News

Darragh McElhinney Selected to Represent Europe - January 2019

Bantry AC's Darragh McElhinney Selected on European U20 Mixed Relay Team

Stirling, Scotland

Saturday January 12th 2019

Darragh McElhinney - Photo: Irish Examiner

Darragh McElhinney, Bantry AC, has been selected to represent Europe on the Under-20 Mixed-Relay team, at next month's Simplyhealth Great Stirling XCountry, in Stirling, Scotland. Darragh's selection comes following his fine performance at last Sunday's European Cross-Country Championships, in Tilburg, Netherlands.  The event moves to Stirling next year, having been held in Edinburgh for many years.

European Team for Stirling 2019

European Athletics Press Release

Seven individual medallists from the recent SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Tilburg have been named on Team Europe for the Simplyhealth Great Stirling XCountry, a European Athletics Cross Country Permit Meeting, on 12th January next.

The event which was previously staged in Edinburgh, will be held in the beautiful city of Stirling for the first time in 2019. Set against the impressive backdrop of Stirling Castle, the event will feature some of the world’s best athletes battling it out across challenging terrain.

World class runners from Great Britain & Northern Ireland, Team Europe and Team USA will compete across a variety of disciplines for the overall title. The event is completely free to spectate, and will be shown live on the day, on BBC Sport, from 1:15pm to 3:15pm. For more information, visit greatrun.org/xcountry

Team Europe ran out victorious, in Edinburgh, last January, and there will be particularly high hopes of an individual victory in the senior men’s 8km. The European team features four of the top eight finishers from Tilburg, including silver and bronze medallists Isaac Kimeli, (Belgium), and Aras Kaya (Turkey) - the latter also finishing third in Edinburgh, last January.

Fifth and eighth respectively, Sweden’s Napoleon Solomon and Spain’s Adel Mechaal have also been named on Team Europe, while silver and bronze medallists in the U23 race in Tilburg, Samuel Fitwi (Germany) and Hugo Hay (France) will join their senior counterparts.

The senior women’s 6km team is led by the recently crowned European U23 cross country champion Anna Emilie Moller who picked up Denmark’s second-ever gold medal in SPAR European Cross Country Championships history in Tilburg.

Moller is joined by silver medallist Anna Gehring, while her German teammate, Elena Burkard, who finished sixth in Tilburg, is the highest finisher from the senior race to be named on the team. Poland’s Anna Gosk has also been called up, with two more places yet to be confirmed.  

In a change to the match programme, the mixed relay - two men and two women - will be a scoring event for the first time, and will conclude the match. Team Europe will be represented by the gold medal-winning Spanish quartet from Tilburg - Saul Ordonez, Esther Guerrero, Victor Ruiz and Solange Pereira - although the British team will be strengthened by the inclusion of Laura Muir to their ranks.

Muir will make her season’s debut in Stirling, on the road to the Glasgow 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships, which will be held from 1st to 3rd March 2019.

Meanwhile, the U20 quartet representing Team Europe is headed by European U20 3000m champion Delia Sclabas (Switzerland), also the silver medallist in the U20 race in Tilburg. She is joined by teammate Sibylle Haring, France’s Valentin Bresc and Ireland’s Darragh McElhinney

Darragh McElhinney, at the start of last Sunday's European Under-20 Men's Cross-Country Championship race in Tilburg

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Cork City Sports Athlete of the Month July 2016 Darragh McElhinney

Cork Athletics - Events Week Ending Sunday December 16th 2018

Registered Cork Athletics Races & Events for Week Ending Sunday December 16th 2018

 

Saturday December 15th, 11:30am, Navan, Co. Meath - Athletics Ireland National Novice and Juvenile Uneven Age Cross-Country Championships 2018		Sunday December 16th, 9:30am, Cloyne - Cloyne Commons 4k Road Race Series - Race 2 2018/19	Sunday December 16th, 1pm, Newmarket - Newmarket Christmas Classic 5k

This Week: National Novice & Juvenile UnEven Age XC Chps, Cloyne Commons 4k Series Race 2 & Newmarket Christmas Classic 5k

Cork Athletics Race Calendar

Comprehensive Calendar of Registered Athletics Ireland events in Cork

Results of Athletics Ireland Registered Events - April 2014 - May 2016 (on Old Cork Athletics website)

Results of Athletics Ireland Registered Events - May 2016 to date

Cork Events This Week

Saturday December 15th, 11:30am, Navan, Co. Meath - Athletics Ireland National Novice and Juvenile Uneven Age Cross-Country Championships 2018

Sunday December 16th, 9:30am, Cloyne - Cloyne Commons 4k Road Race Series - Race 2 2018/19

Sunday December 16th, 1pm, Newmarket - Newmarket Christmas Classic 5k Road Race 2018

National Events

Saturday December 15th, Navan - Athletics Ireland National Novice and Juvenile Uneven Age Cross-Country Championships 2018

Online Registrations

The Following Races currently have Online Entry or Online Registration open:
If your event is missing, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Newmarket Classic 5km, Sunday December 16th

