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Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Dave Brady sets new Irish record of 104 marathons in one year

Today at the Lock Up the Year marathon in Leixlip, Dave Brady from Kildare completed his 104th marathon for 2014. Dave who is a member of Raheny Shamrocks AC in Dublin has now set a new Irish record for the most number of marathons run in one year.

Dave Brady after reaching 300 marathons in 2013

In 2012, Dave Brady ran 46 marathons that year to set a new Irish record. In 2013, Brian Ankers ran 82 marathons to set a new record. Now, Dave Brady has pushed the bar even higher with 104 marathons in one year.

Dave Brady completed his first marathon in 1986 and it took him 21 years to do the first 100. With the creation of so many new marathons, it took just 6 years to do the next 200. He passed the 300 mark in August of 2013. Add in the balance of 2013 and the 104 of 2014 and he must be up around the 430 mark at this stage.

104 is an incredible figure not only from the physical effort of doing them but also the logistics is getting to each one.
Dave Brady with Brian Ankers today after passing the 104 mark

Reminder...Bandon 5 mile road race on New Years Day

Just a reminder that the Bandon 5 mile road race is coming up on New Years Day at 1pm.

More info including maps, directions and a course preview in this earlier post.

Results of the MMRA Trail Race in Glenbower Woods in Killeagh...Sun 28th Dec 2014


Just over 100 adults turned out for this trail race in Glenbower Woods in Killeagh in East Cork on Sunday the 28th of Dec 2014. The event was organised by the Munster Mountain Running Association (MMRA) and included several children's race beforehand over shorter distances.

1 21.57 2655 Noel Berkeley
2 23.30 2442 Ger McGrath
3 24.00 2443 Ger Morrison
6 25.04 2459 AnnMarie Holland
11 25.43 2441 Evelyn Cashman
24 27.38 2424 Sorcha Kearney


The full results can be seen HERE

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

Tuesday, December 30, 2014

German TV documentary about doping in athletics

At the start of December 2014, a German TV documentary was aired which alleged that athletics in Russia was rotten to the core with doping being sanctioned and covered up at the highest levels. The implications reach all the way to the IAAF, the world governing body for athletics. It's fair to say that this is probably one of the most significant stories to hit athletics in recent times and will probably have huge repercussions.

The one hour programme in German can be seen below with English subtitles.

Part 1 of 4

Part 2 of 4

Part 3 of 4

Part 4 of 4

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Results of the Kilworth GAA Players 5k fun run...Fri 26th Dec 2014

138 people took part in this 5k in Kilworth in NE Cork.

1...Eric Browne ...17:44
2...John Murphy... 17:54
3... Frank O'Carroll...18:09
1...Joan Ennis...19:56
2...Ellen Hanley...21:39
3...Barbara Clancy...21:46

The results can be seen HERE


Results of the Cloyne Commons 4k road race...Sun 28th Dec 2014

A total of 218 people took part in this 4k road race in Cloyne in East Cork.

1 12:45    MCGRATH, Sean    East Cork AC    M    05:07.7
2 13:19    MALONE, John    Youghal AC    M40    05:21.4
3 13:34    CURRAN, Thomas    Youghal AC    M    05:27.4
9 14:54    HOLLAND, Ann-Marie    St. Finbarrs AC    F40    05:59.6
31 15:50    GILROY, Helen    Midleton AC    F45    06:22.1
32 16:19    LEAHY, Eileen    Midleton AC    FJ    06:33.8


The results can be seen HERE


Results of the Togher 5k road race...Sun 28th Dec 2014


A total of 321 runners turned out for this years Togher 5k road race on Sunday 28th Dec 2014. Organised by Togher AC, this is up 11.5% on the 288 of 2013.

