Welcome to the Running in Cork blog, home of the Cork running community. This is the largest website in Cork & Munster for news on road races and general running news. Included are a current race calendar, race previews, photos, results as well as some local, national and international news items.
This event is a fundraiser for Sailability Ireland which helps people with disabilities experience sailing.
Course... This is a very fast course as the start line is at the local GAA club which is about 55-metres above sea level while the finish line is almost at sea level.
Note that the finish line is about 1km from the start line and race HQ at the GAA grounds.
This is a video of the race route...
Prizes
Male and Female 1st €150 / 2nd €125 / 3rd €100 / 4th €80 / 5th €60
Category Prizes Under 40, over 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70 1st €35 / 2nd €30 / 3rd €25
Other Wheelchair 1st €35 / Visual impaired 1st €35 Course Record €100 - Male: David Rooney 0:24:25 (2015) / Female: Aoife Cooke 0:26:55 (2023)
The race starts at 7:30pm and the pre-entry fee is €12 - LINK or €15 on the night.
Considering the location, it should be of interest to runners in east Cork.
From West Waterford AC... 29th ANNUAL ROUND TOWER HOTEL ARDMORE 5
Race number 2 in our series this year takes us to the fast course in the beautiful village of Ardmore. Join us in Ardmore for a great evening's running and thanks to our sponsor, The Round Tower Hotel we will have prizegiving and refreshments after the race.
Online entry only again and the fee is €12. The entry fee on the night will be €15
We also have an option to purchase an amazing gilet celebrating the summer series for just €20.
Number collection is. at Ardmore GAA club grounds (by kind permission).
Prizes are as follows: First 3 Male and Female 1 Junior Male and Female 1st Over 40 45,50,60 Male 1st Over 35, 40,45, 50 Female
29th Annual Round Tower Hotel
Ardmore 5 Miles, Friday 22nd May 2026 @ 7.30pm
1st Male - Veronica Ryan Cup 1st Female - Noel Faherty Cup
The course will remain the same as previous years with the 2 lap circuit.
Niamh Allen was the first woman home with a time of 25m 10s
The 2026 edition of the Midleton 5-mile road race was held on Thurs 7th of May on what turned out to be a dry evening.
"Two course records in Midleton last night. Ryan Creech with his 23:44 improved on the previous best of 24:21 set by Michael Harty two years ago. Michael was just seven seconds outside his time when finishing second in 24:28.
Ryan Creech's 23:44 was probably the first sub-24 in the area since Mark Carroll ran 23:50 at Ballycotton back in 1993.
Niamh Allen - who won last year's race outright in 25:31 - knocked 21 seconds off of that when finish third overall in 25:10." ...JW
The annual Garretstown 5-mile road race was held this year on Sunday 29th of March 2026 on what was a cool but dry morning. There were 357 finishers this year, up 9% on last year.
Top 3 men & women... 2561 Naoise Ó FLAITHEARTAIGHBandon A.C.M 27:10 2422 Adhamh O LEARYLeevale A.C.M 27:17 1772 3 Simon NOLANBandon A.C.M40 27:50 33115 Siobhan HOARETogher A.C.F40 31:15 2921 Claire MC CARTHYF40 32:31 25427 Shona Brid O SULLIVANCourcey A.C.F 33:39
The second outing of the Ballycotton Lighthouse 5-mile road race was held on Sunday 1st March 2026 on that turned out to be a very wet and windy morning.
A total of 327 runners braved the conditions which is down from the 342 last year when the conditions were dry.
Top 3 men & women... 1 Donal COAKLEY MMS5775 27:29 2 Paul CASHMAN Watergrasshill A.C.MMS5772 29:27 3 Mark WALSH MMS6998 30:20 10 Emma DOYLE Leevale A.C.FFS5839 31:38 14 Sinead FLANNERY Ballintotis Fit 4 LifeFFS5846 32:14 17 Emma MCGRATH FFS5606 32:58
The annual Noreen McCarthy 10-mile and 5-mile road races in Skibbereen were held on Sunday 8th February 2026.
