Fionnuala Britton finishes 5th in cross country race in France...

Fionnuala Britton of Ireland was in action on Sunday at the Cross de l'Acier 2014 cross country race in France. While she may have finished 5th, the main thing is that she was the second European athlete and only four seconds behind the current European cross country champion Sophie Duarte.

With the 2015 Euro Cross Country coming up in Bulgaria in early December, the signs are good that Fionnuala may be close to a podium finish. Will she win? If I had to guess then I'd say no. I don't think Duarte will retain her title either. The one to watch may well be Britain's Gemma Steel who is having an excellent year.

The race will take place on Sunday the 14th of December.

Results of the Cloyne Commons 4k race...Sun 30th Nov 2014

This new 4k race in Cloyne was held on Sunday the 30th of November 2014.

1 13:15    MCGRATH, Sean    East Cork AC    M    05:19.7
2 13:29    CANAVAN, Darragh    Leevale AC    M    05:25.4
3 13:33    MALONE, John    Youghal AC    M40    05:27.0
32 16:34    LEAHY, Eileen    Midleton AC    FJ    06:39.8
43 17:16    CLEARY, Vicki    Midleton AC    F    06:56.7
49 17:40    CLEARY, Eibhlin    East Cork AC    F    07:06.3

The full results can be seen HERE

Photos......
1) Kieran Minihane has a gallery of photos HERE

Results & Photos of the Blarney 5k charity run...Sat 29th Nov 2014

There was a charity 5k held in Blarney today, Saturday the 29th of November 2014. Graham Nudds was on hand to take a few photos and you can see the gallery HERE

The results for the first 422 can be seen HERE

Update on National Marathon results...

Athletics Ireland have recently updated the results for the National Marathon which was part of the Dublin Marathon at the end of October. The biggest change was probably the fact that Clonmel AC womens team actually finished first in the senior women cateregory. In the womens F35 section, St.Finbarr's AC move from 1st down to 2nd and Midleton AC went from 3rd to 5th.

The various individual category prizes for runners from Cork remain the same.

All the relevant links can be seen in this previous post.

Pre-Indoor Season Track & Field Meet in Castleisland...Sat 29th Nov 2014

For anyone interested, there is a Pre-Indoor Season Track & Field Meet in Castleisland, Co.Kerry on Sat 29th Nov 2014.

Meet start time will be 12 noon and it will cost  €5.

Events...150m, 600m, 3000m, Long Jump, Shot Putt

More info...http://munsterrunning.blogspot.ie/2014/11/pre-season-track-field-meetcastleisland.html

Canicross : Running has gone to the dogs...

Running has gone to the dogs quite literally! In most races, dogs are usually banned and for good reason. However in the UK and in Europe, there is a sport called 'Canicross' which is a cross country race for runners and dogs. Turning the usual rules on their head, you can't take part unless you have a dog.


Before today, I had never heard of this sport so I presume there isn't one in Ireland. It's probably just a matter of time though :o)

The BBC had a news story about it today.

Directions for the Munster Masters Cross Country in Watergrasshill...Sun 30th Nov 2014

The Munster Masters Cross Country Championships are coming up in Watergrasshill on Sunday the 30th of November. The venue is located next to Kartworld which is just a few hundred metres east of the village.

As you can see from the map below, it's pretty simple to get to. Just leave the M8 motorway and from the relief road just to the east of M8, look for the signpost for Kartworld. Also look for signs on the day.

For more details on the course, see this map on the Munster Athletics website.

Athletics Ireland announce Irish team for Euro XC championships...

Athletics Ireland have today announced the Irish Team for the 21st SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Samokov, Bulgaria on December 14th.

Athletes from Munster highlighted...
Senior Men
Paul Pollock...Annadale Striders A.C.  , Mark Hanrahan...Leevale A.C  , Mick Clohisey...Raheny Shamrock A.C. , Kevin Maunsell...Clonmel A.C , Breandan O’Neill...DSD AC  , Kevin Batt...St Coca’s AC 

Senior Women
Fionnuala Britton...Kilcoole A.C.  , Michelle Finn...Leevale AC, Laura Crowe...An Riocht  , Sara Treacy...Dunboyne AC.  , Siobhan O'Doherty...Borriskane AC, Ann Marie McGlynn...Letterkenny A.C.

U23 Men
Liam Brady...Tullamore Harriers, Brandon Hargreaves...Clonliffe Harriers, Ryan McDermott...Annadale Striders A.C. , Kevin Dooney...Raheny Shamrock A.C , Dara Chesser...Ennis Track
U23 Women
Mary Mulhare...Portlaoise A.C.  ,Maria O'Sullivan...Raheny Shamrock A.C.  , Rachael Smyth...St. Coca's AC , Orna Murray...UCC/Ferrybank  , Shona Heaslip...An Riocht AC, Ellie Hartnett...UCD  

Junior Men
Kevin Mulcaire...Ennis track A.C.  , Con  Doherty...Westport A.C. , Jack O’Leary...Mullingar Harriers  , Rick Nally...DSD AC, David Harper...Sligo  , Brendan O’Connor... An Riocht  ,
Junior Women
Hope Saunders...Clonliffe Harriers, Orlaith Moynihan...Clonmel A.C , Clodagh O'Reilly...Annalee A.C.  , Rhona Pierce...Leevale AC

Guest Article...The Manchester Road Race - Cork Connection With Famous Race

Today is of course the Thanksgiving Holiday in the United States. There are many races on today in the US as a result and one of the most famous is the Manchester Road Race in Connecticut. The following article was written by John Walshe of Ballycotton about an Irish connection with the event.