Dick Copithorne Memorial 4 Mile, Wednesday December 26th

Togher AC Ryan's Supervalu 5km, Sunday December 30th

Kinsale 10 mile Road Race 2019, Sunday February 24th

Duhallow 10 Mile Road Race 2019, Newmarket, Sunday March 10th

Mallow 10 Mile Road Race, Sunday March 24th

Sonia O'Sullivan Great Island 10, Cobh, Sunday 9th April

Cork City Marathon, Sunday 2nd June

Final Cork Team Selections for Athletics Ireland National Junior and Juvenile Uneven-Age Cross-Country Championships 2018

Cork Athletics Squads for National Junior & Juvenile UnEven-Age Cross-Country Championships

Navan Racecourse, Navan, Co. Meath

Saturday December 15th 2018

 

NB This Event is on a SATURDAY

 The following athletes have been selected for Cork Teams at Athletics Ireland National Junior & Juvenile Uneven-Age Cross-Country Championships 2018

If your availability changes, please notify Team Manager Mary Meagher IMMEDIATELY

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 0872966298

Please bring your own safety pins.

Please check in Cork Athletics County Team Manager 90 minutes before your race, and collect your singlet.

Singlets may be purchased for €15 each, but must be ordered by 7th December

 

Novice Teams

Please note that this event is on Saturday 15th December

Update December 6th - National Marathon Entries 2019

Athletics Ireland National Marathon Entries 2019

Dublin

Sunday October 27th 2019

Update 4pm, Thursday December 6th

As of 4pm today, Thursday December 6th, over 18,500 of the 20,000 places available for next October's event have been sold.
There are less than 1,500 places left, all at €90. Entries are coming in at approx 500 per day. At this rate the event will sell out on  Saturday or Sunday next



On Thursday November 8th, entries had already reached 10,725. Having exceeded the €80 entry fee threshold of 14,000, a further rush of entries has come in, with around 300 to 400 entries coming in each day.

By November 28th, 15,800 places were gone

On Tuesday December 4th, there were 2,750 places left. Following features on the 'Marathon Frenzy', in some of today's newspapers, there has been a flood of entries. The Marathon office said, on Wednesday last, December 5th, "This will probably sell out well before Monday!"

Enter KBC Dublin Marathon 2019

20,000 Limit

There is a cap of 20,000 on entries, and there is NO separate entry facility for Athletics Ireland National Marathon entry

This is critical for anyone thinking of entering the Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship.  In short, when the 20,000 limit is reached, That's It!! ...except ONLY for ELITES. There are no reserved places for Athletics Ireland members. If you miss out on the 20,000 limit, there is no 'back-door', unless you're lucky enough to be of Elite Status

NB: To reiterate....There is NO LATE ENTRY Dispensation for Athletics Ireland National Marathon entries

Runners competing in the Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship MUST enter in the normal fashion, the same as everyone else.  So, when entries close, that's it..... unless you're an elite athlete.

Elite Athlete Times

If you are an athlete with proven times in the above ranges, you should be ok for Late Entry...BUT, it's you're gamble as to wait or not!

Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship

Entry for the Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship is not yet open. All National Marathon Championship entrants MUST have already entered for the Marathon via the normal route, as above.  The Championship entry form will appear on the Athletics Ireland website .....probably months down the road!

Second Chance - If you're lucky!

In an article on "The explosive growth of the Dublin Marathon", by Lindie Naughten, on FastRunning, Dublin Marathon Race Director, Jim Aughney revealed that there will be an option for those who are unable to run to hand back their place. These 'returned' places will then go back on re-sale at a later stage. Details of the Return & Resale have yet to be finalised, but more information is expected early in the New Year.

Almost 90% of the 18,500 places gone so far have been to Irish participants, with just over 2,000 entries from abroad. This will undoubtably cause some headaches for the Marathon organisers, as a significant part of the growth in numbers in recent years has been fueled by entrants from abroad. If these athletes are unable to enter, it may stem the tide of entries from that quarter, resulting in a Sport-Tourism fall-off, possibly making the event less attractive to some sponsors.  I don't envey the organisers predicament in trying to resolve that issue - If they make more places available to participants from abroad, there may be complaints from Irish athletes who may miss out

Jim Aughney's Comments on Entry Refunds and Number Re-Sale

“We have changed a few things for next year,” he says. “If people enter now and then find they can’t run for any reason, we will give them their money back taking only a small administration fee. We will then open up entry again with those numbers.

“But we will have a cut-off date since we need to give people taking up the extra numbers time to train. It can’t be as late as September since we also have to order t-shirts and medals. We will decide on a cut-off date no later than January.”

Cork Athletics Registration Figures - November 30th 2018

Record Cork Athletics Registration Figures - November 30th 2018

November end-of-month registrations for Cork Athletics stand at 8,454, a new registrations record for Cork, surpassing the 2017 year-end figure of 8,264, with a month yet to go until the end of the year. However, given that we're now in the last month of the year, it's unlikely that there will be more than a handful registered during December.

 

Fifty six of Cork's fifty seven registered clubs registered athletes during 2018. Of all registered clubs, only Ballinacurra Villagers AC have failed to register a single athlete - and the club registered just a single athlete in 2017, so that club's future as an Athletics Ireland registered club looks to be in severe doubt.

Clubs are reminded that, even though most of the year has passed, all new members MUST be registered, or they will NOT be covered by Athletics Ireland insurance

Any athlete, coach, official, or any member acting in any capacity, who remains unregistered is NOT covered by Athletics Irelands insurance, for ANY purpose whatsoever, including training and/or competition.

