![]() During yet another week of strong winds the main stories this week took place on indoor tracks. We saw success in the National Senior Indoor Championships in Abbotstown this weekend and also in the European Masters Indoors in Braga in Portugal earlier during the week. We shall start with the Senior Indoors, where the club came home with 3 medals, one of each colour. The highlight of the meet was the chance to witness two of our hurdlers contest the final of the men’s 60mH. Thanks to their results in the heats, Matt Behan and Valantinos Goularas were placed next to each other in middle lanes and their dominance of the final was wonderful to see. Both had raced in the same heat (of two) the previous day with Matt recording the 2nd fastest time of 8.14 for the heat win and Valantinos, the 3rd fastest with 8.21, placing 2nd in the heat. Then, in the final, Matt demonstrated consistency with exactly the same time as the previous day for the win, whilst Valantinos ran 8.25 for the silver medal. Many congratulations to the two training partners and their coach Maria Hetherington on a great feat. Our other medal came via the long jump. Adam McMullen took bronze with his second jump of 7.16m. Indeed, Adam also demonstrated great consistency by recording a legal jump with each of his 6. It was a super weekend of athletics and great to see several of our athletes get to their respective finals. Mary Horgan, fresh from her success in Braga, ran a really canny race in her heat of the women’s 800m, placing 2nd in 2:14.82. Then, in the final, she placed 5th (quite possibly her highest placing in this event) and oh so close to a bronze medal as she tucked in alongside her training partner Alanna Lally from UCD for most of the race. Mary’s time of 2:10.66 was only 2/10ths of a second off the bronze medal as she and Alanna were reeled in towards the end. Another finalist was Fearghal O’Hare who qualified from his 2nd heat of the men’s 800m on the basis of his time of 1:53.52, despite placing 5th. Fearghal ran 1:54.06 to finish in 8th place in the final with its high-quality field (and a lot of bumping and barging!). We had several other athletes who, unfortunately, were not able to make it out of their heats. Max Doyle and Robert Ivers contested, respectively, the 9th and 12th heats of the men’s 200m, with both placing 3rd in respective times of 23.61 and 23.14, whilst Emily Lyne ran in both the women’s 200m and 400m heats. In heat 4 of the 200m Emily placed 4th in 26.55 and then in the 400m she took 5th spot in a time of 61.85. Finally, the men’s 4x200m relay team came home in 5th place in the penultimate event of the weekend. Moving back a few days, it was great to see the video of Mary Horgan taking on the field in Braga and completely dominating the women’s O/35 800m to become European Masters Champion. Mary led from gun to tape and, with a finishing time of 2:14.19, was nearly 11 seconds ahead of the field by the end. She explained that several of the runners had posted PBs before the race which indicated they would be significantly faster than they actually performed and so that decided her to go out extremely fast from the start. She needn’t have worried! On the following day, Paul Cowhie performed commendably well in a field (spread over two races) of 19 in the O/55 men’s 3000m. Paul came out with a super 7th place overall with a great time of 9:27.13. So, now onto cross-country, as we approach the end of the season. This week, the BHAA held a mixed 4-mile race in the grounds of Wesley College. The race attracted a field of 159, among them at least 19 Crusaders and, as usual, they acquitted themselves well. In blustery conditions on a twisty, largely flat, course with hairpin bends on relatively firm ground, Niamh Allen once again demonstrated her cross-country skills by winning the women’s race and placing 7th overall in a time of 22:46, just behind Ger Forde, who was the first Crusader across the line in 6th place, one second ahead. That result rewarded Ger with 1st M40 placing. We had 10 clubmates finish in the top 50, starting with Ger and Niamh, and they were followed by Garret Dunne (8th in 22:49), Ciaran Diviney (9th and 1st M45 in 23:13), Michael Wycherley (11th and 2nd M45 in 23:20), Joe McDermott (15th in 23:55), Henry Griffin (25th in 24:46), John McAuley (27th in 25:03), Ronan Moynihan (45th in 26:07), followed closely by Léa Braud, recently returned from her native France, who placed 47th overall and 3rd female finisher in a super time of 26:09. Other notable results were recorded by Suzanne Martin (68th, 6th female and 2nd F40 in 27:33), Mairead De Faoite (88th and 8th in 28:55) and by Olwyn Dunne (109th, 16th and 2nd F55 in 30:41). There were several other events taking place around the country on Saturday morning in which we saw Crusaders participate. Over in Co. Longford there was a road race taking place under the rescheduled Ardagh Challenge. Richard Kavanagh and Kate Murray took part in the 10- mile race with its field of 116. There were no masters categories over 40, so they missed out somewhat, despite producing excellent times. Richard placed 40th in a time of 75:29, whilst Kate finished 7th female across the line in 57th place overall in 81:09. Down in Co. Wicklow, 2 races were staged near Brittas Bay on behalf of the Wicklow Hospice. Ian Smith joined 88 other runners in the rather exposed and hilly 10k where he ran 45:40 for 19th place, whilst Darragh Cunnane placed 17th in a time of 1:30:27 in the half marathon with its field of 86 participants. No doubt conditions were challenging as they would have been elsewhere. On Sunday, on the roads, Luke Haran ran in the undulating one-loop Adare 10k in Co. Limerick where he placed 138th in a field of 738 and a time of 44:11, whilst, down in Co. Cork, Mairin and two of her daughters, Lisa and Fiona, ran in the Kinsale 10 miler (a relatively fast course involving an out-and-back with a bit of a climb in a loop in the middle) along with Tim O’Donnell. There were 541 runners in the race and Fiona excelled with a time of 1:09:00 for 62nd and 6th, just behind Tim, who took 61st place in the same chiptime, whilst Lisa helped pace Mairin to a time just outside Mairin’s PB for the distance, crossing the line together in 1:44:49, placing 514th and 515th overall. The runners experienced something of a strong headwind in the final 2 miles. Interestingly, Tudor Moldovan won the Kinsale 10 miler in 53:49, whilst the day before he had placed a close 2nd in the Ardagh 1 miler with a time of 53:07, only 6 seconds behind the winner. Also on Sunday, but in the UK, Rory Goldsmith decided to take part in the Brighton half marathon where he placed 278th in a field of nearly 6,400 and a time of 1:29:00. There was one race in the mountains this weekend on which to report. In Co. Meath an IMRA race took place on a 10.8km loop of Mullaghmeen. 90 runners took part in the event which involved a 423m climb on difficult terrain. Conor Greenan placed 4th in 51:03, followed by Becky Quinn who finished in 16th spot, but also 2nd female finisher, in a time of 56:47, with Lean Ni Chiobhain a little further back in 21st and 3rd in a time of 58:23. We had a significant number (7 in total) of first finishers among the runners from the club who took part in 18 parkruns on Saturday morning. Once again, Louise Dobbyn was 1st in Cabinteely, where she placed 11th overall with a time of 23:18. In the field of 117, she was joined by Barry O’Mahony (4th in 21:53) and Barry O’Neill (15th in 23:52). Catherine Thornton took advantage of a trip to Co. Sligo and ran in the Ballina Parkrun, placing 3rd overall and 1st female finisher in a field of 66 and a time of 19:06, whilst Dave Carter ran 19:04 to take first place in the 140-strong field in Shanganagh. Dave was followed by Stephen Mulligan (37th in 24:53), Carina Davidson (53rd and 11th in 25:45), Orlaith de Burca (92nd and 25th in 29:21) and Jill Nason (105th and 35th in 30:22). Isabelle Cairns placed 9th and 1st in New Ross in a field of 81, her time being 21:42, whilst in Ennis, Co. Clare, Eoghan Kerins ran in Lees Road Parkrun and led the field of 69 home in a time of 21:37. Not to be outdone, Kathryn Gibbons was also a first finisher in Derry City where she also placed 6th in a time of 22:27 and