CORK CONNECTION WITH FAMOUS RACE ...By John Walshe

The fourth Thursday of November is known as Thanksgiving Day across the United States of America and is a national holiday. Along with the traditional roast turkey dinner, the day is marked by a number of long-established sporting events, including some of the oldest road races in the world.

One such event takes place in Manchester, Connecticut, and will today celebrate its 78th anniversary. Irish runners have played their part in the cherished roll of honour associated with this famous race, amongst them Corkman Mark Carroll. 

In connection with the 2011 75th anniversary race, a 176 page full-colour publication entitled ‘The Manchester Road Race: A Seventy-Five Year Celebration’ was published and the heading on page 158 honoured Carroll and his American-born wife, Amy Rudolph – it simply refers to the couple as “Mr & Mrs Road Race.” The Olympians, who married in 2005, have a combined total of seven Thanksgiving Day victories to their credit over the 4.748-mile route which has been used since the inaugural event began way back in 1927. Mark’s victories came in 1998 and 2000, the latter occasion also seeing Amy taking her inaugural title. His time on both occasions was 21:49 and between 1996 and 2010, Carroll could also boast of three second place finishes and was always a contender for top honours. After finishing runner-up in the two previous races, Carroll’s victory in 1998 in the drenching rain saw him hold off Brian Baker of the United States and Kenyan runners Paul Mwangi and Daniel Kihara to take the coveted title by a margin of 13 seconds. Two years later, it was a much closer affair. Three elite runners – Carroll, Janko Bensa of Yugoslavia and Mohamaed Amyn of Morocco – battled down Main Street with Bensa marginally ahead but the Corkman responded with a final burst of speed with 60 metres left to win again as just two seconds covered the top three.

Carroll’s wife, Amy, a native of Kane in Pennsylvania, has a more impressive record in the race. She has notched up a total of five victories from 14 starts, along with five second places and two thirds. In 2002 she finished 22nd overall in a time of 24:25, the highest ever place by a female runner. Carroll and Rudolp both attended Providence College and other former Providence runners to feature on the Manchester honour list include John Treacy, winner in 1979 (the year he won the second of his two World Cross-Country titles). His time on that occasion of 21:26 would stand for 17 years and second that day was the winner’s brother Ray, a former member of Leevale.

Martin Fagan is the most recent Irish winner, his time of 21:41 six years ago securing the title to add to his second place in 2007. Waterford man David McCarthy - another Providence athlete - maintained the strong Irish connection in 2010 when taking third position in 21:45.

From humble beginnings in 1927 when just 12 runners took part to today’s massive event which now sees entries capped at a phenomenal 15,000, the Manchester Thanksgiving Day Road Race is now one of New England's premier sporting events.

Former Boston Marathon winner Amby Burfoot, now Editor-at-Large for Runner’s World, won the event on nine occasions in the 1960s and 70s but probably just as impressive is his record of running the race every year for the past 51 years! Now aged 68, no doubt he will continue for a few years yet and will be in the line-up again this time along with Dennis McCormack who is going for his 50th consecutive Manchester race.  

For Mark Carroll from Knocknaheeny, who is still Irish record holder for the 3000 metres with his 7:30.36 from 1999, the race will always invoke special memories: “Thanksgiving means Manchester for us,” he says of the affection it holds for both himself and his wife. “We are so thankful for the friendships we have forged there,” added Amy, “it is a race that not only gives to the running community, but to the community as a whole. Everyone has been so wonderful to us and our hearts will always be in Manchester on Thanksgiving Day.”

Leevale AC from Cork named club of the year at AAI awards ceremony

At the 2014 Athletics Ireland Award Ceremony on Wed 26th Nov, Leevale Athletic Club from Cork was awarded Club of the Year for the second year running. Tony Shine (Head Coach) and Finbarr O’Brien (President) accepted the award on befall of the club.

From Athletics Ireland.....“Leevale is one of the powerhouses of Irish Athletics and the Cork Club enjoyed an exceptional run of success in 2014. The year began with victory for the Leevale men’s and women’s teams at the inaugural Indoor League held in Athlone. Leevale had the most podium finishes at the national senior championships. They continued their success with the men’s team claiming the outdoor league final and the women’s team finish forth. Their women’s team won the national road relay title and the men won the national 10k team title.”

Catching Kayla...a remarkable story about a teenage runner with MS

Kayla Montgomery is a teenager in the USA who despite suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS), is also one of the top distance runners in North Carolina. Her condition means that when she heats up during a race, she loses any sensation in her legs and can no longer feel them. This also means that she can't stop at the finish line and her coach has to be on hand to catch her.