The 2019 Registration facility is likely to open later this month

National Standings

Athletics Ireland are likely to issue the November end-of-month National registration figures in the coming days. Standing of Cork clubs in the various Top 50 National standings will be added to this page

Overall Registrations as at November 30th 2018

Leevale AC and Bandon AC head the table, both clubs exceeding the 600 mark, leading the other clubs by a significant distance. Five clubs: Togher AC, Ballymore Cobh AC, Midleton AC, Youghal AC and North Cork AC all have over 300 registered members.

A total of sixeen (16) clubs have over 200 registrations, while a further twelve (12) clubs have now exceeded 100 registered members, making a total of 28 clubs with 100 or more registerd members, so 50% of registered clubs currently have more than 100 registered members.

28 Largest Clubs, by Total Registered Members

Remaining 28 Clubs, by Total Registered Members

Total Registrations for Cork Clubs November 30th 2018

Juvenile/Junior Registrations as at November 30th 2018

Leevale AC, on 499, lead the table, marginally ahead of Bandon AC, on 473, while both clubs have of whom still have over double the Juvenile/Junior membership of third-placed North Cork AC, on 236, with Belgooly AC a further 12 behind.

Leading Cork Juvenile Clubs

Senior/Master Registrations as at November 30th 2018

Mallow AC have almost 50% more Registered Seniors & Masters than nearest rivals, Leevale AC, with Togher AC leapfroging Eagle AC since last month, while Midleton AC also swapped places with Ballymore-Cobh AC.

Top 28 Adult Registrations by Club - November 30th 2018

Next 28 Adult Registrations by Club - November 30th 2018

Senior Registrations as at November 30th 2018

Leevale AC surpass all others at the head of the Senior table, with 77 Seniors. New club Doneraile AC remain in clear second place, with 49 Senior members, behind Leevale AC. Togher AC come next, with with 39, followed by Mallow AC (30) and Bandon AC (30)

 Top 26 Senior Registrations by Club - November 30th 2018

Masters Registrations as at November 30th 2018

Mallow AC are way ahead of the rest of the field, with 237 Masters registrations. Eagle AC and Midleton AC have 163 and 154 respectively. Ballymore-Cobh AC and Togher AC follow next, while a total of 14 clubs top the 100 mark.

Top 28 Masters Registrations by Club - November 30th 2018

Cork Athletics - Events Week Ending Sunday December 9th 2018

Registered Cork Athletics Races & Events for Week Ending Sunday December 9th 2018

 

Friday December 7th, 1pm, Cork Athletics Grounds, Riverstick - South Munster Schools Cross-Country Champonships		Friday December 7th, 8pm, Clonakilty - Clonakilty Waterfront Marathon's Seminar with Catherina McKiernan	Saturday December 8th, 9am, Clonakilty - Clonakilty Waterfront Marathon, Half-Marathon & 10k	Cork Athletics CYDI & Winter Coaching Sessions	East Cork Division Cross-Country Championships Day 2

This Week: CYDI & Winter Coaching Sessions, South Munster Schools XC Chps, Clonakilty Waterfront Marathon, HM, 10k & Catherina McKiernan Seminar, East Cork XC Chps & National 20k & 30k Walks Chps 

Cork Athletics Race Calendar

Comprehensive Calendar of Registered Athletics Ireland events in Cork

Results of Athletics Ireland Registered Events - April 2014 - May 2016 (on Old Cork Athletics website)

Results of Athletics Ireland Registered Events - May 2016 to date

Cork Events This Week

Friday December 7th, 1pm, Riverstick - Cork Schools Cross-Country Championship

Friday December 7th, 8pm, Clonakilty - Clonakilty Waterfront Marathon's Seminar with Catherina McKiernan

Saturday December 8th, 9am, Clonakilty - Clonakilty Waterfront Marathon, Half-Marathon & 10k

Saturday December 8th, 1pm, CIT Track - Cork Youth Development Initiative - CYDI

Saturday December 8th, 2:30pm, CIT Track - Cork Athletics Winter Coaching Series

Sunday December 9th, 11:30am,  Kart World, Watergrasshill - East Cork Cross-Country Championships Day 2

NB: CANCELLED - West Cork Cross-Country Championships Day 2

National Events

Saturday December 8th, Dublin - Athletics Ireland National 20k and 30k Walks Championships

International Events

Sunday December 9th,Tilburg, Netherlands - SPAR European XC Championships 2018

Online Registrations

The Following Races currently have Online Entry or Online Registration open:
If your event is missing, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Clonakilty Waterfront Marathon, Half-Marathon & 10k, Saturday December 8th 

Newmarket Classic 5km, Sunday December 16th

Dick Copithorne Memorial 4 Mile, Wednesday December 26th

Togher AC Ryan's Supervalu 5km, Sunday December 30th

Kinsale 10 mile Road Race 2019, Sunday February 24th

Duhallow 10 Mile Road Race 2019, Newmarket, Sunday March 10th

Mallow 10 Mile Road Race, Sunday March 24th
Entries Open 4am Friday December 7th

Sonia O'Sullivan Great Island 10, Cobh, Sunday 9th April

Cork City Marathon, Sunday 2nd June

Death of Brian (Tom) O'Flynn

Brian (Tom) O'Flynn R.I.P. - Condolences

Cork Athletics County Board extends condolences and deepest sympathy to the family of Brian O'Flynn, who passed away on Saturday last. Brian, also known as Tom, served as Secretary of Leevale AC for several years in the mid-1980's to early 90's
 