a field of 62, whilst Esther Requena Ferri recorded the same result, placing 5th in Fairview in a time of 21:53. Her partner, Cristian Vilchez Ceballos, placed 2nd in the same event with a time of 20:58 in a field of 68. Other strong finishes were recorded firstly by Sharon Woods in Poolbeg where she placed 25th and 2nd in a field of 88. Sharon’s time was 22:33 and she was followed by Fiona Bane (67th and 19th in 29:15) and Donna Barry (77th and 27th in 31:13). Louise O’Riordan tailwalked there. Secondly, Brian Scanlan placed 4th in River Valley Park in a time of 22:25. Brian was accompanied by 85 other runners there. Then, in Castlehaven, in a modest field of 19, and in advance of the Kinsale race, Fiona Shine placed 4th and 3rd in 25:29, whilst Lisa Shine placed 5th and 4th in 25:33 and Mairin Shine took 13th and 9th spots in 33:41. We had a decent turnout in Bushy Park with its field of 146. Alan Kavanagh placed 13th in 22:23, followed by Emily Glen (42nd and 9th in 25:17), Brian Leonard (48th in 25:45), Marta Imaz (55th and 12th in 27:00) and, as she frequently does before a BHAA race, Mairead Cashman (70th and 17th in 28:33). In Poppintree with its field of 122, Toby Benham placed 7th in 21;22, whilst Kevin Lambe ran in Mullingar where he took 14th spot in 23:30. There were 99 runners in the event. Maria Pertl placed 24th and 10th in Tolka Valley Park. Maria’s time was 30:41 and she ran alongside 31 other runners. Meanwhile, Maureen McGinley ran in Waterford Nature Park, where, in a field of 35, she placed 12th and 5th in a time of 27:20. We had 2 runners in Marlay Park. Phil Sykes placed 60th in 23:19, whilst Fiona Lane placed 221st and 55th in 29:14. The field measured 331. Paul F. Kelly paced the 25-minute runners in St. Anne’s where he ran 25:03 for 125th spot. In a field of 374, Aoife Kelly ran 24:47 for 118th and 15th places. Finally, in Queensland Australia our Australian exile, Kris Ryan, joined 104 other participants in Paradise Point where she finished in 30th and 6th places. BHAA Central Bank 4-mile XC race (159) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ieuan Hopkins 1 00:21:21 7 Niamh Allen 1 00:22:46 Crusaders AC runners 6 Ger Forde 00:22:45 7 Niamh Allen 00:22:46 8 Garret Dunne 00:22:49 9 Ciaran Diviney 00:23:13 11 Michael Wycherley 00:23:20 15 Joe McDermott 00:23:55 25 Henry Griffin 00:24:46 27 John McAuley 00:25:03 45 Ronan Moynihan 00:26:07 47 Léa Braud 00:26:09 (3) 68 Suzanne Martin 00:27:33 (6) 72 Karl Walsh 00:27:54 88 Mairead De Faoite 00:28:55 (8) 92 Robbie Moore 00:29:13 109 Olwyn Dunne 00:30:41 (16) 110 Michael McGovern 00:30:42 132 Hannah Jones 00:32:52 (27) 152 Mairead Cashman 00:37:27 (36) 158 Paul E. Kelly 00:39:16 Full results here: https://irp.cdn-website.com/15e8030f/files/uploaded/Race%20Master%202022%20Central%20Bank%20Cross%20Country-2.pdf Ardagh 10-mile road race (116) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Mick Fogarty 1 00:53:01 10 Fiona Gettings 1 01:04:35 Crusaders AC runners 40 Richard Kavanagh 01:15:29 57 Kate Murray 01:21:09 (7) Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/ardagh_10_mile_challenge_2022/4272/results Wicklow Hospice 10k race (89) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ronan Wogan 1 00:34:28 6 Tara Kennedy 1 00:39:49 Crusaders AC runner 19 Ian Smith 00:45:40 Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/wicklow_hospice_half_marathon_and_10k/4293/results Wicklow Hospice Half Marathon (86) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Gavin Kelly 1 01:15:33 21 Vanessa Fenton 1 01:31:08 Crusaders AC runner 17 Darragh Cunnane 01:30:27 Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/wicklow_hospice_half_marathon_and_10k/4293/results Adare 10k race (738) Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime 1 Jake O’Regan 1 00:30:09 (CR) 9 Grace Lynch 1 00:34:32 (CR) Crusaders AC runner 138 Luke Haran 00:44:11 Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/adare_10k_2022/4207/results Kinsale 10-mile race (541) Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime 1 Tudor Moldovan 1 00:53:49 13 Jennifer Montague 1 01:01:08 Crusaders AC runners 61 Tim O’Donnell 