In the 10-mile race, there were 75 finishers which is the same as 2025. In the 5-mile race, there were 9 finishers which is down on 2025 but still up on the 2024 numbers.
Top 5 men & women in the 10-mile... 1Jonathan PerrottInnishannon 59:47MS51 2Mark KellyBandon 1:03:39M4020 3Ivan SweetnamDunmanway 1:03:46M4578 4Luke McCormackSt Finbarrs AC 1:03:53MS28 6Dylan ColemanKilleagh 1:05:12MS58 5Julie O'BrienDurrus AC 1:04:13F4034 16Linda O'SullivanGlounthane 1:10:07F5546 25Shona-Brid O'SullivanCourcey AC 1:12:41FS49 33Grace GoodAherla 1:17:47FS14 35Ciara MagnerWatergrasshill AC 1:18:06F4025
Top 3 men & women in the 5-mile... 1Michael DulleaSkibbereen AC 26:39M45529 2Justin RyanSkibbereen 27:20MS942 3Patrick O'DriscollDrinagh 27:58MS950 11Hazel WhiteClonakilty 33:36FS953 12Orla HayesSkibberreen 33:45FS940 15Ellen McCarthySkibbereen 34:20FS706
Members of Watergrasshill AC at the Skibbereen race. Donal O'Donoghue finished first in the M55 category in the 10-mile after running in the Cork BHAA 5k race earlier in the morning.
The 2026 Carrigaline 5-mile road race is coming up on Sunday 14th of February 2026... see this previous post.
In this post, we'll look at the new course for the 2026 race. The old and new courses are shown below...
The traditional route was one large loop whereas the new route is shaped like a spoon with a loop at the eastern end.
If you look at the map of the old course, you can see that it started and finished in a residential area which brought its own set of problems in terms of stewarding and traffic. The new course is more on the edge of the town and is less likely to cause disruption to local residents or motorists.
Doing a rough check, the number of junctions that need to have race stewards has reduced from 9 down to 5 which should make things easier. It's also good to get away from the roundabout and traffic islands in Shanbally where the road is narrow and can be busy with traffic coming from Ringaskiddy.
The section of road on the new course from 2.3 to 3.1 miles is a nice quiet country road and hardly any cars use it so it's ideal for a road race.
On the map for the new course, I've shown the route of the new M26 motorway which is under construction. On the old course at about the 3.8-mile mark, the M26 will eventually cut this road in two resulting in a cul-de-sac.
You can see that the new course is completely to the south of the M26 which means it should hopefully be used for the foreseeable future.
In terms of which course is harder or easier then they're both about the same, there's not much in it really.
The start for the new course is about the same distance from the race HQ in the community hall. The new finish line is a bit further away than the old one but not by much.
One issue with any type of out and back course is if the front of the race will meet the back of the field. I had a quick look at this and the tail runners should have passed Coolmore Cross at about 1.5 miles by the time the front runners reach it which is about 3.5 miles for them.
In conclusion... The route of the new M26 motorway is going to cause problems with a number of road races in this area and the Carrigaline race is no exception. As time goes on, it's getting harder and harder to get permission for suitable race routes near populated areas.
This new route looks like a good solution and should mean that there is a 5-mile road race in Carrigaline for years to come.
The annual Eyeries 5-mile road race was held this year on Saturday the 8th of November 2025 and there were 173 finishers. As can be seen from the chart above, that's down a bit on last year.
Top 3 men & women...
1 Mark Walsh 879 M Leevale A.C. 25:59 2 John Lenehan 862 M City of Derry Spartans 26:38 3 Donal Coakley 776 M Glanmire A.C. 27:04 5 Michelle Finn 939 F Leevale A.C. 28:23 10 Carol Finn 940 F Leevale A.C. 31:02 14 Julie O Brien 790 F Durrus A.C. 31:54
The annual Bere Island 5-mile was held this year on Sat 18th Oct 2025. There were 96 finishers which is down a bit on last year and most likely due to the rain.
The annual Allihies 5-mile road race was held on Saturday 27th Sept 2025 on what turned out to be a lovely sunny day. There were 110 finishers. Results below...