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis

Notice from RIP.ie

The death has occurred of Brian (Tom) O'FLYNN
Halldene Avenue, Bishopstown, Cork
    

O'FLYNN (Bishopstown, Cork). On December 8th, 2018, peacefully at Marymount University Hospital and Hospice. BRIAN (TOM) Halldene Avenue, dearly loved husband of Deirdre (née O'Brien) and much loved father of Sarah (O'Connor), Shane, Colin and Susan. Sadly missed by his loving wife and family, brothers, sisters, son-in-law Dave, grandchildren Sophie, Róisín and Fionn, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends.

Reposing at his home on Monday from 4.00pm to 7.00pm followed by Rosary. Reception prayers at 11.30am on Tuesday in the Church of the Real Presence, Curraheen Road followed by Requiem Mass at 12.00noon. Funeral afterwards to the Island Crematorium, Ringaskiddy, Co.Cork. Family flowers only, please, donations in lieu to Marymount Hospice.

"May he rest in peace"

European Cross-Country Championships 2018

European Cross-Country Championships 2018

Tilburg, Netherlands

Sunday December 9th 2018

Five Cork athletes represented Ireland in Tilburg today, and all, along with the thirty four members of the Irish squad, acquitted themselves admirably

Athletics Ireland Release

Forsyth and Tobin lead strong Irish performances at Euro Cross

Ryan Forsyth (Newcastle) and Sean Tobin (Clonmel) led strong Irish performances at the European Cross Country Championships in Tilburg, finishing fourth and tenth respectively in the Under 23 and Senior Mens races.

Ryan Forsyth Speaking After His Run

In all, four Irish athletes delivered top ten individual performances, with Emma O’Brien (Sli Cualann) 8th and Sarah Healy 9th, adding to Forsyth and Tobin’s runs.

 The teams also delivered top ten performances – Under 20 women: sixth, Under 20 men: fifth, Under 23 women: 9th, Under 23 men: 6th, Senior Men: 7th and the Mixed Relay: 9th. The Senior Womens team finished just outside the top ten, in 11th place.

Under 20 Womens team

The Under 20 Womens team were agonisingly close to bronze medals, finishing three points off the podium – there was extra misfortune as, around the half-way stage, unfortunately Healy took a fall as she looked to be clipped from behind. Several athletes fell in the incident. She fought bravely to make her way back up into contention with O’Brien also in the mix.

The medal chances, individually, and for the team, slipped away but it was a good learning curve and good performances nonetheless. The team were only three points off the bronze medals

McElhinney leads U20 men to fifth

The U20 men were next over 6,300m and they produced an excellent fifth place finish in the team standings. Darragh McElhinney (Bantry) put himself in contention early on, and despite a fall, finished 16th in 18:53.

Sean O’Leary (Clonliffe Harriers) came through well to finish 18th in 19:01. Jamie Battle (Mullingar Harriers) rounded out the scoring in 21st in 19:03. Micheal Power (West Waterford) was 60th, with Fintan Stewart (City of Derry) 75th and Daire Finn (DCH) 86th.

Flanagan leads U23 women

The U23 women also race over 6,300m with conditions getting ever stickier over the technical cross country course. Eilish Flanagan (Carmen) finished 16th in 21:17 after being up in the top ten early on. Her legs were giving out at the finish but she ground it out on her European cross country debut.
The team finished 9th with Aoibhe Richardson (KCH) coming through strongly for 25th in 21:32 and Roisin Flanagan (Carmen), twin sister of Eilish, in 41st in 22:04. Fian Sweeney (DCH) followed quickly after in 43rd with Siobhra O’Flaherty (SLOT) 54th and Sorcha McAllister (Westport) 66th.  

Forsyth a flying fourth

The U23 men’s 8,300m race had all the elements with Ryan Forsyth (Newcastle) agonisingly close to a medal in fourth in 23:49.
Forsyth made his intentions clear from early on getting out fast in the opening straight to lead around the tight hairpin turn.
The Newcastle athlete didn’t let up throughout and despite being detached from the leading trio, he kicked in hard at the finish and was only one second behind the bronze medal behind France’s Hugo Hay.  

The team battled well too and were in the bronze medal position halfway through the race but ultimately had to settle for 6th.
Brian Fay (Raheny Shamrock) was next Irish man home in 29th in 24:47 with Paul O’Donnell (DSD) 36th in 24:58. Cathal Doyle (Clonliffe Harriers) was 51st with Jack O’Leary (Mullingar Harriers) 56th and Garry Campbell (Dunleer) 80th.

Treacy teak tough on tenth appearance

‘I love this event and it’s great to test yourself against top competition.’ Sara Treacy on her tenth @Euro_Cross where she finished 26th pic.twitter.com/ebr4qXkWZp

— Athletics Ireland (@irishathletics) 9 December 2018

Sara Treacy (Dunboyne) fought hard to finish 26th in the senior women 8,300m in 27:46 with the team finishing 11th. Treacy has battled injuries the last couple of years and was happy to be back competing against the best in Europe.
“This is where you want to be testing yourself against the best,” said Treacy. “This will give me a good kick forward.”

