Results of the John Hartnett 10k in Ballyhooly - Fri 20th May 2022

147 runners turned out for the John Hartnett 10k in Ballyhooly on Fri 20th May 2022

Top 3 men & women...

1 196 Hennesy Pat Male West waterford  00:32:47  00:32:46
2 200 Herlihy Michael Male north Cork  00:33:37  00:33:36
3 138 Longan John Male St. Finbarr's AC  00:35:49  00:35:47
12 158 Gaffney Breda Female Mallow ac  00:38:45  00:38:45
14 84 McLaughlin Róisín Female Grange Fermoy  00:39:47  00:39:46
17 114 Eighan Irene Female St Finbarr's AC  00:40:25  00:40:23

Overall Place (by chip time) Bib # Last Name First Name Sex Team Name Finishing Time Chip Time
1 196 Hennesy Pat Male West waterford 00:32:47 00:32:46
2 200 Herlihy Michael Male north Cork 00:33:37 00:33:36
3 138 Longan John Male St. Finbarr's AC 00:35:49 00:35:47
4 198 Greene David Male Grange Fermoy A.C. 00:36:23 00:36:23
5 130 Maher david Male Carrig na BhFear 00:36:37 00:36:35

Notice...John Harnett 10k road race in Ballyhooly - Fri 25th May 2018

This 10k road race is coming up in Ballyhooly near Fermoy on Friday, the 25th of May 2018 at 7:30pm.

Registration and Parking at GAA pitch, approx 200m from start line. Refreshments and presentation of prizes in the Community Hall after the race.

Ballyhooly is located just 9 kms west of Fermoy on the N72 road to Mallow. Considering that it's reasonably close to the M8 motorway, it's within easy access.

Course Preview...A full preview of the course with maps, directions and photos can be seen HERE 

Results of the John Hartnett 10k in Ballyhooly...Fri 26th May 2017

Despite the misty damp weather, a record 128 runners turned out for this years John Hartnett 10k road race in Ballyhooly near Fermoy This was a huge 133% jump on last years figure of 55. I suspect that if it was a nice sunny evening, the numbers might have been even bigger.


1 35:21     Kieran  Lees     Moorabbey Milers M S
2 35:47     Conor Tierney     East Cork Ac     M 40
3 36:22     Kealan O'Connor Grange Fermoy Ac  M 40
23 41:02     Sharon Grant     Portlaoise     F S
24 41:08     Paula Grant     Portlaoise     F 40
39 44:15     Charlene Wiley     Galtee Runners     F S

The full results can be seen HERE

Photos...
1) Mark Nyhan has a gallery HERE

Notice...John Harnett 10k road race in Ballyhooly - Fri 26th May 2017

This 10k road race is coming up in Ballyhooly near Fermoy on Friday, the 26th of May 2017 at 7:15pm.

Registration and Parking at GAA pitch, approx 200m from start line. Refreshments and presentation of prizes in the Community Hall after the race.

Ballyhooly is located just 9 kms west of Fermoy on the N72 road to Mallow. Considering that it's reasonably close to the M8 motorway, it's within easy access.

Course Preview...A full preview of the course with maps, directions and photos can be seen HERE 

Results of the John Hartnett 10k race, Ballyhooly...Sun 14th Aug 2016

Just 55 runners turned out for this years John Hartnett 10k race in Ballyhooly on Sunday the 14th of August. As can be seen from the chart above, it usually got in the region of 90 runners most years but this year, the fall has been pretty dramatic.

In the last few years, it has been going head to head with the Kilworth Festival 5k but that was on a different Sunday this year. It was however going this time with the Clonmel Half-Marathon so that probably had an impact.

I've seen some of the more remote races in Kerry get small numbers like this but it's unusual to see one in Cork drop to such a low level.