1 Sergiu Ciobanu     MS 15:17
2 Ciaran Doherty     MS 15:36
3 Ciaran Lane     MS 15:38
15 Teresa Doherty     FS 16:42
24 Sinead O'Connor  FS 17:38
54 Andrea Bickerdike FS 19:29


The full results can be seen HERE

Photos...(Updated 2nd Jan)
1) Derek Costello of Eagle AC has a gallery of photos HERE
2) Gearóid Ó Laoi has a gallery HERE
3) Doug Minihane has a gallery HERE 
4) Pauline Hennessey has a gallery on her Facebook page ( Facebook account required to view)
5) Tony Noonan has a gallery HERE
6) Mick Dooley of Eagle AC has a gallery of photos HERE
7) Graham Nudds has a gallery of photos HERE
8) Tony Kelleher has a video of the start HERE

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Photos of the Carrigaline Christmas 5k & 10k fun run...Sat 27th Dec 2014


This fun run took place on the walkway between Carrigaline and Crosshaven on Saturday 27th Dec 2014. I'm not if there will be any results for this one. Last week, the organisers Carrigaline Road Runners AC said this...."This event was originally planned to be a chip timed event but unfortunately chip timing is now not possible due to circumstances beyond our control. The top 3 finishers in each category will be timed and there will be placings for all participants. We will also have a clock at the finishing line. "

5k Results
M 1 Shane    Healy    M 18:25
M 2 Kevin    Rooney    M 18:05
M 3  Eddie    Murphy    M 19:05
F 1 Breda O'Donovan    F 26:48
F 2 Dace McCarthy    F 27:00
F 3 Ann Bogan    F 27:01

10k Results
1 Owen    Casey    M 33:35    1st
2 Alan    O'Brien    M 37:05    2nd
3 Keith    Lee    M 37:18    3rd
10 Elaine    Guinane    F 42:24    1st
28 Linda    O'Connor    F 47:34    2nd
30 Bernadette Lee F 47:54    3rd 


Limited results


Photos...
1) Kieran Minihane has a gallery HERE
2) Doug Minihane has a gallery HERE

Results of the Belgooly 4 mile road race...Fri 26th Dec 2014

415 BRIAN KEANE LEEVALE MSNR 1 19.43
422 CILLIAN O'LEARY IND MSNR 2 20.21
453 JOHN MEADE ST FINBARRS AC MSNR 3 20.37
70 UNA PLANT KINSALE TRI CLUB F40 49 1ST LADY 25.22
192 ANNA O'NEILL DOHNEY AC F45 2ND LADY 25.49
151 TERESA MURPHY KENT F35 3RD LADY 26.17


The results can be seen HERE

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

GOAL charity mile to be held in several venues in Cork on Christmas Day


The GOAL charity mile will be held in the following venues on Christmas Day...

Cork, Bishopstown...Venue: Cork IT, Oldtown, Bishopstown...Date: 25/12/14...Time: 10.30am - 12.30pm
Cork, Ballynoe...Venue: St Catherine's GAA Club...Date: 25/12/14...Time: 10:30am-Midday
Cork, Charleville...Venue: St Josephs Foundation, Charleville...Date: 01/01/2015...Time: Midday...GOAL Organiser: Michael Herlihy...Phone: 086 316 8954
Cork, Doneraile Park, Doneraile...Date: 25/12/2014...Time: 10am-Midday...Organiser: John Holland...Phone: 085 243 2115

The full list of events in all of Munster can be seen HERE

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Club membership numbers in Cork at the end of 2014

Athletics Ireland have released the club membership numbers for the end of December 2014. These are probably the most significant ones of the year as they give the true size of each club.

As you can see from the data below, the largest club is Bandon AC with Leevale AC in second place. 


In terms of adult membership, these are the clubs with over 80 members...


1) St.Finbarr's AC are now the largest club in Cork by just one member! Their numbers have remained pretty steady since 2012.

2) Midleton AC have seen a big drop in numbers since 2012, possibly due to newer clubs starting up or expanding their membership.

3) Bandon AC have grown by 35% in the last year and are now 3rd largest.

4) Eagle AC are up by 18.5% in the last year and move from 5th to 4th.