The annual Kinsale Regatta 5-mile road race was held this year on Fri 1st Aug 2025 on a dry fine evening.
First 3 men & women... 673 1 Ryan MC CARTHY Leevale A.C. M (U40) 24:52 630 2 Gavin O ROURKE Leevale A.C. M (U40) 24:55 488 3 Sergiu CIOBANU Clonliffe Harriers A.C. M40 25:07 541 38 Saoirse TWOMEY West Muskerry A.C. F (U40) 29:38 426 47 Marie HOWARD Leevale A.C. F (U40) 30:00 505 53 Catherine MURPHY Eagle A.C. F45 30:14
Runner and YouTuber Daniel Toal took part in this years Joe Duffy Clontarf 5-mile race in Dublin and posted a video of his experience afterwards. He asked the question... "Ireland’s Worst 5-Mile Race?". Looking at the video, the race seemed a bit of a horror show.
First some background.
The Clontarf Half-Marathon & 5-mile is held twice a year, once in July and once in November. In 2024, the November half was the 4th largest half-marathon in Ireland and the July edition was the 6th largest half for the year.
The most recent race in the video was held on Saturday the 5th of July 2025. There was a total of 5172 finishers between the two events, 3819 finishers in the Half-Marathon and 1353 finishers in the 5-mile.
The Half-Marathon started at 10am and went off in four waves. The 5-mile race started at 10:30am and again started in four waves.
The map above shows the start. The Half runners head east towards Bull Island and Sutton before turning back. The 5-mile course as you might expect turns around a lot sooner.
Analysis... The first red flag here is the start time of 10am and 10:30am. The course is on a walkway in Dublin on a Saturday morning and it should have started a lot earlier. Daniel is one of the lead runners in the 5-mile race and this screenshot from the race shows the walkway full of pedestrians.
In a properly organised race, this should never happen as the potential of a collision is high. An early start would have avoided a lot of this.
The next problem was that the front of the 5-mile race ran into the back of the fourth wave of the half-marathon.
Again, in a properly organised race, the back of the half should have gone past the 5-mile turnaround point so the two races couldn't overlap.
As a race progresses, it behaves like a long snake and the further it goes on, the longer it gets. The next problem is that the frontrunners in the 5-mile go around the turnround point and then face all the slower 5-mile runners going out.
As you can see from the image above, there is no clear path through the oncoming traffic. Note that the image above is not from a photographer standing on a bench, it's the view of a runner heading towards oncoming traffic at 3:30/km pace.
At least in the section above, there was the option of running on the grass.
In some sections, there was no option but to run through the oncoming runners.
Video... After reading the description above, you should have a good idea of what transpired. Now, have a look at Daniel's video...
To put this race in context, the entry fee for the half-marathon was €55 and it was €36 for the 5-mile. That doesn't include the additional fees for online registration and the Athletics Ireland one day permit.
Doing some rough calculations, the organisers would have taken in a gross figure of about €300k for this event. As the vast majority of runners are not members of a club, Athletics Ireland would have taken in the best part of €10k.
In conclusion... Is this the worst 5-mile in Ireland? You can make up your own mind but note that this event is held twice a year and gets huge numbers. Most people taking part probably felt that they had a great time.
I think everyone can agree though that the organisers could do a lot better. If I was working as an insurance broker and we covered this event, I'd have serious concerns.
Cork runner Aoife Cooke receiving the Noel Faherty Cup after winning the 2025 Ardmore 5-mile road race
Top 3 men & women...