You can see her inspiring story below...

Badwater Ultramarathon returns to Death Valley in 2015

One of the most famous ultra-marathons in the world is the Badwater 135...a tortuous 135 mile ultra that starts in Death Valley below sea level and finishes at Mt. Whitney Portal at 8,360 feet (2530m). In 2014, the route had to be changed due to new safety rules introduced by the National Parks Service due to the extreme heat.

In order to comply with the new rules, the race will now start at night and runners will also be to a maximum of four crew members and one support vehicle, down from six and two, respectively, in the past.

In a statement, the organisers said......."We are just excited to return to Death Valley. Most of the impact of the new rules will be on us, the organizers, with more bureaucracy and additional expenses. Event participants and support crews won't see too much that is different, other than more rules to follow."

The race will be held July 28-30, and registration opens January 19.

This video clips below are from the documentary Running on the Sun 2000. It really captures the flavour of the event. It's split up into 9 parts...

Part 1 of 9....Check out the training method at 5:20...I'd recommend it!

Part 2 of 9

Part 3 of 9

Part 4 of 9

Part 5 of 9

Part 6 of 9

Part 7 of 9

Part 8 of 9

Part 9 of 9

Booksigning by Derval O'Rourke in Mallow next Saturday 29th Nov 2014

We are delighted to announce Derval O'Rourke is coming to Philip's Bookshop, Mallow, next Saturday at 2pm to sign copies of her new book "Food for the Fast lane".
This is a beautifully put together book with loads of practical recipes for anybody in training or just looking to be healthier.  It would make a great present for Christmas.

Philip O Flynn
Philip's Bookshop
36 Bank Place
Mallow
Co Cork.
Tel 00353 22 42471

Is there a problem with Cross Country in Ireland???

The National Inter-County Cross Country Championships were held in Dundalk on Sunday the 23rd of November 2014. See previous post. On the face of it, there were some excellent performances but when you looks at some of the stats, some issues are raised.

See chart below...this is the number of athletes entered and taking part from each of the counties in Munster. Also note that for a county team to score, 6 men or 4 women were needed.

Cork....There were some superb performances from some of the Cork athletes. Michelle Finn and Mark Hanrahan finished second in their respective races and qualified for the Irish team for the European Cross Country Championships next month. There was a big turnout from the mens teams... 15 men entered while 10 actually took part. Two others not on the Cork team but from Cork clubs also ran. The Cork team took silver on the day which was a big success for the county.

However, only 5 women were entered on the Cork team. On the day, only 3 ran so they couldn't score as a team. Cork is the second largest county in terms of registered athletes and has a dedicated cross country course near Riverstick, possibly the only one in the country. And yet the county couldn't field a full womens team?!?! Why wasn't a larger womens team entered?

Kerry....In numerical terms, Kerry is small yet the womens team took silver which was a fantastic performance. Not only that but two of their athletes Laura Crowe and Shona Heaslip will now represent Ireland at senior and U23 level. However, there was no mens team.

Limerick.....Zero and zero. No men or women from Limerick which is supposed to be the sporting capital of Ireland.

Waterford.....No teams. Just two individuals representing their clubs.

Tipperary.....12 men were entered and 7 took part. The Tipperary mens team finished 5th. On the womens side, Siobhan O'Doherty who is the best distance runner in the county finished an impressive 5th. However, again no womens team.

Clare.....In terms of entering teams, Clare were one of the best. They entered 15 men and 8 ran. They entered 8 women and 5 ran.

This was a feature not only confined to teams from Munster. For example, the winner of the womens race was Fionnuala Britton yet there was no womens team from Wicklow. If you look at the mens race, only 12 counties scored while only 7 counties scored in the womens race.

A lot of this is of course not down to individual athletes but the respective athletic boards in each county. If an individual can't make it on the day then a replacement should be found. As for the original question...."Is there a problem with Cross Country in Ireland?"...then I'd suggest there is. If only 7 out of 32 counties can field teams for the womens Inter-County competition then something is wrong.

Results of the Inter-Counties Cross Country Championships...Sun 23rd Nov 2014

The AAI Inter-Counties Cross Country Championship were held at Dundalk IT today Sunday the 23rd of November 2014. With international places up for grabs for the European Cross Country Championships in December, there was a lot of interest in this race and the standard was pretty high.

In the womens race, Fionnuala Britton was the clear winner with Michelle Finn of Leevale AC finishing in 2nd place and Laura Crowe in 3rd. Laura is coached by former Olympian Donie Walsh of Leevale AC. The top 15 are shown below with some others from Munster.

The Kerry team finished in 2nd place.

Place County Positions...Points
1 Dublin "A" 8, 9, 14, 15...46
2 Kerry "B" 3, 19, 21, 22...65
3 Donegal "A" 6, 10, 37, 38...91
4 Down "B" 7, 32, 39, 42...120
5 Clare "A" 17, 29, 36, 47...129
6 Meath "A" 4, 41, 50, 54...149
7 Louth "B" 23, 48, 49, 51...171

The senior womens results can be seen HERE

In the mens race, Paul Pollock was the winner while Mark Hanrahan of Leevale AC finished in 2nd place in what was a hotly contested finish....

