The club was out in force on Sunday in a sunny Tymon Park for the 2021 edition of the Dublin Novices Cross Country races. No fewer than 15 women and 27 men from the club competed in the event, representing, respectively, 15% and 20% of the record fields. It was great to see such participation and indeed a return to XC, albeit in an unusual venue for the Novices. The races normally take place on the Acres in the Phoenix Park but as these are not yet normal times, no events have been allowed there, at least for the time being (although, as we go to press it seems that at least one road race will be held in December). Dry, sunny and with little wind, this was cross country in the early part of the season. No strength-sapping mud to contend with on any of the major hills and turns. Still, the course, (on the west side of the park outside the M50), most of which has been used for the intermediates in the past, provided its challenges including a couple of hair-raising, quad-busting descents. As we know, what comes down must come up and the women had to negotiate these hills 3 times, whilst the men had the treat of running up and down them 4 times. We begin with the women’s race which started with a field in excess of 100 runners. There were no fewer than 15 of our members taking part and led home by Léa Braud who produced an admirable effort to finish in 8th place overall in the 4k race. Léa ran 15:22, just over a minute behind the race winner. Further down the field, Fiona Shine was our second placed runner in 24th spot (16:07), followed by our two other scorers, Isabelle Cairns (26th in 16:15) and Sarah Lyons (28th in 16:22). The 4 runners produced a resulting 86 points which was solid enough to give us 4th place behind team winners DCH (24) who were followed by Clonliffe (39) and Raheny, a mere 8 points ahead of us with 78. There were 11 full teams in the competition, with at least 12 clubs represented overall. So, this was a fairly mean achievement. Following Sarah came Aine Crotty (33 in 16:28), with Ciara Lynch (36th in 16:35) not too far behind. Ciara was followed by Rebecca Fleming (38th in 16:42), Joanne Carey (40th in 16:49), Kathryn Gibbons (46th in 17:02), newcomer Danielle Hopkins enjoying a baptism of fire (49th in 17:04), veterans Dee Ni Chearbhaill (61st in 17:41), Lisa Shine (79th in 18:40), Olwyn Dunne (81st in 18:47) and Sharon Woods (82nd in 18:57). Our 15th runner, Carina Davidson, was, unfortunately, unable to complete the distance. The men’s race of 6k in distance enjoyed an even larger field, with 135 finishers, involving at least 14 clubs. We offered 25 participants in the race, a significant percentage of the overall field. As with the women’s race, the quality of the men’s event was extremely high and, despite our large presence, it would have been tough to podium either individually or as a team. Ultimately, we collectively came home in 7th place, just 5 points behind Portmarnock in 6th and 32 points behind 3rd place Donore. With 1st, 2nd, 7th and 14th individual places it was no surprise that Raheny were the clear team winners with 24 points, followed by Tallaght with 68. Kieran Little ran a steady race to lead our contingent home. He placed 9th on the 4 major loop course in a time of 19:19, with the winning time being 18:34. Our next runner home was Garret Dunne who placed 30th in 20:46, followed by Conor Greenan, a relative newcomer to the club (36th in 21:02) and Peter O’Toole (38th in 21:05) who narrowly avoided being taken out early in the race before the huge field spread out. These 4 were our scorers. Our next runner was another newcomer, Toby Benham, who placed 40th in 21:11 and he was followed by Dee Lawlor (52nd in 21:46), another recent member Aaron Cashman (55th in 22:00) with Jan Manschot (56th in 22:01) hard on his heels, Joe McDermott making a welcome return to racing after a long injury spell (62nd in 22:10), new father Joe Walsh (66th in 22:22), recent member Paul O’Hara (69th in 22:30), Karl Walsh (71st in 22:35), Barry McGuire (72nd in 22:39), Eddie Nugent (77th in 22:54), recent members Elliott O’Beirne (87th in 23:12) and Cathal O’Hara (91st in 23:15) not so far apart, Phelim Murray (104th in 24:22), another recent member Cian Coughlan (116th in 25:13), Neil Brown (119th in 25:47), Brendan Glynn (123rd in 26:44), Gian Piero Allerta (124th in 26:53), Alan Kavanagh (127th in 27:38), Robbie Moore (130th in 28:07), Aitor Arribas Velasco (132nd in 28:41) and Mark Doyle (135th in 30:03). We should spare a thought for Adam Flanagan who was forced to drop out of the race for a second weekend in a row with persistent calf cramps. In any event, thanks to everyone who turned out. It bodes well for the future! The weekend saw a great deal of