Championship record set by Ardee rookie
A COUNTY championship record for high jump rookie James Maguire was the highlight for the Ardee & District club at the Louth Track & Field Championships.
The competition began on the Friday evening with a short trip to the Lourdes Stadium in Drogheda where the Under-12 to Under-19 athletes had most of their field events and the hurdles on the track. Although there was a strong east wind there was also early evening sunshine, making conditions pleasant enough for both athletes and spectators.
Ardee performed best in the high jump competitions where four of their five athletes won gold.
New to this discipline was James Maguire, competing in the Under-13 competition, and proving to have a great spring in his legs he not only achieved a new PB but also a new county championship record by 4cm.
Easing his way over the heights, James secured the gold medal with the bar at 1.35m, but with power left in his legs he raised the bar twice more to clear a height of 1.40m. James claimed a second gold the same evening by winning the U-13 60m hurdles.
U-15 athlete Aoibheann Carolan also claimed gold in the high jump as well as achieving a new PB, and on the track Aoibheannn just missed out on a medal by finishing her race in fourth position.
Next to top the podium was Abbie Sheridan in the Girls U-15 high jump. She also won silver in the long jump with a new PB of 4.86m.
The fourth high jump gold was awarded to Conor McMahon who competed out of age in the Boys U-19 and matched his PB of 1.75m. Conor won a second gold in the long jump.
In the Girls U-13 60m hurdles Hallie Sands got her championship campaign off to a flying start with a gold medal, with Orlaith Carolan in fifth place. In the U-13 javelin Orlaith made the podium when she finished second.
Tara McGuinness also moved up an age to compete in the Girls U-19 events and came third in the long jump.
In the Girls U-13 high jump Ava McNally jumped a mere 4cm less than the winner, but with four girls in contention for a medal she had to settle for fourth place after the referees completed their countback.
On the Saturday and Sunday more fine weather was promised, so with suncream and wind-breakers packed the troops headed to Bush for the second and third days.
The U-9 to U-11 age groups had all their events on Saturday and Fintan Kelly topped the podium in the U-9 turbo javelin, ahead of Matthew McCormick who competed well. Jessica McCarron threw well in the Girls U-9 turbo javelin, finishing third, while Lilly Breen won bronze in the U-9 long jump.
Ashyn Motharim topped the podium in the Boys U-10 turbo javelin, with Tom Maguire standing to his left on the podium in second place. Tom Maguire came through heats and a semi-final to finish second in the 60m sprint.
In the U-10 long jump Callum Caffery stepped up for second place, with Tom Maguire 4th, Senan Lundon 5th and Dylan McCarron and Arthur Sands not far behind.
Caoimhe Carolan was the sole competitor for Ardee & District in the Girls U-10 events and won gold in the turbo javelin.
In the U-11 boys Jack Dowdall was the top sprinter in the county, winning gold in the 80m, and won a second gold in the long jump, with Tadhg Caffery standing to his right on the podium in third place. Jack and Tadhg then joined forces with Charlie Sands and Cormac Lundon for the U-10 4x100m relay and received a bronze medal.
In the Girls U-11 Amy Murray and Katie Sands competed well in the highly contested sprint, making it into the final. Paulina Kelly and Sarah Lynch joined Amy and Katie for the u11 4x100m relay and just missed out on the medals, finishing fourth in the final.
Sunday was a most enjoyable day at the track for the spectators, as with the east wind no longer blowing the coats were off and the suncream and sunglasses were on.
Kya Motharim got proceedings off to a great start in the girls u12 shot. With a great sequence of throws Kya stuck her claim to a silver medal, a feat matched by Rob Kelly in the boys equivalent, with Callum McCormick competing well also.
Friday’s high jump and hurdles hero James Maguire added to his medal tally on Saturday and Sunday. Easing his way into the final of the u13 80m he added a 3rd gold, and then came the long jump where he added a massive 38cm to the previous championship best of 4.45m.
After winning four golds and setting two championship records, he is perhaps one to watch in the future.
Hallie Sands, fresh from her hurdles win, added to her medal haul with a second gold in the u13 long jump, a silver in the 80m and bronze in the 800m. Orlaith Carolan finished 2nd in the u13 shot and Ava McNally duly stood up for her 3rd place in the u13 shot. The u13 girls, along with Samantha McCarron and Ruth Gillespie, stormed the 4x100m relay in a tight finish for 3rd place.
The shot was the event for the u14 girls which saw Isobelle Delaney on the left of the podium in 2nd and Eireann Hoey on the right in 3rd, with Rebecca McCarron 4th and Charlotte Osborn right behind.
The medal haul continued when Aoibheann Carolan added a bronze in the u15 shot. Emma Gillespie earned silver in the 800m and went one better in the long jump. Jumping a new PB of 4.43m was enough for Emma to secure the gold. Sian Motharim narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing 4th in the u15 shot.
With a gold and silver under her belt from Friday night Abbie Sheridan added a further two golds to her championship tally, winning the u15 800m on Saturday and the 1500m on Sunday.
More athletes to add to their medals won on Friday were u18s Conor McMahon and Tara McGuinness. Both Conor and Tara moved up an age to compete in the u19 events. Conor earned silver in the 100m and went one better on Sunday to claim gold in the 200m. Tara raced twice around the track to finish 3rd in the 800m.