Ciara Mageean (UCD) was next home in 43rd in 28:08, with Michelle Finn (Leevale) 51st in 28:23 for the scoring trio. Annmarie McGlynn (Letterkenny) was next in 57th followed by Fionnuala Ross (Armagh) in 62nd and Kerry O’Flaherty (Newcastle) in 64th.  

Tobin tenth in Europe

Sean Tobin on a fine tenth in the senior men’s race pic.twitter.com/mIajEZm11P

— Athletics Ireland (@irishathletics) 9 December 2018

Sean Tobin (Clonmel) finished an excellent tenth in the senior men’s 10,300m in 29:22 with the team finishing 7th.
Team captain Kevin Dooney (Raheny Shamrock) was next in 26th in 29:53 with Kevin Maunsell (Clonmel) the third scorer in 34th in 30:11. Kevin Batt (DSD) was 55, Mick Clohisey (Raheny Shamrock), making his tenth European cross appearance, was 67th followed by Damien Landers (Ennis Track) in 78th.

Mixed relay round out exciting event

The mixed relay over 5,800m was the last event of the day with Paul Robinson (St Coca’s) passing to Siofra Cleirigh Buttner (DSD), to John Travers (Donore Harriers) to Claire Tarplee (St Coca’s) where they finished 9th in 16:40 in a demolition derby style race.
It rounded out another consistent championships for Ireland to build a good platform to hosting the European Cross Country Championships in 2020. Lisbon will be next in 2019 but there is an improving repeatability of Irish performances that can help them move in to medal positions.

These performances bode well for the European Cross Country Championships next year, in Lisbon in 2019, and the following year, when Athletics Ireland hosts the event in Dublin, in 2020.

 
Full European Cross-Country Championship 2018 Results

Irish Results  -  European Cross Country Championships, Tilburg

U20 Women - 4,300m

Emma O’Brien (Sli Cualann) 8th, Sarah Healy (Blackrock) 9th, Stephanie Cotter (West Muskerry) 25th, Jodie McCann (DCH) 35th, Sophie O’Sullivan (Ballymore Cobh) 59th, Laura Nicholson (Bandon) 60th
 Team: 6th

U23 Women - 6,300m
Eilish Flanagan (Carmen) 16th, Aoibhe Richardson (KCH) 25th, Roisin Flanagan (Carmen) 41st, Fian Sweeney (DCH) 43rd, Siobhra O’Flaherty (SLOT) 54th, Sorcha McAllister (Westport) 66th
Team: 9th

 Senior Women - 8,300m
 Sara Treacy (Dunboyne) 26th Ciara Mageean (UCD) 43rd, Michelle Finn (Leevale) 51st, Annmarie McGlynn (Letterkenny) 57th, Fionnuala Ross (Armagh) 62nd, Kerry O’Flaherty (Newcastle) 64th.  
 Team: 11th


Under 20 Men - 6,300m
Darragh McElhinney (Bantry) 16, Sean O’Leary 18, Jamie battle 21, Michael Power (West Waterford) 60th, Fintan Stewart (City of Derry) 75th Daire Finn (DCH) 86th
Team: 5th

Under 23 Men - 8,300m
Ryan Forsyth (Newcastle) 4th, Brian Fay (Raheny Shamrock) 29th, Paul O’Donnell (DSD) 36th, , Cathal Doyle (Clonliffe Harriers) 51st, Jack O’Leary (Mullingar Harriers) 56th, Garry Campbell (Dunleer) 80th
Team: 6th

Senior Men - 10,300m
Sean Tobin (Clonmel) 10th, Kevin Dooney (Raheny Shamrock) 26th, Kevin Maunsell (Clonmel) 34th, Kevin Batt (DSD) 55th, Mick Clohisey (Raheny Shamrock) 67th, Damien Landers (Ennis Track) 78th
Team: 7th

Mixed Relay - 5,800m
 Ireland 9th - Paul Robinson (St Coca’s), Siofra Cleirigh Buttner (DSD), John Travers (Donore Harriers), Claire Tarplee (St Coca’s)

Ireland All Set for European Cross-Country Championships 2018

European Cross-Country Championships

Tilburg, Netherlands

Sunday December 8th 2018

Stephanie Cotter and Adams State University Gear Up for European XC

Adams State University trio Stephanie Cotter (West Muskerry AC), along with twin sisters Eilish & Roisin Flanagan (Carmen Runners, Tyrone) form posrt of the Irish squad in Tilburg on Sunday, with Stephanie on Junior Team and Eilish & Roisin on the Under-23 Team. This is a huge occasion for Adams State to have three girls from the same NCAA University on the same team at the one time, and the University is delighted to have the three students represent Ireland.

Last weekend, at the NCAA Cross-Country Championships, in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, with 6k, in poor conditions of heavy rain and 6 degrees C, the girls had a good workout in prepparation for Tilburg.