5) Leevale AC grew by 5% in 2014. It's worth noting also that a lot of their members would be involved in the track & field side of athletics rather than just running.

6) Youghal AC have seen a big drop in numbers, again possibly due to other clubs getting bigger.

As you can see, the other clubs have shown varying degrees of growth with Watergrasshill AC and Ballymore-Cobh AC attracting big numbers.

These are the figures for clubs between 30 and 80 members.....

1) The biggest change here is Bantry AC. They've dropped from 180 in 2012 to 62 in 2014.

The rest show varying degrees of growth or staying pretty steady.

As always, it's worth pointing out that the various clubs may be slightly different in that they often have their own priorities in terms of track and field, cross country, Fit4Lfe, marathon and half-marathon training and so on.

In terms of counties with over 1000 adult club members, there are 7...

 Dublin, Cork and Meath are all enjoying strong growth.

You can see the figures for all the clubs in Ireland on the Athletics Ireland website.

Monday, December 22, 2014

Fionnuala Britton finishes 3rd in Lotto Cross Country in Belgium


Fionnuala Britton was in action on Sunday the 21st of December at the Iris Lotto CrossCup in Brussels which sported an international field of athletes.


Going head to head with a bunch of Kenyan athletes in the senior womens 6000m race, Fionnuala managed to out sprint one in the home straight to finish an impressive third.




SENIORS DAMES - SENIOREN VROUWEN             6000m           
1 CHEPNGETICH SHEILA        KEN    sen    NA        19:57
2 KIPYEGON FAITH    94    KEN    sen    NA        20:12
3 BRITTON FIONUALA    92    IRE    sen    NA        20:34
4 NENKAMPI PERINNE        KEN    sen    NA        20:35
5 JEBET RUTH        BAH    sen    NA        20:55
6 KOSGEI CYNTHIA    93    KEN    sen    NA        20:59
7 KOSTER MAUREEN    92    NED    sen    NA        21:00
8 CARTON LOUISE    94    BEL    sen    ACME    25    21:02
9 DEADMAN LAUREN    84    GBR    sen    NA        21:24
10 HEWISON KATIE    85    GBR    sen    NA        21:26


Full results HERE


This is the same position that Fionnuala achieved in the same race in 2013....previous post.

Athletics Ireland membership up 10% in 2014

There were two separate news items today concerning the growth of running as a sport in the country.

Athletics Ireland announced that their membership...which is made up of members of all the various athletic clubs in the country...is up 10% in 2014. That comes on top of strong growth in previous years and is up 63% since 2010 and 120% since 2007.

Membership is made up of both adults who would be mostly involved in running and juveniles who would be more involved in the athletic side of the sport.

Running as an activity is now the third most popular (8.5%) with swimming (9.4%) and personal exercise (12.2%) taking the top spots.

The Irish Sports Council also released a report today showing the growth in numbers active in various sports in 2014. One interesting section concerned the growth of various sports bodies between 2010 and 2014.


As you can see, Athletics Ireland is way up but so too is membership of cycling Ireland which has over trebled. Triathon Ireland is well up also but is probably starting from a smaller base. Other sports seem to have hardly made any progress. Examples like Ladies GAA football and swimming for whatever reason.

For more info, see the info on the respective websites...Athletics Ireland...Irish Sports Council...

Michelle Finn of Leevale AC named Cork City Sports athlete of Nov 2014

The award for the Cork City Sports athlete for the month of November goes to Michelle Finn of Leevale AC. Michelle fnished 2nd in the senior women’s National Inter Counties Cross Country Championship held at Dundalk IT on November 23rd. That performance secured Michelle a place on the Irish team for the European Cross Country championships held in Bulgaria last week in which the Irish team finished third.

Donie Walsh & Michelle Finn of Leevale AC
Website... http://www.corkcitysports.ie/

TV programme 'Marathon Men' now on the RTE Player service


In 2010, Ken Whitelaw and Gerry Duffy undertook the mammoth task of running a marathon in every county in Ireland over 32 days. In the process, they also raised in the region of €500,000 for charity. A TV programme titled Marathon Men which shows their 32 day journey was aired on RTE Two on Sunday the 21st of Dec 2014.