1 30:21 Sergiu Ciobanu, Clonliffe Harriers M S
2 34:45 Danny  Smith, Ballynonty Ac M S
3 37:11 John Murphy, Grange Fermoy Ac M 40
10 40:12 Joan Ennis, Grange Fermoy Ac F 40
18 42:00 Mary O'Leary, Castletownroche F 50
28 47:07 Caroline Buckley, Watergrasshill Ac F S

The full results are up on the Grange Fermoy AC website HERE

Results of the Ballyhooly 5k fun run...Fri 15th July 2016

A small crowd of just 30 turned out for this 5k fun run Ballyhooly on Friday the 15th of July 2016.

1    1073    Don Pyne    18:08
2    67    Aidan Fitzgerald    18:56
3    1067    Chris O’Connell    19:09
4    61    Phil Brett    19:29
5    82    Tadgh O’Callaghan    20:11
6    1071    Billy Lenihan    21:08
7    1079    Pete Sykes    23:08
8    83    Pat Murphy    23:35
9    1069    Brendan O’Driscoll    23:45
10    1080    John Howard    24:24
11    72    Eoin Bracken    27:10
12    70    Olan Crowley    27:18
13    64    Kevin O’Riordan    31:20
14    1062    John Maher    36:28
1    1068    Jennifer Goggin Walsh    20:14
2    1066    Mary Murphy    23:51
3    87    Caroline Hanrahan    26:30
4    127    Toni Connerry    27:23
5    124     Annette O’Riordan     27:48
6     1080    Mags Sheehan     27:48
7    125    Noreen Kiely O’Meara    28:35
8     139    Marese Fitzgerald     28:49
9     1075     Terese Holland    28:49
10    133     Geraldine Hartnett     29:57
11    138     Laura Daly     30:11
12    1097     Sarah Mahony     30:19
13    1098     Elise Grumbridge     30:21
14    1099     Edel Leahy     31:00
15     1096    Karen Twomey     31:05
16    1093     Monika Rayajczak     34:23

Unique Meeting at Ballyhooly by John Walshe

The following short article was written by John Walshe...

UNIQUE MEETING AT BALLYHOOLY

Last Sunday’s Ballyhooly 10km road race saw a unique meeting between two people with historic miling connections.

The race is held in honour of local man John Hartnett and this year the 1972 Olympian was on hand to start the event and present the prizes. During a chequered career at Villanova University, Hartnett broke Ronnie Delany’s Irish mile record with a time of 3:54.7.

Amongst the competitors in Sunday’s low-key but friendly race was a young man from Notting Hill in London bearing the famous name of Bannister. Julius Bannister, grandson of Roger Bannister, the first man to run a mile under four minutes, was on holiday in the village and in his first-ever road race won the junior prize in a time of 50:39.

Roger Bannister achieved immortality on May 6th, 1954, when he ran the mile in 3:59.4 at the Iffley Road track in Oxford – 20 years later John Hartnett covered the same distance on the grass track of the Mardyke in 3:56.3, a feat that’s portrayed in an iconic photograph that can be seen on the wall in the reception area of the Mardyke Arena Health & Leisure Centre.

Picture shows John Hartnett and Julius Bannister at the prize-giving in Ballyhooly

John Hartnett 10k results

Results of the John Hartnett 10k road race, Ballyhooly...Sun 9th Aug 2015

The annual John Hartnett 10km road race was held in the village of Ballyhooly near Fermoy on Sunday the 9th of August 2015.

1 31:21 CIOBANU, Sergiu    Clonliffe Harriers    M    05:02.6
2 32:55 MERRITT, Colin    Carraig na bhFear AC    M40    05:17.7
3 33:54 HEFFERNAN, Elton    unatt/Cork    M    05:27.2
16 40:35 ENNIS, Joan    Grange-Fermoy AC    F50    06:31.7
32 45:56 CLANCY, Catherine    St. Catherines AC    F40    07:23.4
37 46:30 KANE, Sinead    Leevale AC    F    07:28.9 

The full results can be seen HERE

Notice...John Hartnett 10km road race, Ballyhooly - Sun 9th Aug 2015

This 10k road race is coming up in Ballyhooly near Fermoy on Sunday, the 9th of August at 12:30pm.