The team took Bronze, on 90 points, with Eilish Flanagan, in second place, bringing home Silver. Stephanie Cotter, in 11th place, and 1st Freshman, was next with Rosin Flanagan, anchoring the team home in 41st place

Athletics Ireland Release - Darragh Browne

Ireland Looking for Strong Showing in Tilburg

The Irish team will be looking for a strong showing at the 25th edition of the SPAR European Cross Country Championships taking place in Tilburg on Sunday next, December 9th.

Tilburg has previously hosted the European Cross Country Championships, in 2005, however Sunday's venue is different. This year’s event takes place on a challenging course, at the Beekse Bergen Safari Park, located just to the south-east of Tilburg.

U20 teams get action underway

Ireland has a strong U20 womens team, both individually and collectively, led by Sarah Healy (Blackrock). This level of competition is extremely tough with a huge depth of talent in the category. Great Britain are historically strong in this event, and will be looking to prove that once more.

The Irish have good depth and experience with Emma O’Brien (Sli Cualann), Jodie McCann (DCH), Laura Nicholson (Bandon) and Stephanie Cotter (West Muskerry), all having run this event previously. Stephanie came 11th last week, at the NCAA Division II cross country, representing Adams State University.  Sophie O’Sullivan (Ballymore Cobh) makes her debut in these Championships, but has good credentials also, having won European U18 silver over 800m last summer.

With three to score it should make for good competition. The Irish team finished 7th last year, but will be aiming for a significant improvement.

Norway’s wunderkind Jakob Ingebrigtsen is looking for a hat-trick of titles in the U20 men’s race, and is sure to grab the main media headlines. That won’t stop the Irish team, led by Darragh McElhinney (Bantry), from putting in a good performance. The Irish team was 10th last year.

Irish U23 Teams Make a Return

There were no Irish U23 teams last year, so it is a welcome addition to see them competing in Tilburg. Eilish Flanagan (Carmen) took  second for Adams State, in the NCAA division II cross country, with her twin sister Roisin also on the team. Siobhra O’Flaherty has been added to the U23 team, after a positive NCAA season with George Mason University, and she adds depth to the squad. They will be looking to put in a solid team performance.

Ryan Forsyth (Newcastle) was 11th in the NCAA division 1 cross-country championships, and he will be looking to replicate that form, which would see him finish in the top ten individually. Brian Fay (Raheny Shamrock) recently won the national U23 title, finishing fourth overall, and he will be looking to combine with the rest of his teammates for a strong team showing.

Senior

In recent years, the senior women have carried the flag for Ireland, winning team Gold and two Bronze since 2012. And there is no forgetting Fionnuala McCormack’s (Kilcoole) back-to-back victories, in 2011 and 2012. This year’s team has plenty of experience with Annmarie McGlynn (Letterkenny), Kerry O’Flaherty (Newcastle), Michelle Finn (Leevale) and Sara Treacy (Dunboyne) all having run on at least one of those medal-winning teams. Add in Ciara Mageean (UCD) and Fionnuala Ross (Armagh), who have both been running well this year.

As always, it will be tough to medal this year, but the team will be looking to improve on their 7th place finish last year.

The senior men finished 5th last year, and repeating that would be a fine achievement. A podium finish would be even sweeter, but with Turkey, Great Britain and Norway, who will have the Ingebrigtsen brothers, Henrik and Filip, it will be a hard ask.

Kevin Dooney (Raheny Shamrock) recently won an exciting battle for the national title, and will be hoping to maintain that good form. Clonmel’s Sean Tobin and Kevin Maunsell will be aiming to score on the team again, having finished 15th and 24th last year. Mick Clohisey (Raheny Shamrock), and Kevin Batt (DSD) will also be vying to be scoring members, while Damien Landers (Ennis Track) comes in for Stephen Scullion (Clonliffe Harriers) who has had to withdraw.

Mixed Relay team debut

This is the second year of the mixed relay with Ireland making their debut appearance with Siofra Cleirigh Buttner (DSD), Claire Tarplee (St Coca’s), Paul Robinson (St Coca’s) and John Travers (Donore Harriers) on the team. It is a talented quartet, and they will be aiming to put themselves in contention in the new event.

TV Coverage

Unconfirmed reports are that previous medalist and Team Captain, Lizzie Lee will be one of RTE's panellists for the TV coverage

Action will be on RTE 2, from 12pm, with all the action also streamed on European Athletics, from 10am local time (9am here in Ireland)

Statistics and Event Information

Entries

Total Number of countries 38

Total Number of athletes 616

Total Number of Men 333

Total Number of Women 283

List of Entries (PDF File)

Course Preview

Schedule of Events

U20 Women Race 9:45am

U20 Men Race 10:05am

U23 Women race 10:35am

U23 Men race 11:05am

Senior Women Race 12:35pm

Senior Men race 13:10pm

Mixed Relay 13:55pm

Full Irish Squad

Irish European Cross-Country Championships Medal History

Individual Irish:

1994 - Senior Women- Catherina McKiernan - GOLD - 14:29

1998 - Junior Men - Gareth Turnbull - BRONZE - 16:55

2006 - U23 Women - Fionnuala Britton - SILVER - 18:56

2011 - Senior Women - Fionnuala Britton - GOLD - 25:55

2012 - Senior Women - Fionnuala Britton - GOLD - 27:45

Irish Teams:

1999 - Junior Mens Team - BRONZE - 43 pts

Gary Murray 8th, Brian Keane 15th, Mark Smyth 20th, Joe McAlister 75th, Robert Connolly 94th