activities involving our members or exiles around the world. We start close to home in Wexford where, on Saturday morning, in drizzly but otherwise benign conditions, Miriam Logan and Liz Nixon took part in the Wicklow Hospice Half marathon. Miriam reported that the course is somewhat hilly, but could be a lot harder given that it takes place in Wicklow. In a field of 143 runners, Miriam placed 55th overall and 4th woman across the line in a creditable time for the course of 1:45:13, having used a couple of runners ahead of her running an even pace as pacers from about 3k until about 16k when she was able to up it and overtake, whilst Liz did not finish too far behind in 62nd and 8th places in a time of 1:47:08. We also had runners in Kildare on Saturday in the Donadea Running Club-organised 10k. In a field of 164, Gill Earley managed to put herself into 2nd place in the women’s race with a time of 42:13. Gill’s overall position was 20th and she was followed by Edel Haverty (42nd and 5th in 46:34) and by Kate Murray (70th and 9th and 4th F40 in 50:33). That same Saturday, two of our members successfully completed the famous Marathon des Sables held each year in Morocco. In temperatures averaging in the mid-30s Celsius each day over 5 days (the sixth and last day being a fun run!) as well as having to traverse sand dunes and other inhospitable terrain (whilst at the same time carrying all your provisions for the week and any change of clothing) the challenge is to complete the series of daily marathons adding up to approx. 225km. The runners had to spend each night recovering in the open air of the desert. This year there was a higher than usual attrition rate and this may well have been down to the fact that it was being held later in the year than in the past. Daniel O’Mahony distinguished himself with an overall finishing position of 71st, completing the 5 daily legs of the challenge in almost exactly 40 hours, with Richard Phelan about 3 hours behind in 107th place. Both results were phenomenal and many congrats should go to both. The starting field measured about 700. There were other marathons that took place over the weekend. We had three runners in Manchester. The race took place on Sunday in pleasant and benign conditions and Kieran Martin in particular enjoyed the experience. He ran a super 2:54:37, for 281st place out of approx. 14,000 runners who started the race, and did so with negative splits. Conor Parle had not had the best of preparations for the race but pronounced himself satisfied with his 3:57:15, way off his PB, but an accurate reflection of how he might do. Padraig Sheehan was our third participant and he ran an otherwise excellent 2:47:53, despite easing off significantly after 25km. Padraig finished in 129th place. Our Chicago-based exile, Damien O’Brien, found his experience challenging in the warm and humid Chicago marathon, also on Sunday. It really was a game of two halves in Damien’s case and he finished in 3:16:21 after being on for sub-3 hours early on. Hats off to him for continuing to stick with it despite his difficulties late on. Elsewhere abroad, in Italy Italo Giancaterina took part in the StraFosinone 10.5k race, which he won on the hilly course (with a climb over 5k in the middle of the race) in 35:30. Also victorious far from home was our exile in Canada, Ian Kinsella, who on Sunday won the Sticks and Stones 10k in Hamilton Ontario. Then, in London, our exile there, Thom Martini, took part in the Adidas City Run which was held around the perimeter of the Emirates Stadium. The winner of the race would be the athlete who could complete the furthest distance in an hour. Thom managed 14.5k in that time, placing 107th out of nearly 2000 runners. As usual we end with the parkruns which again this week witnessed significant Crusader participation. Abroad, Aidan Hudner ran in Pollok in Glasgow where in a field of 244 he placed 42nd in 23:12, whilst Kris Ryan ran in Coomera, Queensland, Australia where she placed 25th and 6th out of a field of 111 in 24:34. Back in Ireland, we had 3 runners in Malahide. In a field of 268, Brian Scanlan placed 40th in 22:30 with Deirdre Kennedy, 111th and 25th in 26:31 and Darina Scully, 194th and 64th in 30:14. Colm Foley placed 39th in 23:46 in Griffeen Park, with Mairead Cashman placing 114th and 26th in 29:01 in a field of 199. In St. Anne’s with its field of 427 we had 4 runners starting with Enda Currid who placed 18th in 19:33, followed by Michael Maughan (63rd in 21:33), Sharon Woods (144th and 36th in 23:58) and Maureen McGinley (294th and 95th in 29:06). Brian Hyland was first finisher in Knocknacarra leading home a field of 99 in a time of 18:40, whilst Eoghan Corrigan was also a sole representative for the