Features...

Date: Sunday 9th August 2015
Time: 12.30pm
Sign on:  GAA field
Presentation:  Community Hall
Limited parking in GAA pitch.
€100 for first male and female home.
€100 bonus if course record broke.
Mens record: 31.57 Sergie Ciobanu 2014
Ladies record:  39.08 Angela McCann 2014
Accurate course measured by Jones Counter
Athletics Ireland licence
10km course...marked at each km point.
Entry fee €10
Showers available at the GAA grounds.
Registration and Parking at GAA pitch, approx 200m from start line. Refreshments and presentation of prizes in the Community Hall after the race.

Ballyhooly is located just 9 kms west of Fermoy on the N72 road to Mallow. Considering that it's reasonably close to the M8 motorway, it's within easy access.

Course Preview...A full preview of the course with maps, directions and photos can be seen HERE

John Hartnett.......
John Harnett is a former Irish International runner who held several Irish records back in the 1970's. He also represented Ireland at the 1972 Munich Games. He grew up near Ballyhooly and ran with Grange Fermoy AC before taking up a scholarship in the US with Villanova.

Notable races...
1970 : International Junior Cross Country Champion
1972 : Ran the 5,000 metres in a time of 13m 43.4s to set a new Irish record
1972 : Represented Ireland in the 5,000 metres in the Munich Olympic games
1973 : June - Ran the mile in a time of 3m 54.7s setting a new Irish record which at the time was faster than the British record!
1974 : Set a new Irish record for the 1,500 metres with a time of 3m 38.1s

John Hartnett currently resides in Marleton, New Jersey, USA.

1) Background on John Harnett's athletic career.....HERE
2) Unveiling of the John Harnett plaque in Ballyhooly in Sept 2008.......HERE

Results of the John Hartnett 10k race, Ballyhooly - Sun 10th Aug 2014

A total of 89 runners turned out for this 10k road race in Ballyhooly near Fermoy.

1 31:57    CIOBANU, Sergiu    Clonliffe Harriers    M    05:08.4
2 34:02    SMITH, Danny    Ballynonty AC    M    05:28.5
3 34:20    DULLEA, Michael    Skibbereen AC    M    05:31.4
14 39:08    MCCANN, Angela    Clonmel AC    F40    06:17.7
20 40:33    FINN, Carol    Leevale AC    F    06:31.4
22 40:43    O'LEARY, Mary    unatt/Castletownroche    F40    06:33.0 

The full results can be seen HERE

Notice...John Hartnett 10k road race, Ballyhooly - Sun 10th Aug 2014

This 10k road race is coming up in Ballyhooly near Fermoy on Sunday, the 10th of August at 12:30pm.

Features...

Accurate course measured by Jones Counter
Athletics Ireland licence
10km course...marked at each km point.
Entry fee €10
Showers available at the GAA grounds.
Registration and Parking at GAA pitch, approx 200m from start line. Refreshments and presentation of prizes in the Community Hall after the race.

Ballyhooly is located just 9 kms west of Fermoy on the N72 road to Mallow. Considering that it's reasonably close to the M8 motorway, it's within easy access.

Course Preview...A full preview of the course with maps, directions and photos can be seen HERE

John Hartnett.......
John Harnett is a former Irish International runner who held several Irish records back in the 1970's. He also represented Ireland at the 1972 Munich Games. He grew up near Ballyhooly and ran with Grange Fermoy AC before taking up a scholarship in the US with Villanova.