2000 - Senior Mens Team - BRONZE - 72 pts

Peter Matthews 10th, Seamus Power 14th, Gareth Turnbull 23rd, Keith Kelly 25th, Ken Nason 55th, Fiachra Lombard 67th

2003 - Senior Womens Team - SILVER - 78 pts

Sonia O’Sullivan 4th, Rosemary Ryan 13th, Ann Keenan Buckley 27th, Catherina McKiernan 34th, Marie Davenport 52nd

2004 - Junior Mens Team - SILVER - 54pts

Mark Christie 5th, Andrew Ledwith 7th, Danny Darcy 11th, Jamie McCarthy 31st, Joe Sweeney 44th, Mark Hanrahan 56th

2010 - U23 Mens Team - GOLD - 60pts

David McCarthy 11th, Brendan O’Neill 13th, Michael Mulhare 16th, David Rooney 20th (25th), John Coghlan 34th, Ciarán Ó Lionáird 76th

2012 - Senior Womens Team - GOLD - 52 pts

Fionnuala Britton 1st Linda Byrne 8th, Ava Hutchinson 20th, Lizzie Lee 23rd, Sarah McCormack 36th, Sara Treacy 42nd

2014 - Senior Womens Team - BRONZE - 87 pts

Fionnuala Britton 6th, Sara Treacy 12th, Michelle Finn 23rd, Ann Marie McGlynn 46th, Siobhan O’Doherty 47th, Laura Crowe 53rd

2015 - Senior Womens Team - BRONZE - 83 pts

Fionnuala McCormack (nee Britton) 4th, Lizzie Lee 13th, Caroline Crowley 23rd, Ciara Durkan 43rd, Michelle Finn 54th, Kerry O’Flaherty 55

Update December 5th - National Marathon Entries 2019

Athletics Ireland National Marathon Entries 2019

Dublin

Sunday October 27th 2019

Update 4pm, Wednesday December 5th

As of 4pm today, Wednesday December 5th, more than 18,100 of the 20,000 places available for next October's event have been sold.
It's just over 5 weeks since this year's event and, currently, there are less than 1,900 places left, and all of these are at the higher entry fee of €90.



On Thursday November 8th, entries had already reached 10,725. Having exceeded the €80 entry fee threshold of 14,000, a further rush of entries has come in, with around 300 to 400 entries coming in each day.

By November 28th, 15,800 places were gone

Yesterday, Tuesday December 4th, there were 2,750 places left. Following features on the 'Marathon Frenzy', in some of today's newspapers, there has been a flood of entries. The Marathon office said earlier this afternoon "This will probably sell out well before Monday!"

Enter KBC Dublin Marathon 2019

20,000 Limit

There is a cap of 20,000 on entries, and there is NO separate entry facility for Athletics Ireland National Marathon entry

This is critical for anyone thinking of entering the Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship.  In short, when the 20,000 limit is reached, That's It!! ...except ONLY for ELITES. There are no reserved places for Athletics Ireland members. If you miss out on the 20,000 limit, there is no 'back-door', unless you're lucky enough to be of Elite Status

NB: To reiterate....There is NO LATE ENTRY Dispensation for Athletics Ireland National Marathon entries

Runners competing in the Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship MUST enter in the normal fashion, the same as everyone else.  So, when entries close, that's it..... unless you're an elite athlete.

Elite Athlete Times

If you are an athlete with proven times in the above ranges, you should be ok for Late Entry...BUT, it's you're gamble as to wait or not!

Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship

Entry for the Athletics Ireland National Marathon Championship is not yet open. All National Marathon Championship entrants MUST have already entered for the Marathon via the normal route, as above.  The Championship entry form will appear on the Athletics Ireland website .....probably months down the road!

Cork Team Selections for Athletics Ireland National Novice Cross-Country Championships 2018

Cork Athletics Squads Named for National Novice Cross-Country Championships

Navan Racecourse, Navan, Co. Meath

Saturday December 15th 2018

 

Twenty five (25) athletes from ten (10) Cork Clubs, and one Limerick club, have been named on the Novice Women and Men's squad for the Athletics Ireland National Novice Cross-Country Championships, at Navan Racecourse, on Saturday December 15th.

Athletes whose status has changed should notify This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (085-1480725) IMMEDIATELY, as teams must be entered by Thursday next, Dec 6th.

If you CANNOT make it, please let Paddy Buckley know immediately. If you are doubtful, please let Paddy know - your place will be held, but replacements may be put on standby notice - Cork Athletics wants to field full squads in all events - please help us do that!

