navan on Saturday for the first of the Leinster Juvenile cross-country days with races from Under-12 to Under-18. The programme also included the Leinster Novice championships.
The well-designed course had two adjoining 1k loops, one containing plenty of twists and turns and a good mix of low gradient ascents and descents, the other flat with plenty of opportunities for fast running.
The programme opened with Under-10 non-championship races. Lea Bolger of Bree ran a great race to take fourth place, and a medal. A little tailwind to push her along and she would have been a place higher.
Clubmate Jayden Kenny was in a class of his own as he won the boys’ race. Enda Byrne (S.B.R.), in ninth place, also medalled.
Enniscorthy’s Sarah Phylan looked strong throughout a tough girls’ Under-12 1,000m race, finishing in a good eighth place. She will compete on the Leinster team at the All-Irelands.
Other Wexford placings: 19, Aoife Walsh (D.M.P.); 23, Éabha Keane (D.M.P.); 47, Layla Stafford (D.M.P.); 65, Sarah O’Mahony; 69, Katie Foley (Kilmore); 85, Nicole Lageu (D.M.P.); 96, Heather Costello (U.S.).
In the boys’ Under-12 race, Kevin O’Mahony (D.M.P.) finished in seventh place in a very competitive race which had a huge field. Like Sarah, he makes the Leinster team for the nationals.
Other Wexford placings: 36, Ronan Shannon (U.S.); 40, Eoin Hannon (U.S.); 66, Tadhg O’Leary (D.M.P.); 73, Sam Myers (U.S.); 81, Keelan Ryan (U.S.).
First Wexford finisher in the girls’ U1nder-4 race was Kate O’Flaherty (Kilmore) in 42nd.
Other Wexford placings: 63, Orlaith Byrne (S.B.R.); 66, Arwyn Thompson (Kilmore); 71, Ellie O’Mahony; 75, Emma Cullen (D.M.P.); 76, Freya Thompson (Kilmore); 81, Isabel Bawden (U.S.); 83, Mary Rowe (D.M.P.); 86, Danielle Stone (D.M.P.).
The boys’ Under-14 3,000m race was one of the best of the day. Wexford’s main hopes were pinned on the slight frame of Myles Hewlett of United Striders. Myles looked very impressive when taking the Under-15 county title recently at JFK Park and the Under-14 title a couple of weeks earlier in Davidstown.
From the gun, Myles was one of a breakaway group of three which also included Luke Duffy (Tullamore Harriers) and Diarmuid Fagan (Mullingar Harriers). The Striders lad tested his opponents with his relentless surging pace.
One km into the race he used one of the deceptively tough ascents to open a small gap, with only Duffy able to react and limit the margin to ten metres or so, making it a two-horse race.
Out onto the outer 1k loop and Myles moved up a gear to stretch his lead. He maintained this pace all the way up the punishing home straight to take a comprehensive win ahead of Duffy in second and Fagan in third.
Eoin Shannon, also of United Striders, came through strongly in the latter half of the race to take twelfth spot, one place ahead of clubmate Cosmo Hewlett. In the process he secured for himself a place on the Leinster team.
Indeed, Striders’ strength in depth meant that they had four in the top 20 with Finbarr Kelly in 17th place. It was no surprise, therefore, that they took the team title, on 43 points, ahead of Mullingar Harriers (59) and St. Abban’s (96).
Wexford, with 114 points, took the county team title ahead of Westmeath (124) and Kildare (141). The scoring six, with the four mentioned above, included James Hegarty (D.M.P.) 27th and Seán Lennon (U.S.) 49th.
Other Wexford placings: 50, Ben Myers (U.S.); 59, Alex Lafferty (D.M.P.); 62, Caolan Costello (U.S.); 68, Tommaso Hickey (U.S.).
D.M.P’s Claragh Keane gave Wexford fans further reason for cheer as she settled in with the early leaders in the girls’ Under-16 4,000m race. Running with great ease, she stayed out of the battle at the head of the field between Hannah Kehoe (Gowran) and Ava O’Connor (Tullamore Harriers).
With 1,000m remaining she looked like she was contemplating an assault on the duo who, at this point, had a 30+ metre lead. Around the outer loop, into the home straight, it looked like it was all settled with Hannah in front, Ava chasing and Claragh in a reasonably safe third place ahead of the talented Thomastown girl, Aine Kirwan.
Of course, one should know better than to count one’s chickens when the home straight is also a long dragging ascent. Heartbreak Hill! As Hannah lost momentum with victory in sight, so the wily Ava rallied and tore past her to take the win.
And as Claragh dug deep in search of hidden reserves, the leggy Thomastown girl came from a good ways back to firstly close her down and then nip past in the final metres to take the bronze. What a race!
In a top-class field, Claragh showed that she can mix it with the best. They will certainly know who she is at the All-Irelands next month. The only other Wexford competitor in the race was Ciara Dolan of Menapians who finished in 46th place.
The boys’ Under-16 4,000m race saw not one, but two, Wexford athletes chasing a podium place. When Ben Wall of United Striders and Joe Byrne of S.B.R. met in the county championships, Ben came out on top.