Notable races...
1970 : International Junior Cross Country Champion
1972 : Ran the 5,000 metres in a time of 13m 43.4s to set a new Irish record
1972 : Represented Ireland in the 5,000 metres in the Munich Olympic games
1973 : June - Ran the mile in a time of 3m 54.7s setting a new Irish record which at the time was faster than the British record!
1974 : Set a new Irish record for the 1,500 metres with a time of 3m 38.1s

John Hartnett currently resides in Marleton, New Jersey, USA.

1) Background on John Harnett's athletic career.....HERE
2) Unveiling of the John Harnett plaque in Ballyhooly in Sept 2008.......HERE

Guest Article...Remarkable Indoor Performance of the Past

This article by John Walshe appeared in the Irish Examiner 'County' supplement on Tuesday the 14th of January 2014 and is republished here with his kind permission.

REMARKABLE INDOOR PERFORMANCE OF THE PAST
By John Walshe (Irish Examiner County, Tuesday January 14)

As the Irish indoor athletics season swing into action at the new Athlone IT facility, it is worth recalling a memorable indoor performance by a Cork athlete which took place 40 years ago last weekend.

Treading the boards at the Knights of Columbus Games in Uniondale, New York, on that Saturday evening of January 12, 1974, John Hartnett from Ballyhooly ran the fifth fastest time on record for the two miles distance when covering the 22 indoor laps in a time of 8:26.6.

He finished almost eight seconds ahead of Grant McLaren from Canada (8:34.4) with another Irishman, Neil Cusack, third in 8:37.2. Hartnett’s time was just two seconds slower than the American record at the time which was held by the legendary Steve Prefontaine who would tragically die the following year in a car accident at the age of 24.

The two-mile was one of the most popular races on the indoor circuit back then and although the distance is rarely run nowadays, the time by the Corkman is the equivalent of around 7:50 for 3,000 metres.

It is worth noting that the fastest 3,000m by an Irishman last year, indoors or outdoors, was the 7:50.40 by Ciaran Ó’Lionáird which won him the bronze medal at the European Indoors in Gothenburg.

John Hartnett at the time was on scholarship at Villanova University and had just returned to the US two days previously after spending Christmas at home in Ballyhooly.

Showing the tremendous form he was in at the time, the Sunday before he left he had established a new course record for the Oman Cup road race in the Phoenix Park with a time of 9:07.4.

Hartnett’s amazing form on the boards of North America continued the following month at the Maple Leaf Indoor Games in Toronto where, before a packed attendance of over 16,000 fans, he ran the first sub-four-minute indoor mile witnessed in Canada.

His 3:59.6 was achieved ahead of a glittering field which included the 1972 Olympic 1500m champion Pekka Vasala of Finland and John Walker from New Zealand, who would win Olympic gold two years later in that event.

John Hartnett with Danny Smith of Ballynonty AC

The previous year Hartnett had broken Ronnie Delany’s Irish mile record with a time of 3:54.7 and he would add the Irish 1500m to that when recording 3:38.1 at Bakersfield in California later in the summer of 1974.

He then returned home and on a magical night at the Cork City Sports at the Mardyke he ran a 3:56.3 mile, one of the fastest times ever achieved on grass.

For the past number of years a 10km road race has been held in John Hartnett’s honour in his native Ballyhooly. A year ago last August, the village’s most famous son – who now resides in New Jersey - was on hand to start the race and present the prizes, as well as reminisce with his many admirers on a remarkable and honour-laden running career.

* More information about the athletics career of John Hartnett can be seen HERE

Results of the John Hartnett 10 km road race, Ballyhooly - Sun 11th Aug 2013

The annual John Hartnett 10 km road race in Ballyhooly was held on Sunday, the 11th of August. 

