Cross Country Season Gathers Pace

by Noel Carroll, PRO, County Cavan Athletic Board

The Cavan Cross Country began to gather pace this past weekend with the Cavan Uneven Ages and Novice Cross Country taking place in Kilinkere organised by the host club Bailieborough AC. The course itself certainly fitted Cavans description as being a county associated with undulating land and hills everywhere, which provided a stern test to athletes. These series of county races have been used in the past and continued to be used as an important phase of preparation and a stepping-stone to success in the upcoming provincial races where qualification for the elusive All Ireland Championships is at stake.

The Mens and Ladies Novice races got the proceedings under way, sadly however numbers were down due to stringent rules that allow a select few athletes to compete. Nonetheless the athletes set off undeterred on the longest races of the day, with Innyvale continuing their resurgent dominance in Cavan athletics with an impressive 1 2 3 in the mens race with Philip Donohoe prevailing over club mates Donal Briody and Pauric Corcoran. In the ladies race Nicole Egan of Innyvale edged out clubmate Sheana Kiernan followed home closely by Bailieborough’s Laura Keuck.

As is the norm in the juvenile races close battles and finishes were the order of the day. In the under 11 age group Bailieborough produced two impressive winners in the boys and girls grade in the form of Conor Smith and Leanne Kiernan both looking like two potential stars for the future. Clodagh O’ Reilly from Annalee continued to raise stock to her growing reputation as one of Cavans most talented athletes with another commanding front running performance. The boys under 13 race however couldn’t have been more different with Shercock’s Padraig Donagh and Annalee’s Conor Bradley engaging in a titanic battle all the way to the finish with Padraig edging out his gritty competitor.

Thrilling Finish

The Girls under 15 race included the most talented field of the day not only that it provided arguably the best race of the day. Analee’s Eadaoin O’ Reilly was to the fore early on however she was overtaken by the younger pair of Edel Kiernan and Aoibhinn Kienan. The previous week Aoibhinn edged out Edel in a sprint finish we were provided with a similar finish this time however the result on this occasion was reversed with the lead changing on numerous occasions with Edel having the stronger finish. Luckily for Cavan athletics we seem to be set for many exciting tussles between these two talented athletes in the future.

An interesting team battle ensued between Annalee and Shercock in the Boys under 15 race with Annalee edging their compatriots with a commanding win from Andrew O’ Brien ably backed up by team mate Darren Watters in 3^rd with Niall Clerkin splitting the pair in 2^nd position. In the Girls under 17 race Shercock scooped the top 3 places with Catherina Mullen producing another dominant front running performance, Hanna Schneider and Celine Clerkin followed her closely home. There was another dominant display in the boys grade with Cian O’ Reilly easing to a comfortable win barely looking out of breath. Aodaghan O’ Reilly eased to a comfortable win in the Boys under 19 race. In the girls race Aileen Gafney tenaciously outsprinted rival Lisa Clerkin in the run in to the finish.

The next big challenge for Cavan’s young athletes is the Ulster Cross Country taking place in Jordanstown on the 25^th of October. These series of Cavan races have proven that Cavan has the potential to have athletes in contention in all age groups.

Shercock Juveniles enjoy success at Cavan Cross Country Championships

Boys under 14 - team winners

Good Weather Brings Positive Performances at Cavan Winter League

Paul Fitzpatrick showed he can run as well as racewalk with a winning performance in the senior mens 5K.

Barry Cooney and Catherina Mullen in action in Cavan.

Niall Clerkin was an impressive winner of the boys under 14 800m, Ryan Rogers also ran well to finish third.

A mixed bunch of talents represented Shercock in the men's race as the sprinters lined out to prove their fitness in the 5K.

Barbara Ward on her way to victory in the under 16 1000m leads team mate Celine Clerkin.

Sean, Kevin and Ciaran in action in the senior race.

Noel, Hugh and Richard prove that field event athletes can run too!