Mark has been on the Irish cross country team in the past and will be making the trip to Bulgaria in December for the Euro XC championships.

The Cork mens team finished 2nd!

540 30:42 2 HANRAHAN Mark Leevale A.C. Cork "A"
541 32:16 16 SHEAHAN Colm Leevale A.C. Cork "A"
535 33:08 27 HARTY Michael East Cork A.C. Cork "A"
666 33:30 33 O'SULLIVAN Mark (U23) Bandon A.C. Cork "A"
543 33:41 39 TWOMEY Tim Leevale A.C. Cork "A"
538 33:45 41 DONOVAN Barry Leevale A.C. Cork "A"

Place County Positions Points
1 Dublin "A" 3, 5, 7, 22, 23, 26...86
2 Cork "A" 2, 16, 27, 33, 39, 41...158
3 Antrim "A" 1, 18, 30, 49, 52, 56...206
4 Clare "A" 9, 17, 19, 40, 61, 69...215
5 Tipperary "C" 4, 11, 24, 36, 67, 83...225
6 Donegal "A" 25, 29, 35, 38, 48, 60...235
7 Derry "A" 13, 34, 37, 55, 71, 81...291
8 Meath "A" 15, 28, 58, 65, 97, 107...370
9 Galway "A" 8, 66, 68, 76, 89, 99...406
10 Down "C" 62, 72, 73, 77, 85, 94...463
11 Louth "B" 54, 78, 79, 80, 82, 93...466
12 Cavan "B" 51, 86, 87, 90, 92, 95...501

 The Senior mens results can be seen HERE

All the results including the juvenile races can be found HERE

Carmel Parnell of Leevale AC leads Irish F55 team to team Gold

The British and Irish Masters Cross Country International was held in Wollaton Park in Nottingham on Saturday the 22nd of Nov 2014. One notable success of the day was that of the Irish womens F55 team that took Gold in that category. The Irish F55 team was led home by Carmel Parnell  of Leevale AC also won her fifth successive title in the F55 age group with a time of 23:26.

A special mention as well for Eamon McEvoy of St.Finbarr's AC who was part of the M60 team that finished second and Frank Hayes of East Cork AC who was part of the M45 team that finished 2nd.

M35...2nd team...Rep Ireland...3  Mark Ryan, 4  Philip Harty, 7  John Dunne, 12  Roger Barrett    
M40...2nd team...Rep Ireland...8  Niall Lynch, 9  Damien Lawless,  10  Peter O'Sullivan, 12  Pat Byrne
M45...2nd team...Rep Ireland...4  Mick Traynor, 5  Des Kennedy, 10  Damien Martin, 12  Frank Hayes
M50...3rd team...Rep Ireland...4  Mick Byrne, 6  Pat Malone, 12  Gerard Maloney, 13  Brian Kelly
M55...2nd team...Rep Ireland...2  Jim Stafford,  8  Martin McDonald, 10  Eugene Moynihan
M60...3rd team...Rep Ireland...1  Paul Elliott, 6  Eamon McEvoy, 15  John Todd
M65...1st team...Rep Ireland  13, 2  Martin McEvilly, 3  Pat Collins, 8  Barry Potts 
M75...2nd team...Rep Ireland 2  Jim McNamara, 7  Joseph Maguire, 12  John Fitzsimons  
F40...2nd team...Rep Ireland...4  Jackie Carthy, 5  Sylvia Malone,  6  Cathy McCourt    
F45...3nd team...Rep Ireland ...6  Colette Touhy, 13  Cathryn Brady, 14  Maria Dolan 
F55...1st team...1  Carmell Parnell  2  Lucy Brennan  6  Pauline Moran 
F65...3rd team...Rep Ireland...7  Carmel Macdhomhaill,  8  Bridget McCabe,  10  Una Reilly
F70...3rd team...Rep Ireland...6  Ann Woodlock, 11  Pam Benson, 12  Maureen Fitzgerald  

The full results can be seen HERE

Irish Sports Council launch new Anti Doping awareness campaign, #BlackMark.

The Irish Sports Council recently launched a new Anti Doping awareness campaign called #BlackMark. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the Anti Doping programme and promote the message of clean sport.




John Treacy, CEO, Irish Sports Council, said "The Irish Sports Council is proud of our collaborations with our international colleagues and intelligence agencies on doping activities and trends so that we can ensure that our Programme continues to be one of the best anti-doping programmes in the world"

IAAF announce qualifying standards for the 2015 World Championships

The 2015 IAAF World Athletic Championships will be held in Beijing, China between the 22nd  and 30th of August. Yesterday on the 19th of November, the IAAF announced the qualifying standards which can be seen below.

One of the big changes is that they have done away with the 'A' and 'B' standards. There is now just one qualifying standard. The full conditions can be seen HERE

The qualification period is as follows....
a) For the 10,000m, marathon, race walks, relays and combined events: from 1 January 2014 to 10 August 2015 (closing date for the final entries)
b) For all other events: from 1 October 2014 to 10 August 2015 (closing date for the final entries).