1    32:38    SWEENEY, Gavin    unatt/Cork    M   5:15.0
2    33:17    MEADE, John    St. Finbarrs AC    M  5:21.3
3    34:38    SMITH, Danny    Ballynonty AC    M  5:34.3
17    40:47    O'NEILL, Anne    Doheny AC    F40  6:33.7
18    40:53    O'LEARY, Mary    unatt/Castletownroche    F40  6:34.6
26    42:58    FITZGIBBON, Clotilde    Grange-Fermoy AC    F40  6:54.8

The full results are HERE

Race notice...John Hartnett 10k road race, Ballyhooly - Sun 11th Aug 2013

This 10k road race is coming up in Ballyhooly near Fermoy on Sunday, the 11th of August at 12:30pm.

Features...

Accurate course measured by Jones Counter
Athletics Ireland licence
10km flat fast course...marked at each km point.
Entry fee €10
Showers available at the GAA grounds.
Registration and Parking at GAA pitch, approx 200m from start line. Refreshments and presentation of prizes in the Community Hall after the race.

Ballyhooly is located just 9 kms west of Fermoy on the N72 road to Mallow. Considering that it's reasonably close to the M8 motorway and it's a fast 10k course, it might be of interest to people wishing to try for a personal best time.

Preview...A full preview of the course with maps, directions and photos can be seen HERE

John Hartnett.......
John Harnett is a former Irish International runner who held several Irish records back in the 1970's. He also represented Ireland at the 1972 Munich Games. He grew up near Ballyhooly and ran with Grange Fermoy AC before taking up a scholarship in the US with Villanova.

Notable races...
1970 : International Junior Cross Country Champion
1972 : Ran the 5,000 metres in a time of 13m 43.4s to set a new Irish record
1972 : Represented Ireland in the 5,000 metres in the Munich Olympic games
1973 : June - Ran the mile in a time of 3m 54.7s setting a new Irish record which at the time was faster than the British record!
1974 : Set a new Irish record for the 1,500 metres with a time of 3m 38.1s

John Hartnett currently resides in Marleton, New Jersey, USA.

1) Background on John Harnett's athletic career.....HERE
2) Unveiling of the John Harnett plaque in Ballyhooly in Sept 2008.......HERE

Race notice...John Hartnett 10k road race - Sun 12th Aug 2012

This 10k road race is coming up on Sunday, the 12th of August at 7pm. Please note that this is a change from the original time of 12 noon that had been planned originally.

Features...

Accurate course measured by Jones Counter
10km flat fast course...marked at each km point.
Entry fee €10
€100 for first male and female across the line, €50 for second, €25 for third plus T-shirts,
T-shirts for first two male and female in 0-40, 0-50 and 0-60,
One water stop.
Showers available at the GAA grounds.
Registration from 5.30pm in community hall. Parking in GAA pitch, approx 200m from start line. Refreshments and presentation of prizes in the Community Hall after the race.

Ballyhooly is located just 9 kms west of Fermoy on the N72 road to Mallow. Considering that it's reasonably close to the M8 motorway and it's a flat fast 10k, it might be of interest to people wishing to try for a personal best time.

The main N72 road passes through Ballyhooly taking two sharp bends in the process. Parking is at the GAA grounds. The start and finish of the race are near the church. After race presentation of prizes at the community hall.

The race take in a 10 km loop to the north of Ballyhooly on mostly quiet country roads. Any pulls are very modest and short. The course has real potential for setting very fast times.

This is the Community Hall on the western side of Ballyhooly. This is the view as if you were coming from Castletownroche or Mallow. The GAA grounds are left at the T-junction whereas the main road takes a sharp right.

This is the opposite side of the corner as shown in the picture for the Community Hall. The start and finish is near the church as shown above. Parking is at the GAA grounds.

John Hartnett.......
John Harnett is a former Irish International runner who held several Irish records back in the 70's. He also represented Ireland at the 1972 Munich Games. He grew up near Ballyhooly and ran with Grange Fermoy AC before taking up a scholarship in the US with Villanova.