This 50 minute programme is now available to view on the RTE Player Service until mid-January. You can see it HERE

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Munster Star Award winners for 2014 announced...

A list of winners for the Munster Star Awards for 2014 has just been announced. Not suprisingly, Leevale AC in Cork have got a fair few of the individual and club awards. A full list is now available on the Munster Athletics website.

The awards ceremony will be on Saturday 31st January 2015 in the Blarney Golf Resort Hotel, Blarney, Co. Cork.

Indoor &Track and Field Awards
Cork Jack Murphy Leevale A.C.
Junior Women Grace McKensie Belgooly A. C.
Junior Men Sam Healy Leevale A. C.
Senior Men Barry Healy Youghal A. C.
Master Men John Murphy Liscarrol A. C.
Achievement Award Michele Fin Leevale A.C., Siobhan O’Doherty Borisokane A.C., Laura Crowe An Riocht A.C.
Hall of Fame Cork

Club Awards
Indor Juvenile Leevale A. C.
Junior/Senior Leevale A. C.
Track & Field Juvenile Leevale A. C.
Junior/Senior Leevale A. C.

County Awards
Indoor & T/F Juvenile Cork
Indoor & T/F Senior Cork
Indoor & T/F Masters Cork

Juvenile Cross Country Awards
Cork Rhona Pierce Leevale A. C.

Cross Country County Awards
Best Juvenile County Cork
Best Senior County Cork

Results of the Newmarket 5k road race...Sun 21st Dec 2014

A total of 232 runners turned out for this years Newmarket 5k road race in NW Cork. One of the most noticeable features of this particular race was the strength of the field with no less than 18 runners breaking 17 minutes.

The winner of the womens race was Michelle Finn of Leevale AC who won a team bronze medal at the European Cross Country Championships in Bulgaria just a week ago. Michelle's winning time was 16:33.

1 14:38    SHEEHAN, Colm    Leevale AC    M    04:42.5
2 14:45    CIOBANU, Sergiu    Clonliffe Harriers    M    04:44.7
3 14:53    HARTY, Michael    East Cork AC    M    04:47.3
14 16:33    FINN, Michelle    Leevale AC    F    05:19.5
25 17:11    KIELY, Martina    St. Finbarrs AC    F    05:31.7
26 17:16    O'CONNOR, Sinead    Leevale AC    F    05:33.3


The full results can be seen HERE

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Ron Hill has now run every day for 50 years...Sat 20th Dec 2014


76 year old Ron Hill from England has competed in no fewer than three Olympic Games and in his long career has also set several world records, including a 2:09:28 time at the 1970 Commonwealth Games marathon in Edinburgh.

He is also famous for having the longest running streak in the world having run every day for 50 years. Having started on the 20th of December 1964, his run at the Manchester Heathon Park parkrun on Saturday the 20th of December 2014 was the 50th anniversary. At a rough calculation and including leap years, that's over 18,260 days!

He still maintains a daily record of all his runs and has now clocked up 160,000 miles which is equivalent to running around the world six times.

Additional info...
1) BBC News
2) Athletics Weekly
3) Three runners from Cork travel to England for Ron Hill's 75th birthday
4)  Interview with Ron Hill from 2012
5) Article in the Irish Examiner by John Walshe...Sat 20th Dec

Results of the Shanagarry Christmas 5k...Sat 20th Dec 2014

The annual Shanagarry Christmas 5k road race was held on Saturday the 20th of December and attracted a record crowd of 111 runners. This is up 18% on last years figure of 94.

Up to recently, this used to be a very small race with only about 40-50 taking part. Now the numbers have doubled and that of course means that more money is raised for charity.