Looking through the various standards, it's obvious that some are probably beyond the current abilities of a lot of Irish athletes, especially the sprint events. One possible exception might be Kelly Proper of Ferrybank AC who has a PB from the 2014 European Championships of 23.15 in the 200m. As you can see above, the standard is 23:20.

In the womens marathon, the standard is 2:44 which is one minute slower than the standard for the 2013 world championships. With only 3 athletes allowed on the Irish team, it'll be interesting to see who gets selected? Already, the three Irish women on the team who went to the European Championships in Zurich last August have already qualified based on their times...
Fionnuala Britton 2:31:46, Sarah Mulligan 2:42:43 and Barbara Sanchez who is one second inside the standard with 2:43:59!
There are others as well including Maria McCambridge who finished 2nd in the Dublin marathon in 2:34:19. Add a few others into the mix and several Irish women might be in contention for those 3 spots.

2019 World Championships : In other related news, it was also announced in the last few days that the 2019 World Athletic Championships will be held in Doha in Qatar.
The voting was as follows:
First round: Doha - 12, Eugene - 9, Barcelona - 6 (Barcelona was eliminated).
Second round: Doha - 15, Eugene - 12.

Due to the extreme heat, the competition will be held in October as opposed to August. Expect...
1) It will still be too hot
2) The crowds will be small...i.e. empty stadium
3) Impact on European Cross Country Championships in December.
4) Huge local support for Qatari athletes who were all born in Ethiopia and Kenya.

Race on giant treadmill in Chile next weekend

This is perhaps one of the strangest races ever. Next weekend, the Chilean firm Oxford Fitness are organising a race on a treadmill that can hold 10 runners at once. For the first hour, the treadmill will speed will be 10kph (9:39 minutes/mile). In the second hour, the speed will be gradually increased until only one runner is left. Four of these races will be held.

See the promo video below...

Nearly 155,000 people make claims in Vibram court case

Many of you are no doubt aware of the Vibram brand and their 5 finger shoes. Back in May 2014, there was a news item about how Vibram settled a legal case after falsely advertising that the shoes could reduce foot injuries and strengthen foot muscles, without basing those assertions on scientific evidence.

While technically not guilty, the company did agree to a $3.75 million settlement. This was to take two forms...

The first is to refund customers who purchased a pair of Vibram FiveFingers between March 21, 2009 and the date of "the first dissemination of summary settlement notice or class notice, whichever is earlier". In this case, it's was thought that FiveFingers was going to award claimants between $20 and $50 per pair. With so many claims and legal and admin expenses, this in fact turned out to be just $8-$9 per pair.

The second is that claimants can get up to two pairs of shoes without any kind of receipt or proof of purchase.

The majority of the claims, 67 percent, were for two pairs of FiveFingers, the maximum number in the suit for which no proof of purchase was required. Less than a third of the claims, 28 percent, were for one pair, while 3 percent of the claims were for more than two pairs.

Roughly half of the $3.75 million settlement is expected to go towards admin and legal fees.

It would seem however as if this settlement only applies to Vibram FiveFinger customers in the USA. Vibram FiveFinger shoes currently sell for an average of $94 a pair in the US.

Scott Gibson of Bandon AC is the Cork City Sports Athlete of the month for Sept 2014

Scott Gibson of Bandon AC has been awarded the Cork City Sports Athletics Person of the Month for September 2014. 17 year old Scott was part of the Bandon AC team that traveled to the Group B European Champion Clubs Cup Track & Field juniors competition in Leiria in Portugal back in September. Bandon AC were the only Irish team taking part and Scott won the 400m race.

Some other running news items from the week...Mon 10th - Sun 16th Nov 2014

Some news stories from the net over the last week...Mon 10th - Sun 16th Nov 2014
Dark cloud of doping hangs over Kenyan athletics...Irish Times...
Euro 10000m champion Jo Pavey too old for lottery funding...BBC Sport...
Glasgow bids for 2019 Euro Indoor Championships...BBC Sport...
Katie Kirk mulls over international switch from GB to Ireland...BBC Sport...

Entry deadline to the Waterford Half-Marathon extended until Wed 19th Nov

The deadline for entries to the Waterford Half-Marathon has now been extended until midnight on Wednesday the 19th of November. The race is on Saturday the 6th of December at 10am.

In 2013, this race attracted a field of over 1300 runners and this year is likely to be as big again if not bigger.

More info in the Running in Munster site..

Results of the East Cork Senior Cross Country Championships...Sun 16th Nov 2014

The East Cork Senior and juvenile uneven age XC Championships took place today in Ballinahina and were hosted by Carraig na bhFear AC.  In the senior mens team competition Carraig na bhFear AC finished 1st, Midleton AC 2nd and Youghal AC 3rd.  Frank Hayes of East Cork was the first man, followed by his teammate John Hennessy then Willie Walsh of Carraig na bhFear 3rd

The senior womens race was won by Fiona Santry of East Cork, Ruth Mellerick Youghal was 2nd and Emma Leahy of East Cork was 3rd.  The team prizes went to East Cork 1st, Carraig na bhFear 2nd and Youghal 3rd.