Notable races...
1970 : International Junior Cross Country Champion
1972 : Ran the 5,000 metres in a time of 13m 43.4s to set a new Irish record
1972 : Represented Ireland in the 5,000 metres in the Munich Olympic games
1973 : June - Ran the mile in a time of 3m 54.7s setting a new Irish record which at the time was faster than the British record!
1974 : Set a new Irish record for the 1,500 metres with a time of 3m 38.1s

John Hartnett currently resides in Marleton, New Jersey, USA. John will be present next Sunday for the presentation of the prizes.


1) Background on John Harnett's athletic career.....HERE
2) Unveiling of John Harnett plaque in Ballyhooly in Sept 2008.......HERE

Results of the 'John Hartnett' Ballyhooly 10k race - Sun 14th Sun 2011

This was the first year of this particular 10k road race. In previous years, the course was a tough 9.5 mile course taking in some of the local hills with several off-road sections and was called appropriately enough the 'John Hartnett Challenge'.

This year, it has changed to a more familar 10k race over a reasonably flat circuit so as to attract more runners. This year, it got 86 runners as opposed to 56 in 2009 and 63 in 2010.

The mens race was won by Sean Harnett in a time of 35:31. The photo shows Sean receiving his prize from his father, John Hartnett.
The womens race was won by Deirdre Nagle of Eagle AC in 41:00, over 3 minutes ahead of her nearest rival.

The full results can be seen HERE

Report from Athletics Ireland.....
There was an appropriate winner to the John Hartnett Challenge 10km road race at Ballyhooly in Cork as Sean Hartnett, the 20-year-old son of the former Olympian and Irish mile record holder, took the honours in a time of 35:31.

A student at Monmouth University in New Jersey, the younger Hartnett has a best of 15:21.47 for 5000 metres this year and completed the 10km circuit in a time of 35:31, over a half-minute clear of Fermoy triathlete Michael Lyons with Denis Dunne of Eagle finishing in third place.

Deirdre Nagle, also of Eagle, took the women’s race in 41 minutes flat with Karen Kenny and Clotilde Fitzgibbon, both of Grange-Fermoy, finishing in second and third positions.

Afterwards, John Hartnett spoke movingly about his young days in Ballyhooly, remembering all those who helped him to win the International Junior Cross-Country title at Vichy in France back in 1970 and of his time at Villanova University where he was ranked amongst the world’s top middle-distance runners.

He competed in the 1972 Olympics in the 5000 metres and in 1973, at Eugene in Oregon, he broke Ronnie Delany’s Irish mile record with a time of 3:54.7 – which still ranks as the 11th fastest on the Irish all-time list – and the same year he was honoured as the Penn Relays Most Outstanding Performer.

The following year of 1974, Hartnett ran a memorable 3:56.3 mile on the old Mardyke grass track during the Cork City Sports.

Unveiling of plaque to John Hartnett - Ballyhooly - Fri 24th of Sept 2010

No doubt many of you will have heard of the 'John Hartnett Challenge' race which takes place in Ballyhooly near Fermoy in N.Cork every August. The numbers attending for the last 2 years have been small but it has certainly lived up to it's name with a hilly and tough 10 mile course.

When I first heard of the race in 2009, I have to admit that I had no idea of who John Hartnett was or what he had done. I think at one stage, I had put the race up on the calendar of Cork road races as the John Hartnett Memorial race before someone pointed out that he was still alive and well and living in the USA!!

Oppps! ;o)

Prior to the event this year, one of the race organizers, Pat Nash sent on some information to me about John Hartnett. At the time, I put the info to one side and it's only recently that I have had a chance to read through it. John Hartnett from Cork was a world class runner in his day and ran some really impressive times back in the early 70's. He set new Irish records for the mile beating previous times set by Ronny Delaney. If that wasn't enough, the time he ran was also faster than the existing British record for the mile! He also represented Ireland in the 5,000 metres at the Olympic games in Munich in 1972.

When I turned to the Internet and Google for information on John Hartnett, there seemed to be very little out there. It seemed a shame that such a good Irish runner should be overlooked and forgotten about.

