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| Sprinter Catherine McManus |
Sprinters will take centre stage at the Woodie’s DIY National Indoors taking place at the Odyssey, Belfast over the weekenbd.
For the women’s 60m title, Ulster athlete Amy Foster is the form athlete having equalled her personal best of 7.44 seconds at the Irish University Indoors last week. Not defending her title is Leevale’s Ailis McSweeney who is recovering from Achilles tendon surgery.
DSD’s Claire Bergin, pushed Foster hard at the intervarsities, but is concentrating on the 400m in Belfast. Other medal contenders include Steffi Creaner, Catherine McManus and Phil Healy.
Hurdler Derval O’Rourke of Leevale, already selected for the World Indoors, must make an appearance in Belfast. She has yet to go under eight seconds this season.
Another athlete still in winter training is Athenry’s Paul Hession, now based in Dublin. Hession is the only sprinter so far to have qualified for London 2012, but won’t compete this weekend because of a slight achilles strain. Defending his 60m sprint title is Dean Adams of Ballymena, renowned for his bullet-fast start. He’s currently third in the rankings behind David Hynes of Menapians and Ben Reynolds of North Down.
Hynes, back in scintillating form after a two year break, beat Adams for the intervarsity 60m title after a controversial start. Reynolds, who ran 6.96 in Cardiff last month, has since then clocked a time of 7.88 for the 60m hurdles. This could be one of the races of the weekend, although defending champion Ian McDonald of Crusaders is struggling with a groin injury. Third on the current rankings is 36-year-old former Olympian Peter Coghlan.
With Clonliffe’s Brian Gregan competing for DCU in the Millrose Games, the men’s 400m is wide open. Only Leevale’s Paul Scanlan and Thomas Barr of Ferrybank have broken 50 seconds so far this season.
Long jumper Kelly Proper of Ferrybank has struggled with injury since winning both the 200m and the long jump last year. After making big chances to her training, she returned to competition after Christmas, only narrowly losing to Mary McLoone of Tir Chonaill at the AAI Games. The pair will meet again in Belfast.
A much-improved athlete this season is high jumper Barry Pender of St Abban’s. He jumped 2.15 at the AAI Games and, like last year, will hope to beat archrival Kourosh Foroughi of Star of the Sea for the title.
* Highlights of the championships on RTE2 next Monday.
Jayme Rossiter of Clonliffe won the men’s title at the National Intermediate Cross-Country Championships in Lough Key Forest Park, Boyle. Defying the glue-like muck, Rossiter sprinted clear of Kilnaboy’s Michael Shannon and Martin Quinn of Dunleer to take the title.
Laura Shaughnessy of Loughrea was a clear winner of the women’s title – a day after taking bronze in the 3000m at the Irish Univseties Indoors for UCD.
Pauline Curley of Tullamore and Letterkenny’s Ciaran Doherty won the masters races.
* Mick Clohisey and Becky Woods were the winners at the BHAA NCF cross-country in Swords, while in Dunboyne, Siobhan Tierney of Tallaght won the Women’s Meet and Train Cross-Country.
With the cost of petrol rising all the time, runners are thinking hard about driving long distances to races. A great benefit of club membership is that driving is shared and buses hired. For Sunday’s Winter League hill race at Annagh Hill in Co Wexford, for instance, a bus will leave Sandymount Luas at 9.30am. Tickets costs €9 – much cheaper than bringing the car. An idea whose time has come! See www.imra.ie.
Dundrum South Dublin’s junior women finished third team at the European Clubs Cross-Country in Spain, with Siofra Cleirigh Buttner leading the team home in sixth place, closely followed by Clare McCarthy 12th.
In the women’s senior race, marathon specialist Linda Byrne finished 11th, with the team fifth.
The senior men’s team suffered from the last minute loss of national champion Joe Sweeny who had not recovered from a tough race in San Sebastian a week earlier. Killian Mooney was best of the junior boys in 36th. This was the first time a single club had represented Ireland in all four races.
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| Ciara Everard, Laura Crowe |
Ciara Everard of UCD broke the Irish U-23 indoor record when she won the 800m at the Irish University Indoor Championships in Nenagh.
Everard’s time of 2:05.76 knocked knocked .14 of a second off Sonia O’Sullivan’s 2:05.90 set in Boston 22 years ago.
After Laura Crowe made the early pace, Everard broke free with 40 metres to go to take the title.Everard had just returned from a four-week altitude training camp in South Africa. She and Crowe will meet again at the National Indoors in Belfast.
Hear all the latest on athletics with Inside Sport hosted by Dave Hooper on Dublin City FM every Tuesday(7-6.30pm). Linda Byrne, Joe Sweeney and Fionnula Britton have all been guests on the show. See www.dublincityfm.ie
World jogger Tony Mangan has reached the foothills of the Andes having run his l I 15,000th km earlier this week. So far, Tony has run across, Ireland, Canada, the USA and Central America. He still has a long way to go before he returns to Ireland in time for the 2014 Dublin Marathon. Readers can supports his efforts through his website; see www.theworldjog.com/blog.
Master athlete Tommy Payne of Tinryland is this year’s winner of the Tadgh Lynch Trophy for 2011 in recognition of his success and contribution to Master’s Athletics over the past number of years. It is hoped to present this award on Sunday, immediately after the Woodies DIY AAI Masters & Inter CC Champs, in Lough Key Park, Roscommon.
Previous winners include Eamonn Coughlan in its inaugural year of 1994, Anne Keenan Buckley 1999 and Carmel Parnell in 2010.
Families have a special invitation to run this year’s Kleinwort Benson Investors St Patrick’s Festival 5km from Dublin’s Dawson Street on Sunday, March 18 (12.0). Online entry €20 or €30 for families at www.patricksrun.com.
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