Carraig na bhFear won the overall competition for best boys XC club and also won the overall girls competition.

The photo above shows the winning Carrig na bhFear team

The results can be seen HERE

Results of the Cork BHAA Mahers Sports 6k road race...Sun 16th Nov 2014

Just over 400 runners turned out for this new 6k road race in Little Island. 

1 Cathal O' Donovan   18:34 Temp Reg
2 James Mccarthy M1  19:21 MAHER SPORTS
3 Darren Molloy M2  19:53 Navy M-A-1
54 Deirdre Nagle  23:17 Temp Reg
61 Andrea Jones  23:46 Temp Reg
78 Aoife Quigley F1  24:33 Dub BHAA

The full results can be seen HERE

Photos...(Updated Sun 9pm)
1) Kieran Minihane has a gallery of photos HERE 
2) Majella Costello has a gallery HERE 
3) Tara Costello has a gallery HERE 
4) Joe Murphy of Eagle AC has a gallery HERE 
5) Graham Nudds has a gallery of over 300 photos HERE

 For more info on Mahers Sports, visit http://mahersports.ie/

Calf strengthening exercises...

Reminder...Cork BHAA Mahers Sports 6k in Little Island on Sun 16th Nov 2014

Just a reminder that the Cork BHAA Mahers Sports 6km road race is coming up next Sunday the 16th of November 2014. The race starts at 11am and the venue is at Mahers Sports in East Gate, Little Island near Cork City.

As per normal with Cork BHAA races, the entry fee is €5 for registered runners and €8 for non-reg.

Entries usually open around 10am.

This is a brand new race and the course looks pretty fast. There certainly aren't any hills worth talking about.

You'll find more info in this earlier post.

You can find a map of the course with directions HERE

Screening of Unbreakable : The Mark Pollock story opens in Douglas cinema for 2 weeks

Just a reminder for those who haven't seen it. The documentary film  Unbreakable : The Mark Pollock story will be shown at the Gate cinema in Douglas, Cork at 6:30pm from Friday the 14th to Wednesday the 26th of November 2014.

More info in this earlier post.

McFarland USA...New running film out in 2015

A new film called McFarland USA starring Kevin Costner is due for release in the US in February 2015. It's likely it will be available in Europe soon after.

Storyline..."Inspired by the 1987 true story, McFarland, USA follows novice runners from McFarland, an economically challenged town in California’s farm-rich Central Valley, as they give their all to build a cross-country team under the direction of Coach Jim White (Kevin Costner), a newcomer to their predominantly Latino high school. Coach White and the McFarland students have a lot to learn about each other but when White starts to realize the boys’ exceptional running ability, things begin to change. Soon something beyond their physical gifts becomes apparent—the power of family relationships, their unwavering commitment to one another and their incredible work ethic. With grit and determination, the unlikely band of runners eventually overcomes the odds to forge not only a championship cross-country team but an enduring legacy as well. "



Background info....
1) LA Times
2) Bakersfield Californian

Results of the Run in the Dark in Cork...Wed 12th Nov 2014

Over 2,100 people turned out for this years Run in the Dark charity event in Cork City. Despite a quick shower before the start, it was mostly dry for the race. As might be expected from a lapped course, it get pretty congested at times especially for the faster runners lapping people.

In the 5k, the majority were clearly women while the bulk of the field in the 10k were men.

 These are the provisional winners...
5k
1    Shane HEALY 18:34 Male  (1)
2    Joey FEERY 19:08 Male  (2)
3    Jamie GAHAN 20:08 Male  (3)
9    Hilary SHAW 20:43  Female  (1) 
11    Stephanie PHILPOTT 21:04 Female  (2)
15    Olivia MURPHY 21:41  Female  (3) 
10k
1    Jonathan MURPHY 38:08 Male  (1)    1
2    Connor MITCHELL 38:53 Male  (2)    3
3    Padraig SHEEHAN 38:56 Male  (3)    2
16    Marie MURPHY 41:21 Female  (1)    16
22    Mary DENNEHY 41:47  Female  (2)    25
43    Claire O DONOVAN 43:41  Female  (3)    68

The provisional results of the 5k are HERE

The provisional results of the 10k are HERE

Photos...(Updated 14th Nov)
1) Kieran Minihane has a gallery of photos HERE 
2) The organisers have a number of photos HERE

Video.....
This was of course primarily a charity event. This video from the Evening Echo tells a bit about those supporting the event...

92-Year-Old sets Half-Marathon World Record

Mike Fremont, 92, en route to a pending single-age half marathon world record At the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon recently, 92 year old Mike Fremont set a new record by completing the Half-Marathon in a time of 3h 19m 30s. This now adds to his other records of 2:56:26 for a 90 year old and 3:03:56 for a 91 year old.

In an interview in 2013, he said that his times are getting 7-8 minutes slower per year as he gets older.

New Floodlit Running Track opens in Mid Cork

A new Floodlit Running Track opens in Mid Cork...