Anyone who has not been included in the listings, or who feels that they may have been inadvertently omitted, or who, having previously indicated that they did not wish to be considered, would now like to be considered for selection, should contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (085-1480725) without delay

Novice Women - Start 14:40 - Distance 4km

Novice Men - Start 15:10 - Distance 6km

Cork Novice Womens Squad

Teams are eight (8) to run, with four (4) to score, all athletes on the panel run

All those named on the panel will be entered by Cork Athletics

Cork Novice Mens Squad

Teams are twelve (12) to run, with six (6) to score, all athletes on the panel run

Update Tuesday 4th, 10:45: Donal Coakley, Leevale AC, comes in for Nathaniel Hayward, Dave O'Connor, St Catherines AC added - Dave had been omitted in error earlier

Update Wednesday 5th, 14:30: Mark Walsh, Leevale AC, replaces Heywood Richardson (injured)

All those named on the Cork panels will be entered by Cork Athletics

Fergus O'Donovan Retires From Coaching

St Finbarr's AC Coach Fergus O'Donovan Honoured

Mardyke Pavillion

Wednesday November 28th 2018

Fergus O'Donovan presented with Stopwatch memento by Marion Lyons

Photo: Joe Murphy

 
Joe Murphy's Facebook Album

Decades-Long Coaching Career of Fergus O'Donovan Marked by St Finbarr's AC

Fergus O'Donovan's official 'retirement' from coaching was marked by a formal 'farewell', at a special function held in his honour, held by St Finbarr's AC, on the evening of Wednesday November 28th, in the Pavillion, at the Mardyke Area.  The function was attended by over 50 people from St. Finbarr's, and a host of others, including past club and team-mates, Cork Athletics officers, along with family and friends.

The inverted commas above are intended ....Fergus isn't retiring completely..just formally. He will continue to coach, on a small scale, for the foreseeable future, as he is coaching St Finbarrs 'icon' Flor O'Leary, who enters a new age category in the New Year. Flor is planning, under Fergus' tutelage, make an attempt on the Irish M85 200m record next year.  The current Irish M85 Outdoor 200m record of 46.68 is 22 years old and is held by Paddy Whelan, who set it in Durban, South Africa.  As Paddy Buckley put it "Fergus is not finished yet...In athletics, there's no such thing as retirement....Fergus is merely passing on the baton"

Fergus O'Donovan, with his wife Ita, son William, and daughters Julie and Mary

Fergus O'Donovan, surrounded by contemporary St. Finbarr's team-mates

Back Row L to R; Michael Joyce, Richie Crowley, Donal Burke, Michael Dunne, Paddy Buckley, Pierce McNamara,Reg Hayes and Flor O'Leary

Front Row L to R; Barry Looney, Jack O'Leary, Fergus O'Donovan, John Buckley, Pat Cashman and Jack Lynch

Fergus O'Donovan, surrounded by St. Finbarr's club-mates

The attendance at the function was treated to a slide-show outlining his career, interspersed by speeches from Michael Murphy, Eamonn McEvoy, Marion Lyons, and Paddy Buckley, Chairman of Cork Athletics County Board. The high-point of the proceedings was the presentation to Fergus, of a commemorative casting of a hand holding an 'old style' stopwatch. The evening was described by Dan Kennedy as one of 'Nostalgia and reminiscence'. Dan recalled one of his first memories of St. Finbarrs, in 1968, was of Fergus coaching and timekeeping, "with two stopwatches around his neck....one for 400's and one for the recovery"

Fergus has been a member of St. Finbarr's AC since the 1950's, almost since the foundation of the club, in 1951, and following his retirement from competitive athletics, has been coaching at the club for over 50 years.

Fergus O’Donovan’s athletics career began as a schoolboy, when he won the South Munster Schools Mile, in his first ever race, in a record time of 5:11.0. He followed this by taking Bronze in the Munster Schools, behind Tom O’Riordan (father of Irish Times columnist Ian O'Riordan) who went on to represent Ireland at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo.

Following study in Dublin, Fergus returned to UCC, and won varsity and county championships, on the track and in cross-country.  Fergus recalls modestly “I wasn’t a great athlete, I suppose I raced with local success winning around 40 races in all,”

When achilles tendon injury ended his track career, Fergus turned to the Marathon, in an attempt to break the 3 hour mark.  In all, he ran 11 marathons, in the ten years from 1966 to 1976, and returned times around the 3 hour mark.  The highlight of that period of Fergus' career was when he was a scoring member of St Finbarr’s team at the All-Ireland championship, in Thurles

Along the way, Fergus also served as Secretary of the Cork City Sports, for approx 10 years, and has contributed in a multitude of ways to the sport he loves, and, throughout, has selflessly and freely given his wealth of experience, not only to members of his beloved St Finbarr’s club, but also to the athletics community in general.

In the 1960's and 1970's, Fergus was one of a tiny band of Irish athletics 'aficionados' who travelled to major events around the globe. His first trip was to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Over the next 12 years he attended another three Olympic Games, four European Championships, along with the Commonwealth Games, and several International Cross-Country Championships.

Fergus' was renowned for 'forever stopping and talking' whilst coaching, and was at his best when telling people about meeting athletics 'giants' such as Jesse Owens, Emil Zátopek, Percy Cerutty, Bob Tisdall, Payton Jordan and Mary Rand, along with a host of others. Thoughout these stories, being told while he was actively coaching athletes on the track, Fergus would stop the tale momentarily to call out split times and/or give feedback and encouragement

Interspersed in the tributes to Fergus were lines such as "....(Fergus') words were Gospel". "Athletics (in Cork) wouldn't be in the shape it is except for Fergus"

One of Fergus' lasting achievements is the Cork Athletics Graded Leagues, which were his 'brainchild', the organisation of which he was actively involved in right up to last year. 

Enjoy your 'Retirement' Fergus!

We look forward to following it and seeing how you and Flor get in the coming months!