1 16:43    HAYES, Frank    East Cork AC    M45    05:22.7
2 16:48    HENNESSY, John    East Cork AC    M40    05:24.3
3 17:33    O'KEEFFE, Marty    Youghal AC    M45    05:38.8
28 20:00    LEONARD, Helen    Leevale AC    F40    06:26.1
29 20:17    JONES, Margaret    Midleton AC    F45    06:31.6
31 20:26    SWEENEY, Mary    St. Finbarrs AC    F50    06:34.5 


The full results can be seen HERE

Friday, December 19, 2014

Rob Heffernan awarded European Bronze medal at ceremony in Cork

In 2010 at the European Championships in Barcelona, Stanislav  Emelyanov won the 20 km walking race. Rob Heffernan finished 4th in that race. In July of 2014, the Russian was found to have been doping and his European gold medal position was declared void. As a result, Rob Heffernan was moved up into 3rd place and a bronze medal.



Rob was presented with the European Bronze medal at a ceremony in Cork City Hall on Friday the 19th of December at 6pm.


In a recent interview, Rob Heffernan said...."I've always performed, but if you don't have a medal, nobody cares."

Another twist to this story is that the Italian Alex Schwazer who should have been moved up into gold position isn't exactly clean either and is currently being investigated for doping. If that is upheld then there could be another medal ceremony in the future for Rob.
 



Extra...
1) Article in the Irish Examiner

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Ballycotton announce list of online entries

A full list of entries for those that entered online is now up on the Ballycotton Running Promotions website. You can see it HERE

The complete list will  appear after the postal entries have closed in early January.

Notice...Newmarket 5k road race - Sun 21st Dec 2014

This popular 5 km road race is coming up in the town of Newmarket in North-West Cork on Sunday the 21st of December. This is a fast 5k course and gets a good turnout every year.



The race HQ is at the High Street Bar (see preview). As you can see from the race flyer above, there are lots of generous prizes on offer and the entry fee is €10.

Course Preview...Lots more info including directions, photos, course details, etc can be seen HERE


Reminder...Postal entries for the Ballycotton 10 close Friday 19th December

Just a reminder that postal entries for the 2015 Ballycotton 10 close on Friday the 19th of December. This applies to those who are athletic club members or those who did all 4 of the summer series races. Entries must arrive by post tomorrow so today Thursday is the last day to get it in the post.

Those living outside Ireland have until Tuesday the 6th of January.

More details in this previous post.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Results of the Conna Charity Christmas 3k...Tues 16th Dec 2014

St.Catherines AC held their annual Christmas 3k race in Conna on Tuesday the 16th of December 2014. Some 55 runners took part.

1    Jonathon Finn    11.16
2    John Beecher    11.19
3    Ger Morrison    11.41
1    Laura Hayes    13.03
2    Sara Barry    13.53
3    Caoimhe Hayes    13.59


The full results are up on the St.Catherines AC website HERE

Notice...Shanagarry Christmas 5k road race - Sat 20th Dec 2014

The annual Shanagarry Christmas 5 km road race is coming up next Saturday, the 20th of December at 12 noon. Located just 20 or so miles from Cork City, it might of interest to anyone wanting to try a short local race just before Christmas.


This race is usually a pretty low key event with only about 60-80 runners taking part. There are no big prizes or anything like that, it's just a very simple 5k race which is usually held every year on the weekend just before Christmas day. The entry fee is usually just €3 and any proceeds go towards charity.

Preview....A preview of the course can be seen HERE

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Small medal & chain lost at UCC Farm...Mon 15th Dec

Niamh Moore is a runner from UCC and she lost a small medal at the UCC Farm on Monday 15th Dec 2014. Here is Niamh's message in her own words..." I was running in the farm yesterday, Monday and believe that I lost a holy medal on a silver chain in the process. It's of no monetary value but extreme sentimental value and I'd really like to find it."

If anyone finds it then please send me an e-mail and I'll pass your details on to Niamh. My address is shown on the right hand side of this page.