A new running track has just opened in the village of Clondrohid to the north-west of Macroom in Mid-Cork. With assistance from West Cork Development Partnership (€199,290) and Cork County Council (€15,000) and the support of Airtricty, this new 250m floodlit track is a very welcome development for local athletes and runners.

More info......Floodlights for the new running track in Clondrohid (3km west of Macroom) will be hopefully be switched on from the 24th November 2014.  This 250m floodlit 4 lane rubber track also has an integrated 6 lane 100m sprint and run off area.  The track located on Clondrohid Community grounds is available free of charge to members of the public during daylight hours and a €2 fee applies when the lights are on. An evening timetable for when track lights are on will be posted and updated on Clondrohid Astro Facebook page  http://on.fb.me/1tCeeCh more information on the track can be found on www.clondrohidastro.com

Overview of the site as it was being developed

Update on the measurements......Lane 4 is 250m in length with 6 lanes for the 100m sprint. This was measured by track contractor (Crawfords) who installed surface and contracted a company to line and measure same. The track is also marked for 200m with staggered starts on lanes 1-4 finishing at end of 100m straight.

While the main target audience is mainly people just keeping fit, the owners would welcome any feedback and suggestions from club or elite runners to improve their facilities.

Location of Clondrohid.... 

Mallow AC take Silver at the Munster Intermediate Cross Country Championships

The Munster Intermediate Cros Country Championships were held on Sunday 9th November 2014 in Newmarket-On-Fergus, Co. Clare. Not too many runners traveled from Cork but the Mallow AC ladies team managed to win Silver just ahead of An Ríocht AC. The Cork womens team finished in 3rd.

Members of Mallow AC at the Munster Intermediate Cross Country Championships

Club Team Points
Place Club Positions Points
1 Enis Track 4, 6, 13, 20...43
2 Mallow AC 10, 12, 16, 22...60
3 An Riocht 1, 14, 23, 25...63
4 KIB/N.Clare 1, 19, 21, 24...75
5 East Cork 7, 17, 26, 28...78

County Team Points
Place County Positions Points
1 Kery 1, 3, 5, 9...18
2 Clare 2, 4, 6, 11...23
3 Cork 7, 8, 10, 12...37

In the mens intermediate competition, Michael Harty of East Cork AC took an individual silver medal. Michael has had a great cross country season to date having won both the Cork Novice and Intermediate competitions.

There were no clubs from Cork in the team results while the Cork team itself finished 5th out of 6.

The full results can be seen HERE

The Munster Masters Cross Country Championships are coming up in Watergrasshill in Cork on Sunday the 30th of November 2014.  This was originally supposed to be in Carraig na bhFear but it is now at Kartworld which is just to the east of Watergrasshill. You can see a map showing the location at the bottom of this page on the Eagle AC website.

Entry procedure for the 2015 Ballycotton 10 mile road race

The entry procedure for the 2014 Ballycotton 10 mile road race has now been announced and it is pretty similar to last year.

ENTRY PROCEDURE FOR BALLYCOTTON ‘10’ ROAD RACE 2015

The following is the entry procedure for next year’s Ballycotton ’10’, to take place on Sunday March 8th. Numbers are limited as usual and there be will be a combination of online and postal entries as follows:

1) Online entries will open on Friday December 5th at 2pm when the first 1,300 will be accepted. At 8pm on the same evening, a further 1,000 will be accepted, making an online total of 2,300.

2) A PDF copy of the entry form will be published on the website on Monday December 8th (forms will also be available in John Buckley Sports, Tri n Run in Midleton and Ger Wyley Sports, Dungarvan, the same day). Also, those who have sent in stamped addressed envelopes will have the forms posted out on Friday December 5th. The first 200 non-club entries to arrive by post will be added to the above number, giving a total of 2,500.

3) After that, only AAI club members and those who ran the four races in the Ballycotton Summer Series 2014 will be accepted (by post) up until Friday December 19th and for those living overseas up until Tuesday January 6th.

4) As usual, a limited number of elite entries will be available nearer the date.
Entry fee for the 2015 race is again €15 (plus booking fee of €1.05 if entering online).

******
The main difference to last year is that entries will open twice on Friday the 5th of December.

Note that there are 200 places available for non-club runners who enter by post. In other words, if you are a non-club runner and you did not complete the four races in the 2014 Summer Series then you really need to make sure that you enter online.

Please note that it is highly likely that all the 2300 online entries will sell out on Friday the 5th of December. There is also a good chance that the online system may well crash so allow for delays.

If you are a club runner or have done the summer series then just print out the form and post it in before the 19th of December.

The race website is http://www.ballycottonrunning.com/

It's also worth noting that despite the huge demand for places and the fact they could easily charge twice the price, the organisers have kept the entry fee at €15.

Results of the Valley Rovers 7k fun run...Sun 9th Nov 2014

This 7k run was held in Brinny near Inishannon and was organised by Valley Rovers Camogie Club. A total of 175 people took part.