01:09:00 62 Fiona Shine 01:09:00 (6) 514 Mairin Shine 01:44:49 515 Lisa Shine 01:44:49 Full results here: https://my.raceresult.com/193526/live?fbclid=IwAR16QEdtlvlc9KYqaoCAAnBC6U9vCEivxUm5pVenhfwFA6ZR6JapBigDXwc IMRA Mullaghmeen 10.8k race (90) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ross Reilly 1 00:48:25 5 Jennifer Elvin 00:52:25 Crusaders AC runners 4 Conor Greenan 00:51:03 16 Becky Quinn 00:56:47 (2) 21 Lean Ni Chiobhain 00:58:23 (3) Full results here: https://www.imra.ie/events/results/id/2138/category/O/ Derry City Parkrun (62) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Kieran McGill 1 00:20:11 6 Kathryn Gibbons 1 00:22:27 Crusaders AC runner 6 Kathryn Gibbons 00:22:27 (1) Ballina Parkrun (66) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Oisin Murray 1 00:17:50 3 Catherine Thornton 1 00:19:06 Crusaders AC runner 3 Catherine Thornton 00:19:06 (1) Castlehaven Parkrun (19) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Florence Fitzgerald 1 00:21:47 3 John Casey 1 00:23:38 Crusaders AC runners 4 Fiona Shine 00:25:29 (3) 5 Lisa Shine 00:25:33 (4) 13 Mairin Shine 00:33:41 (10) Marlay Parkrun (331) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ruben Bartelink 1 00:17:44 52 Lisa Ryan 1 00:22:57 Crusaders AC runners 60 Phil Sykes 00:23:19 221 Fiona Lane 00:29:14 (55) Fairview Parkrun (68) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Shane Roe 1 00:20:56 5 Esther Requena Ferri 1 00:21:53 Crusaders AC runners 2 Cristian Vilchez Ceballos 00:20:58 5 Esther Requena Ferri 00:21:53 (1) Poppintree Parkrun (122) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Aidan McGrath 1 00:19:01 8 Deirdre Lyons 1 00:21:32 Crusaders AC runner 7 Toby Benham 00:21:22 St. Anne’s Parkrun (374) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Graham O’Dwyer 1 00:16:13 59 Carla Moran 1 00:22:31 Crusaders AC runners 118 Aoife Kelly 00:24:47 (15) 128 Paul F. Kelly 00:25:03 Cabinteely Parkrun (117) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ted Burke 1 00:19:36 11 Louise Dobbyn 1 00:23:18 Crusaders AC runners 4 Barry O’Mahony 00:21:53 11 Louise Dobbyn 00:23:18 (1) 15 Barry O’Neill 00:23:52 Poolbeg Parkrun (88) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Christopher O’Reilly 1 00:17:49 11 Miranda Spencer 1 00:19:39 Crusaders AC runners 25 Sharon Woods 00:22:33 (2) 67 Fiona Bane 00:29:15 (19) 77 Donna Barry 00:31:13 (27) 88 Louise O’Riordan 00:54:37 Tolka Valley Parkrun (32) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ryan Murphy 1 00:20:58 7 Clare Gilligan 1 00:24:02 Crusaders AC runner 24 Maria Pertl 00:30:41 (10) Shanganagh Parkrun (140) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 David Carter 1 00:19:04 16 Emily Kane 1 00:22:27 Crusaders AC runners 1 David Carter 00:19:04 37 Stephen Mulligan 00:24:53 53 Carina Davidson 00:25:45 (11) 92 Orlaith de Burca 00:29:21 (25) 105 Jill Nason 00:30:22 (35) River Valley Parkrun (86) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 3 Cecile Ollagnier 1 00:20:53 2 Fergal Cavanagh 1 00:22:06 Crusaders AC runner 4 Brian Scanlan 00:22:25 Bushy Parkrun (146) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Tom Leguereau 1 00:18:17 6 Christine Kinsella 1 00:21:13 Crusaders AC runners 13 Alan Kavanagh 00:22:23 42 Emily Glen 00:25:17 (9) 48 Brian Leonard 00:25:45 55 Marta Imaz 00:27:00 (12) 70 Mairead Cashman 00:28:33 (17) Waterford Nature Parkrun (35) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Trevor Swift 1 00:18:33 8 Ciara Losty 1 00:23:44 Crusaders AC runner 12 Maureen McGinley 00:27:20 (5) Mullingar Parkrun (99) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Kamil Orenczuk 1 00:18:59 18 Blaithnaid Peters 1 00:24:36 Crusaders AC runner 14 Kevin Lambe 00:23:30 New Ross Parkrun (81) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Colm Grace 1 00:19:06 9 Isabelle Cairns 1 00:21:42 Crusaders AC runner 9 Isabelle Cairns 00:21:42 (1) Lees Road Parkrun (69) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Eoghan Kerins 1 00:21:37 19 Michelle Downes 1 00:27:05 Crusaders AC runner 1 Eoghan Kerins 00:21:37 Comments are closed.
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