Video clip about the recent Clonakilty Marathon

An 8 minute video clip about the 2014 Clonakilty Marathon with some well known faces in it....(8 mins long)


Results of the Kinsale Santa Dash 5k...Sun 14th Dec 2014

There was a huge turnout for this 5k race in Kinsale with over 800 people taking part.



1. John O'Connell 16.45
2. David Fox 17.28
3. Thomas McCarthy 17.38
1. Lorraine Cream   20.05
2. Margaret Callanan 22.06
3. Aisling Gould.         22.58


The full results can be seen HERE

Photos...
1) Kinsale Tri club have a small number of photos on their Facebook page (Facebook account required to view)

Monday, December 15, 2014

Notice...Togher AC 5k road race - Sun 28th Dec 2014

This is another race coming up over the Christmas period. The Togher 5k is on Sunday the 28th of December at 1pm.



The online entry fee is €10 and you can enter online HERE

Entries on the day cost €12. 

All proceeds from the event go towards Togher AC and Cork Mental Health Foundation.

From the organisers....Following on from the success of our inaugural event last year we are back this year even bigger and better with kind sponsorship from Right Price Tiles. We are delighted to be running this event again in association with Cork Mental Health Foundation and Housing Association. All funds raised will go to support this great organisation and Togher AC.

We look forward to welcoming you all during the festive period on December 28th :-)


The course has been properly measured by Jones Counter and is a reasonably fast course.

Course Preview...Full details on the course with directions, maps, photos, preview, etc can be seen HERE

Notice...Bandon 5 mile road race - Thurs 1st Jan 2015

This is another race which might be of interest to people over the Christmas period...the Bandon 5 mile on New Year's Day.



This popular race always gets a good turnout from both West Cork and Cork City alike. The course is a mixture of town and country running with only one real hill of note. The race is being organised by Bandon Athletic Club, one of the major clubs in Co.Cork.

Preview......A full preview with maps, directions, photos, etc can be seen HERE

More info from Bandon AC......The next big event for the club will be on New Years day with the annual Donnough Coughlan Memorial 5 Mile race. There is also a non-competitive walk, will all proceeds from the walk going to the “Friends of Jamie Wall” trust fund.

Race starts at 1pm with registration taken on the morning in the Bandon GAA pavilion with registration opening at 11am. The walk sets off at 12.30pm and the run at 1pm.
Entry is €10 for the run and €5 for the walk.

There is a large prize fund of over €1,000 with prizes across a range of categories. Also, there is a €150 prize for a new course record!
The current course records are:
23.41 by David McCarthy (West Waterford) on 1st Jan 2014
27:53 by Lizzie Lee (Leevale A.C.) on Mon 2nd Jan 2012

Both the run and walk start on the bypass, go through the town and out the Kilbrittain Road looping around to finish at the Old Still Bar near the Mart. Prizes will be presented at the GAA Pavilion afterwards where there will also be a draw for spot prizes for the walkers.
Refreshments will also be served.

Cork Masters Athlete Carmel Parnell features in Athletics Weekly

In this weeks issue of Athletics Weekly, there is an article on Carmel Parnell of Leevale AC in Cork. As a F55 Masters athlete, Carmel has been unbeaten in her age group at the British and Irish Masters Cross Country from 2010 to 2014. After finishing two and half minutes ahead of the first F60 athlete at the race in November, Carmel looks set to dominate the F60 category as well when she turns 60 next July.

Leevale AC have a copy of the article HERE

Sunday, December 14, 2014

Photos of the Cork BHAA Turkey Trot...Sun 14th Dec 2014


As per usual, there was another big turnout for the annual Turkey Trot organised by the Cork BHAA. The prize winners were determined by those who finished closest to their finish times which people had to guess beforehand.

