McDermott and co on form at Irish Masters

THERE were some masterful displays from the Sligo AC contingent in the Irish Masters Indoor Championships held in Athlone. Masters legend John McDermott narrowly missed out on a treble in the M70 when finishing second in the 60m in 9.07 behind Brendan Dennehy ( Rising Sun) who won in 8.88. John went on to win the 200m in 30.07 and the 400m in 67.08.

In the M35 800m Dermot McDermott claimed his first Masters title by winning in 2: 03. Dermot led from gun to tape to claim a thrilling victory over Drogheda’s Kieran McGrath.

Another Master athlete used to success is M45 Kevin McGloin. The 1500m saw him finish 2nd in a thrilling sprint finish in which his 4: 27 just edged out Derry’s Cathal McLoughlin. Enda Whelan performed brilliantly in the M65. Enda claimed 3 bronze medals by running 6: 38 in the 1500m, 13: 11 in the 3000m and 3: 18 in the 800m.

Well done also to debutants James Callaghan and Ultan McNasser. James finished 7th in the 1500m with 4: 32 while Ultan was 7th in the 3000m with 10: 09.

In the Longford 10k, Sligo AC runners Gerry Gilmartin, Richard Gorman and Brendan McCarrick were competing. Gerry ran a PB of 41: 44 as did Brendan with 47: 15. Meanwhile Richard made a welcome return to competitive racing and was the overall winner in 33: 17.