1 FITZGERALD, Evan West Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:24:09 2 FITZGERALD, Pat Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:26:09 3 CONNELL, Aidan West Waterford A.C. M 40 0:26:29 16 COOKE, Aoife Eagle A.C. F 35 0:30:03 18 KENNY, Michelle Leevale A.C. F 45 0:30:31 21 VEALE, Kate West Waterford A.C. F Sn 0:31:04
Round Tower Hotel Ardmore 5 Mile Road Race Friday 23rd May 2025 1 FITZGERALD, Evan West Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:24:09 2 FITZGERALD, Pat Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:26:09 3 CONNELL, Aidan West Waterford A.C. M 40 0:26:29 4 MURPHY, Noel Waterford A.C. M 40 0:27:01 5 CAVANAGH, Conor Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:27:23 6 DONAGHY, Declan Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:27:38 7 KELLY, Keith Youghal A.C. M 45 0:27:40 8 HENNEBRY, Conor West Waterford A.C. M Sn 0:28:47 9 MULLIGAN, Conor Individual M Sn 0:28:55 10 MC SWEENEY, Seamus Grange Fermoy A.C M 50 0:29:11
The annual Midleton 5-mile road race was held this year on Thursday 1st May 2025 on a nice dry evening. There were 340 finishers this year which pretty much the same as the 344 in 2024.
It would seem the fact that the BHAA had a 4-mile race nearby in Carrigtwohill the previous evening had very little impact on the numbers.
The race was also a little unusual in that Niamh Allen was not only the first woman but she also finished ahead of all the men as well.
Top 3 men & women...
1 Niamh ALLENLeevale A.C.FFS5004 25:31 23 Siobhan HOARE Togher A.C.FF455360 30:19 24 Tamzin MULDOWNEY East Cork A.C.FFS5175 30:27 2 Mark WALSH Leevale A.C.MMS5332 25:53 3 Donal COAKLYLeevale A.C.MMS5375 26:24 4 Nick O'DONOGHUE East Cork A.C.MMS5362 26:48
The 2025 edition of the Streets of Killarney 5-mile was held on Good Friday the 18th of April with 683 runners crossing the finish line. Considering the wet conditions, that's a big turnout for a 5-mile race in Co Kerry and as expected, there was no shortage of runners from Co Cork in the results.
Looking at the race flyer, the entry fee was listed as €28 which was probably well over €30 by the time the additional fees are added on. This is a lot for a 5-mile race although it should be noted that there was a dry fit top included in that price.
Looking at 2024 which was the inaugural year, there were 459 finishers so there is a substantial jump in the numbers this year. The entry fee last year was €25.
Top 3 men & women... 1 Paul MOLONEYMallow A.C.MM40671 24:59 2 Kenneth ROGERSSt. John's A.C.MMS786 25:10 3 Gavin SWEENEYTogher A.C.MM40805 25:26 26 Amy POLLMAN DAAMENAn Ríocht A.C.FFS768 29:20 29 Carol FINN Leevale A.C.FFS300 29:30 30 Lily RIORDAN FFJ785 29:37
The inaugural Scoil Realt na Mara Ballycotton 5 Mile was held on Sunday 2nd Mar 2025. It's been eight years or so since there has been a road race in the village of Ballycotton and I'm sure it brought back memories for a lot of runners.
From the organisers....Eagle AC is delighted to announce the return of the 36th annual Tommy Ryan Memorial 5 Miler in Carrigaline on February 16th 2025 at 11am.
The annual Noreen McCarthy Memorial 10-mile and 5-mile road races were held in Skibbereen in west Cork on Sunday 9th Feb 2025 on what was a dry cold day.
This event was traditionally held in November every year but the organisers decided to move it to the spring time to see how it would get on. The numbers for the 10-mile jumped 27% this year but while this sounds impressive, it's still in the ballpark of other years.
The 5-mile numbers however have been transformed with the Spring 2025 edition more than double that of the previous event in November 2023. Going just off the results for the 5-mile race alone, it looks as if the move to a spring date was a success.
10-mile... Top 3 men & women
1 Danny MullinsBantry AC 54:28MS1093 2 Simon NolanBandon AC 55:40MS1199 3 Justin RyanWest Waterford AC 56:41MS1185 7 Clara RyanSt Finbarrs AC 1:02:53FS1183 9 Julie O'BrienDurrus AC 1:03:55F401098 21 Sinead O'ReganCourcey AC 1:12:32F451172
Well done to visually impaired runner Ross Gallagher who managed to get a 5-mile personal best time at the Skibbereen 5m today (also a shout out to Meave Quinlan who was the guide runner!)