The full results can be seen HERE

Photos.....Updated Sun 11pm
1) Kiernan Minihane has a gallery HERE
2) Graham Nudds has a gallery HERE 
3) Doug Minihane has a gallery HERE

Pre-race Warm-Up video from Kieran Minihane ;o)

Irish team wins bronze at European Cross Championships in Bulgaria

The Irish senior womens team finished 3rd at the European Cross Country Championships in Bulgaria on Sunday the 14th of December 2014. The team finished on 87 points, just one ahead of France on 88.

L-R Siobhan O'Doherty, Sarah Treacy, Annmarie McGlynn, Michelle Finn, Laura Crowe and Fionnuala Britton

While Fionnuala Britton finished in 6th place, Sara Treacy and Michelle Finn finished a lot higher than their form might have suggested to held the Irish team secure bronze. In the end, it was all down to mere seconds. Sara Treacy was just 2 seconds ahead of a Spanish athlete while Michelle Finn of Leevale AC in Cork had the same time as a Danish athlete but finished just ahead of her.....fractions of a second but all important. The fourth scoring member of the team was the captain Annmarie McGlynn. Siobhan O'Doherty of Borrisokane AC in Tipp and Laura Crowe of An Rioght AC in Kerry made up the 6 in the bronze medal team.


The results of the senior womens race can be seen HERE

Full results of all race HERE


Post race interview of Fionnuala Britton...


The highlights are available to watch on the RTE player service for 3 weeks HERE

Photos...
1) James Veale of West Waterford AC has a large number of photos on the WWAC website....Junior men & women... U23 men & women... Senior men & women...

Photos from James Veale of West Waterford AC

Saturday, December 13, 2014

Notice...Mallow 10 mile road race - Sun 22nd March 2015

The Mallow 10 is another one of the big Spring 10 mile road races in Munster and it's coming up on the 22nd of March 2015. Note that this sold out last year well before the entry deadline so it would be as well to enter early.


There is a slight change to the course this year in that the start and finish points have moved. About 90% of the course is still the same as in previous years.

Course preview.......You can see an updated preview HERE

Race website......The race website is http://mallowtenmile.wordpress.com/

Entries........You can enter online HERE

(Entry link updated 15th Jan)

Training Plan......For anyone hoping to do their first 10 mile race, there is a 12 week 'Get Around' plan HERE

Results of the CIT Cross Country under floodlights...Fri 12th Dec 2014

A total of 54 runners turned out for this cross country race organised by CIT AC in Bishopstown....45 in the mens race and 9 in the womens.

Mens Race , 4600m
1 470 Mark O Sullivan Bandon AC 15:08
2 192 Kieran James UCC AC 16:10
3 495 Robert Patterson Leevale AC 16:19

Womens Race, 2800m
1 170 Niamh Moore UCC AC 10:56
2 191 Lucie Moreau UCC AC 11:02
3 166 Carly Cooke UCC AC 11:18


The results can be seen HERE

Friday, December 12, 2014

Planning permission given for road near UCC Farm...

As many of you will know, the UCC sports ground at Curraheen known as the 'Farm' is a popular spot for runners. It's probably the only place in or near Cork city where you can run for a decent distance on a soft surface.

In 2011, I had a post up about the proposed development of a science and innovation park in the area where the UCC Farm is now.

In 2012, I had another post about how the park was approved by the Cork City Council.

The latest news is that planning permission has now been given for a road adjacent to the Farm. As you can see from the map below, the road runs from the roundabout by the Farm...past the greyhound track.....and over to a new junction by CIT. As a condition of the planning, An Bord Pleanála said it can’t be used as a through road for traffic but only for access to the CIT and the new science and technology park.
Running area marked in yellow

While the 2.1km road won't impact the UCC Farm initially, it does mark the start of the development of the area.

The new road will also have cycle paths and footpaths so that may offer people a few more route choices.

Looking forward to the European Cross Country Championships in Bulgaria on Sunday


The European Cross Country Championships are coming up next Sunday the 14th of December in Bulgaria.The Irish team left Dublin airport today as can be seen in this video clip from Athletics Ireland...



Feidhlim Kelly who writes articles on athletics for the Irish Examiner is in Bulgaria covering the event. As you can see from the photo and video clips, it's going to be very muddy on Sunday...