1. Connor Dolan
2. Michael Coakley
3. Alan Ryan.
1.  Roisin McDaid
2. Stephanie Johnson.
3. Dolores Duffy.

1st U16 Male: Eoin Lynch.   
1st U16 Female: Clare Flynn.
1st Valley Rovers Camoige Player: Orla O'Sullivan & Ciara O'Sullivan

The full results can be seen HERE

Photos....
1) There are a number of photos from Charlie Johnson HERE

Some other running news items from the week...Sat 1st - Sun 10th Nov 2014

Some news stories from the net over the last week...Sat 1st - Sun 10th Nov 2014
Fionnuala Britton hits back at 'begrudgers' over marathon spot in Zurich last August...Irish Independent...
Strength exercises for runners...PTDC...
Working Group set up to analyse European reluctance to bid for Olympics...Olympic Council of Ireland...
Former Irish international hurdler Derval O'Rourke makes switch to rugby player development...Irish Times...
Accuracy tests of GPS devices on the track...SingleTracks...
"Beara Peninsula becoming a focal point for runners"...Southern Star...
Marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe calls for tougher drugs testing...RunBlogRun...
Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki runs New York City Marathon in 3: 26...ESPN...

Date announced for the 2015 Ballycotton 10 race...

Ballycotton '10' 2015...The 38th Ballycotton '10' roadrace takes place on Sunday March 8th 2015. Start time 1.30pm.

Details to announced on Monday November 10th 2014

Results of the Eyeries 5 mile road race...Sat 8th Nov 2014

An amazing 273 people turned out for the inaugural Eyeries 5 mile road race in West Cork on Saturday the 8th of November 2014.While some were obviously walkers, it's an impressive number all the same for a new race in this remote part of the Beara Peninsula in West Cork.

1 28:25    O'SHEA, Alex    St. Finbarrs AC    M40    05:40.9
2 29:05    HARRINGTON, Michael    Bantry AC    M40    05:48.9
3 30:59    SOMERS, Ray    Athenry AC    M    06:11.7
15 36:39    SULLIVAN, Mairead    Athenry AC    F    07:19.6
17 36:49    REDDY, Siobhan    unatt/London    F    07:21.6 
22 38:14    O'SULLIVAN, Geraldine Bantry AC F50  07:38.6

The full results can be seen HERE

Photos...(Updated Sun 9th @1pm)
1) Richie Hodges has a gallery HERE 
2) John Eagle Photography has a gallery HERE

Real Cross Country...

Next time you hear someone complaining about the muck in a cross country race then think of this one in Leamington Spa in England. Real cross country...and gets a lot more spectators ;o)

Athletics Ireland release club stats for Oct 2014

Athletics Ireland have just released the membership numbers for the various clubs around the country. The stats for Cork are shown below....

The largest club in Cork including juveniles and adults is Bandon AC with 658. They also have the largest number of juvenile/junior members with 477.

In terms of adult membership, it's a tie between St.Finbarr's AC and Midleton AC with both having 216.

The full stats for all the clubs in Ireland can be seen HERE

Run in the Dark comes to Killarney...Wed 12th Nov 2014

For anyone who couldn't get into the Cork Run in the Dark event, this one might be of interest. A 5k will be organised in Killarney on the same night at the same time...Wed 12th Nov 2014 at 8pm.

From the organisers.....We are delighted to announce that the Mark Pollock run in the dark is coming to Killarney! The Josef Urbanszky fund committee has organised a pop up version of the event which will take place next Wednesday November 12th at 8pm. You can register online at http://www.runinthedark.org/killarney/ The entire registration fee goes to the Mark Pollock fund which seeks to find a cure for spinal cord injury. For anyone who wishes we have sponsorship cards available the money from which goes directly to the Josef Urbanszky fund.

Volunteers wanted for Run in the Dark race in Cork City...Wed 12th Nov 2014

This charity 5k & 10k race in the heart of Cork City has seen a huge level of interest this year and the event in Cork is now sold out.

The organisers are looking for volunteers to help out on the night with stewarding. With a route around the centre of Cork City, there are no shortage of junctions that need to be manned.

If you can help then email Sarah at  sarah.odonovan@markpollocktrust.org

Both the 5k & 10k race start at 8pm on Wednesday evening the 12th of November.

More info about event at http://www.runinthedark.org/

Seminar about Ultra-Running in Dublin...Sat 22nd Nov 2014

One for the headcases...

More info HERE

New York Marathon last weekend was the largest marathon ever

The New York City Marathon was held last Sunday (2nd Nov 2014) and had a record 50,564 finishers. Not only is this a record for the event but it makes it the largest Marathon ever. The old record was set last year also in New York when 50,266 finished.

Only 309 of the 50,869 people who started the race dropped out which is impressive considering that the conditions were very tough with winds of 30-40 mph buffeting the runners.

From an Irish point of view, some 434 Irish runners took part.

Two Irish women finished in the top 100 women...Margaret McMahon from New York (36th...2:57:13) and Una Plant from Kinsale (82nd...3:04:40)

Updated...Irish results

Top 5 marathons by number
New York City...2nd Nov 2014...50,564
Chicago...12th Oct 2014...40,802
Paris...7th Apr 2013...38,690
London...22nd April 2012...36,672
Boston...15th Apr 1996...35,868