Racewalking World Cup, Cheboskary, Russia, May 10th

While athletes are used to measuring their ability in local, national or even international terms, it is only rarely that an opportunity arises to measure yourself at world level. Paul Fitzpatrick experienced that opportunity when he traveled to the Russian city of Cheboskary to represent Ireland in the Racewalking World Cup at the weekend. Competing against the world's best, Paul gave a good account of himself in the junior men's 10km, holding his form well in the pressure-cooker atmosphere of the World Cup, he was lying in 45th place at the halfway point. As the temperature rose into the mid-20's he pushed on over the closing five kilometers, moving up the field to finish strongly in 41st position overall in a time of 46:11. Understandably cautious in his first outing at world level, Paul received no warnings from the judges and finished with a clean sheet, which will undoubtedly boost his confidence for future competitions at this level.

The Irish team produced some very positive results at the World Cup with pride of place going to Olive Loughnane (left) who kept both her form and her concentration intact in a highly competitive women's 20km to finish in 6th place overall. Olive also dipped under the 90 minute mark for the first time, only the 12th Irish walker to achieve this, recording 89:17 for the distance. Also breaking new ground was Robert Heffernan who smashed his own Irish record and broke the 80 minute mark for the first time when he recorded 79:22 and finished impressively in 9th place in the men's 20km. Colin Griffin was lying 18th at the halfway point of the men's 50km and despite losing some ground in the closing stages had the satisfaction of breaking 4 hours once again when finishing 25th in 3:58:26, which also qualifies him for next year's world championships. Jamie Costin continued his return to form when recording 85:59 in the men's 20km which left him in 59th place. Laura Reynolds set a new PB of 51:36 when finishing impressively in 35th place in the junior 10km, as did Donna Carolan who was timed at 54:05 in 46th place.

April 27th - Cavan Road Championships

Brian McCarey Lifts County Road Title

An early taste of summer weather ironically created difficult running conditions for the athletes who turned out to contest the county Road Championships on a challenging hilly course in Bailieborough today. The senior men's 10km proved to be a true challenge of stamina in the warm, windless conditions and it was Shercock's Brian McCarey who showed the greatest ability to handle the course and the weather as he emerged as a convincing winner to claim his first county road title. Also running well for Shercock was Brian's brother Conor who finished strongly in third place. John McCarey then came home in sixth place in the field, having recently returned from working in Scotland on an tidal turbine installation. John Joe Rogers didn't have quite as far to travel to win the masters V3 class over 5km with clubmate Albert Eakins also running well to finish third. Club chairman Colin Watterson also produced a good run in the masters 5km race, taking second place in the V2 category.

With numbers down on the day, Shercock struggled to fill teams and were unable to retain the overall cup, which went to hosts Bailieborough AC, with Shercock second and Breffni AC third.

March 1st - New Mark for Paul Fitzpatrick in Isle of Man

Irish junior racewalk champion Paul Fitzpatrick made a positive start to the 2008 season at the Isle of Man Open Walks on Saturday when he dipped under the 45 minute mark for the first time over the 10km distance. Paul was competing alongside the senior athletes in the 20km race, however from the first lap it was clear that the slow pace was holding him back and he pushed forward into the lead, completing the 10km solo in a personal best of 44:58 minutes. Paul, competing in the Isle of Man for the third year in succession, was part of a large Irish contingent who braved gale force winds to travel to the popular competition. Photo by Murray Lambden.

Kevin McCloy brought the curtain down on a successful indoor season with another sub-50 performance in the 400m final at the Scottish Open championships in Glasgow's Kelvin Hall on Saturday. Kevin finished third in a time of 49.91s.

Catherina Mullen enjoyed a positive run at the Celtic International Cross Country in Edinburgh today. Despite a major step up both in distance and the level of competition, Catherina responded positively to the challenge of her first international and came home as second finisher on the Ulster team, crossing the line in 21st place overall. Unfortunately Ulster were narrowly beaten for the team bronze medals by our celtic neighbours on this occasion. Also competing in Edinburgh was fellow Cavan runner Cian O'Reilly who finished in 22nd position in the boys under 17 event.

Goal Mile 2007

The Goal Mile was held in Shercock for the fourth time this year and was boosted by the best attendance yet as more than seventy participants turned out for the annual charity fund-raiser. The weather stayed mild and dry as runners and walkers of all ages, shapes and sizes worked off the Christmas turkey with a vigorous effort around the track. Well done to everyone who took part and contributed to the successful fund raising effort for people in need in the third world. This year's total was €1250.