Update on Saturday...

Feidhlim has an article in the Irish Examiner about the championships from Friday and another here from Saturday.

In many cross country courses on grass, it's often a case that the fastest person wins. With so much mud present next Sunday, it should make things a lot more interesting and make it more competitive. i.e. speed alone is not enough to win.

The races will be shown on RTE2 television on Sunday morning from 10:55am to 2:05pm.
Schedule...Irish Time...
8:30    Junior Women           
8:48    Junior Men           
9:32    U23 Women           
10:16    U23 Men           
11:06    Senior Women           
11:58    Senior Men

The remarkable Julius Yego of Kenya

When you think of athletics and Kenya, the first thing that springs to mind is of course running. From 800m to the Marathon, Kenyan athletes are very much to the fore.



One of the most famous up and coming stars in the world of athletics is Julius Yego of Kenya. In an country full of runners, his chosen specialty is the javelin.

Having decided at the ago of 13 that he was never going to make it as a runner, he started off with a wooden javelin. With no-one locally to coach him properly in the sport, he took to watching video clips on Youtube to improve his technique.

By 2006, he had set a Kenyan junior record. By 2010, he won a bronze at the African championships. After getting a sports scholarship to train with some of the best javelin throwers in Finland, he qualified for the London Olympics in 2012 where he finished 12th. At the World Championships in Moscow in 2013, he set a new Kenyan national record to finish an impressive 4th. Finally in 2014, he won Gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. A remarkable journey for someone who started out watching clips on Youtube.

There is a full article on Julius Yego on the IAAF website.

Video clip in this earlier post from 2012.

Reminder...Kinsale 5k Santa Dash - Sun 14th Dec 2014

There are two races coming up on Sunday the 14th of December in Cork. In the city, the BHAA are holding their annual turkey trot where you guess your finish time. No watches allowed.

In Kinsale, there is a new 5k race....the Kinsale 5k Santa Dash.


 This race starts and finishes in the town of Kinsale and never really leaves it. You can see a map of the course with some photos HERE

Part of the proceeds of the race will go towards the Jamie Wall Trust. More info in this previous post.

Pre-Registration Saturday @ Lemon Leaf Restaurant...Pre-registration on the Saturday is highly advisable. Santa’s elves will be on hand in the Lemon Leaf café from 2:00-5:00.

Race HQ & Registration on Sunday...Race HQ Acton’s hotel main ballroom, on the Pier Road.

Changing facilities, special deal with Acton’s hotel €3 for use of swimming pool & showers after the race.

From the organisers..."Framed and Delivered" Well known Kinsale landscape photographer Giles Norman and his wife Catherine have developed a new App that prints, frames and delivers photos from your Smartphone. They are delighted to join forces with The Kinsale 5K Santa Dash to sponsor the prizes for this unique post race "Selfie" competition.  All race entrants who pass the finishing line are invited to post a "Selfie" on the Kinsale Tri Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/kinsale.triclub?fref=ts
The 3 most original photos will be framed, gift wrapped and delivered anywhere in the world of the winners choosing.
“Framed & Delivered” allows iPhone users to upload their favourite images to the app, choose a frame,write a caption before sending it to be printed and delivered to anywhere in the world for just €19.95. You can download the app on the iTunes store here https://itunes.apple.com/ie/app/framed-and-delivered/id762385048?mt=8
For more information, log on to  http://www.framedanddelivered.com/

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Reminder...Cross Country race in CIT under floodlight - Fri 12th Dec 2014

Just a reminder that the 6th annual cross country race under floodlights goes ahead at 7pm on Friday 12th of December around the CIT GAA pitches in Bishopstwon.

5k for men and 3k for women.

Entry fee of €5 with proceeds to Make a wish Foundation and CIT AC. Registration will take pace upstairs in the main GAA stand, on the side furthest away from the college. Refreshments provided afterwards.

More info in this earlier post.