club in Bushy Park where he placed 52nd in a field of 160 and a time of 24:46. Orlaith de Burca ran in Shanganagh where she finished in 77th and 20th places out of 107 runners in a time of 29:41, whilst Kevin Flynn ran 32:36 for 80th place in a field of 105 in Porterstown. Cormac McGuire ran in Tolka Valley where in a field of 56 he placed 16th in 23:43, whilst Liam Lyster placed 14th in a time of 27:17in a field of 52 in Strokestown. Cristian Vilchez and Ceballos and Esther Requena Feri did the double again, this time in Fairview, with both recording first finisher places in a field of 69. Cristian ran 18:15, whilst Esther ran 20:30 for 3rd place overall. We had 4 runners in Cabinteely. In a field of 125 David Carter ran 19:54 for 6th place, followed by Tomas Dunne (18th in 22:55), Olwyn Dunne (58th and 12th in 26:40) and Gavan Doherty (64th in 27:15). Finally, in Father Collins Park we had a large contingent of 9 athletes. They were led home by Cian Coughlan (20:37), followed by Phelim Murray (12th in 21:59), Emer Kenny, one week before the Paris marathon (30th and 4th in 24:23), Aine Crotty (33rd and 5th in 25:01), Sarah Lyons (34th and 6th in 25:02), expectant mother Irene Gorman (55th and 14th in 27:57), Fiona Shine (66th and 22nd in 29:25) and Mairin Shine (75th and 26th in 30:19). The field measured 92 runners in total. Donadea Running Club 10k (164) Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime 1 Stephen Conroy 1 00:33:49 4 Laura McDonnell 1 00:36:47 Crusaders AC runners 20 Gillian Earley 00:42:13 (2) 42 Edel Haverty 00:46:34 (5) 70 Kate Murray 00:50:33 (9) Full results here: https://www.popupraces.ie/race/donadea-running-club-10k-2021/ Wicklow Hospice Half marathon (143) Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime 1 Bryan O’Connor 1 01:16:21 24 Zoe Greene 1 01:31:04 Crusaders AC runners 55 Miriam Logan 01:45:13 (4) 62 Liz Nixon 01:47:08 (8) Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/wicklow_hospice_marathon_and_half_marathon/3961/results Malahide Parkrun (268) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Annette Kealy 1 00:18:36 2 Scott Crowley 1 00:19:00 Crusaders AC runners 40 Brian Scanlan 00:22:30 111 Deirdre Kennedy 00:26:31 (25) 194 Darina Scully 00:30:14 (64) Knocknacarra Parkrun (99) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Brian Hyland 1 00:18:40 2 Deirdre Gibbons 1 00:19:42 Crusaders AC runner 1 Brian Hyland 00:18:40 St. Anne’s Parkrun (427) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Cillian O’Leary 1 00:15;47 21 Orla Manley 1 00:19:40 Crusaders AC runners 18 Enda Currid 00:19:33 63 Michael Maughan 00:21:33 144 Sharon Woods 00:23:58 (36) 294 Maureen McGinley 00:29:06 (95) Griffeen Parkrun (199) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Michael Gonda 1 00:18:49 22 Jiaojiao Wang 1 00:22:20 Crusaders AC runners 39 Colm Foley 00:23:46 114 Mairead Cashman 00:29:06 (95) Shanganagh Parkrun (107) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Ben Mitchell 1 00:17:20 17 Sharon Ryan 1 00:21:46 Crusaders AC runner 77 Orlaith de Burca 00:29:41 (20) Cabinteely Parkrun (125) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Darragh Flynn 1 00:17:55 14 Joanne Ryan 1 00:22:14 Crusaders AC runners 6 David Carter 00:19:54 18 Tomas Dunne 00:22:55 58 Olwyn Dunne 00:26:40 (12) 64 Gavan Doherty 00:27:15 Father Collins Parkrun (92) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 1 Matthew Collins 1 00:17:48 16 Paola Basile 1 00:22:25 Crusaders AC runners 8 Cian Coughlan 00:20:37 12 Phelim Murray 00:21:59 30 Emer Kenny 00:24:23 (4) 33 Aine Crotty 00:25:01 (5) 34 Sarah Lyons 00:25:02 (6) 55 Irene Gorman 00:27:57 (14) 66 Fiona Shine 00:29:24 (20) 69 Lisa Shine 00:29:25 (22) 75 Mairin Shine 00:30:19 (26) Tolka Valley Parkrun (56) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Brian Fay 1 00:19:16 11 Shauna Dunne 1 00:23:09 Crusaders AC runner 16 Cormac McGuire 00:23:43 Bushy Parkrun (160) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Robert Switzer 1 00:18:37 24 Rebecca Brennan 00:22:05 Crusaders AC runner 52 Eoghan Corrigan 00:24:46 Porterstown Parkrun (105) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Paul Morgan 1 00:18:20 10 Fintina Kealey 1 00:23:28 Crusaders AC runner 80 Kevin Flynn 00:32:36 Fairview Parkrun (69) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Cristian Vilchez Ceballos 1 00:18:15 3 Esther Requena Ferri 1 00:20:30 Crusaders AC runners 1 Cristian Vilchez Ceballos 00:18:15 3 Esther Requena Ferri 00:20:30 (1) Strokestown Parkrun (52) Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime 1 Patrick Holmes 1 00:21:05 2 Jacinta Ni Chonghaile 1 00:22:16 Crusaders AC runner 14 Liam Lyster 00:27:17 Comments are closed.
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