Who would cope best with this up and down course and its combination of fast stretches and killer hills, not to mention the big step-up in standard? From the start the pair were very much to the fore, not leading but covering, and ever-threatening.
In the final quarter, on the fast outer 1,000m loop, Tadhg Connolly of St. Senan’s took off with Ronan Hyland (Tullamore Harriers) the only one to try to stay in contact, albeit to no avail.
The two Wexford boys and Oisín Farrell of St. Coca’s were a little further back. Ben and Oisín broke away from Joe with ‘ Heartbreak Hill’ drawing ever nearer.
With Tadhg appearing to grow in strength as the race progressed, he was never going to be caught. He galloped on to take the win ahead of Hyland who stayed on for the silver.
But who would take the bronze? Joe worked hard to successfully get back up to the pair ahead of him and, with 50 metres to go, it was impossible to call it.
The tall St. Coca’s boy magicked up a devastating sprint to get ahead and take the third spot, with Joe following in his slipstream for fourth and Ben in fifth. These Wexford athletes were giving the audience value for money!
Adam O’Connor (U.S.) came through in fine style to take twelfth spot and the final place on the Leinster team. Aidan Shannon (U.S.) finished very strongly in 19th place.
United Striders took their second team gold, with the inclusion of fourth scorer Robert Wall’s 29th place giving them 65 points, ahead of Mullingar Harriers (78) and Ratoath (123).
Wexford also picked up its second set of gold team medals, well ahead of Louth in second and Kildare in third.
Other Wexford placings (with the first two listed part of the winning county team of six): 28, Ronan Griffin (D.M.P.); 29, Robert Wall (U.S.); 60, Cian Doyle (Kilmore); 61, Senan Murphy (Kilmore); 64, Oisín Mac Eochaidh (U.S.).
Wexford had two representatives, both of United Striders, in the girls’ Under-18 race: Grace Costello placed 34th and Rebecca Bawden 38th.
In the men’s 6,000m Junior race, Aedan Rogers (U.S.) was moving very sweetly in third place when he was forced to drop out through injury.
In the Under-18 race, run off with the Juniors, Conor Keane (D.M.P.) placed 41st and Rory Cassidy (Kilmore) 60th.
In the Novice women’s 4,000m race, Katie Wilson (D.M.P.) placed 45th, Christine Stone (D.M.P.) 74th, and Jennifer Higgins (St. Paul’s) 83rd.
First Wexford athletes across the line in the men’s Novice 6,000m race were the United Striders duo of Alan O’Connor (24th) and Brendan Lyng (25th).
Other placings: 39, George Delaney (U.S.); 45, John Stone (D.M.P.); 71, Pat Murray (U.S.); 85, Michael O’Flaherty (Kilmore); 98, Fabian Flood (U.S.).
The next Leinster Development Squad coaching day takes place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on November 10 at Morton Stadium, Santry. The event is open to all athletes aged twelve years and over. Athletes need not pre-register. Simply check in on the day. Cost: €5 per athlete.
The next Performance Squad coaching day takes place at the same venue and on the same date from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.. The Performance Squad is for selected athletes only from the Under-16 to Under-19 age groups (2018 age groups).
Athletes are selected from the Leinster indoors, outdoors and schools track and field competitions. Those selected should register and pay online (€25) on the Athletics Ireland website by November 8, indicating their preferred event group.
The fee includes a snazzy squad T-shirt. A list of selected athletes can be found on the A.I. website.
Ciara Wilson of D.M.P. and Performance Science Ireland competed as a member of the Ireland elite team at the European duathlon championships in Santa Eulalia, Ibiza, recently. The event, which took place in the centre of Passeig de S’Alamera, consisted of a 10k run, a 40k bike and a 5k run.
In the 10k, Ciara had two Spanish athletes for company over the first 5,000m. The Spaniards then pushed on as Ciara wanted to stick to her more conservative pre-planned race pace.
Away then on the bike around the first of eight 4.6k loops, Ciara had to work just to stay in contention. She biked strongly to stay on the same lap as the leader throughout, this being a prerequisite to being permitted to complete the race.
On the final 5k run, Ciara gave it everything, crossing the line in ninth place. This was a fine result given she faced such a competitive field, one consisting of multiple European and World champions.
The Europeans capped off a fantastic year for the Wexford girl, one in which she competed with distinction at the world duathlon championships in Denmark, won the Triathlon Ireland national duathlon series, and claimed silver at the Triathlon Ireland national duathlon championships. She also won the University duathlon title and placed second in the University triathlon championships.
Ciara heaped praise on her coach at D.M.P., former international and current Wexford Senior Competition Secretary, John Joe Doyle, for helping her to build strength over the years.
Fixtures: November 3, schools combined events international, Glasgow; November 11, Leinster Juvenile cross-country (uneven ages), Adamstown, hosted by Adamstown A.C. and Wexford County Board; November 25, Irish Life Health Senior, Junior and Juvenile (Under-12 to Under-18) cross-country, National Sports Campus, Abbotstown.