So to remedy that, I have put up a few webpages about John Hartnett up on a website so at least there is a small corner of the web where people can read about him and his achievements. You can see the start of the article HERE.

Towards the end of the article, there is a photo from 1971 showing John Hartnett and Donie Walsh who was a fellow team mate at the time from Villanova in the USA. Donie also went to the 1972 Olympics to represent Ireland in the Marathon and is currently a coach with Leevale AC.

On Friday the 24th of Sept at 7pm, that picture which was taken back in 1971 kind of goes full circle when 39 years later, Donie Walsh will be unveiling a special plaque in the village of Ballyhooly to commemorate John Hatnett.

This is open to the public and if you are interested in attending, you can see the exact location HERE

Ballyhooly is on the N72 main road between Fermoy and Mallow. If you are coming from Cork City, go into the centre of Fermoy, cross the bridge and take a left at the church with the statues outside. Stay on this road and you will arrive in Ballyhooly.

Refreshments will be served in the GAA hall after the unveiling.

Results of the John Hartnett Challenge - Sun 16th Aug 2009

There was a small turnout for this race with just 56 runners taking part. Yet despite that, it was one of the better races on the calendar this season. It certainly lived up to it's billing as a 'Challenge' with no shortage of hills. The race was basically in 2 halves............the first 5 miles were more or less all uphill with the last 4.5 miles all downhill. There were 3 off-road sections......the first one was on a nice forest road through the woods. The second part was the longest section off the public road. While the surface was a bit rough, it really didn't matter as you were running slow anyway as you were going uphill. The 3rd and last section was reasonably short but it was probably a bit too rough considering that you were running downhill. That is the one section that the organisers will probably look at improving for next year. Other than that, the rest of the race was fine. Anyone who stayed away because they thought the race might be over rough ground were mistaken. Talking to people afterwards, most people seemed to agree that it was a good race and that they would probably do it again. That fact alone say's a lot about the event. No doubt next year, the numbers will be even higher.

Results..........

John Hartnett Challenge Ballyhooly 9.5 miles (approx) Hill & Road Race
Sunday 16 August 2009. 12:30pm
Place Time Name Team Race Age Category
1 0:55:29 MEADE, Kieran unatt/Tralee M 11 1
2 0:55:49 LYONS, Michael Grange-Fermoy AC M 41 2
3 0:56:24 O'SULLIVAN, Eoin Togher AC M 29 3
4 0:58:50 HEGARTY, Brian East Cork AC M 28 4
5 0:58:56 LENIHAN, Adrian Duhallow AC M 12 5
6 1:02:50 DESMOND, John Eagle AC M45 34 6
7 1:04:52 O'LEARY, Mary unatt/Castletownroche F40 1 7
8 1:05:00 O'CONNOR, Brian Grange-Fermoy AC M 48 8
9 1:05:49 TOBIN, Maurice Grange-Fermoy AC M55 49 9
10 1:06:06 DONOVAN, Niall unatt/Cork M 501 10
11 1:06:06 DUNNE, Denis unatt/Cork M 9 11
12 1:06:07 SMITH, Kevin East Cork AC M 16 12
13 1:06:48 TIDESWELL, Keeley Clonmel AC F 37 13
14 1:07:32 O'MAHONY, John unatt/Cork M40 13 14
15 1:07:46 WILLIAMS, Robbie unatt/Cork M 55 15
16 1:09:31 FITZGERALD, Shane East Cork AC M 21 16
17 1:09:50 MORIARTY, Brian unatt/Glanmire M 20 17
18 1:10:26 BARRETT, Olan Grange-Fermoy AC M 8 18
19 1:10:38 DENNEHY, Anthony Star Of The Laune AC M 54 19
20 1:10:45 DRENNAN, Sally Midleton AC F40 39 20
21 1:11:38 GRIFFIN, Kieran unatt/Barryroe M 24 21
22 1:11:43 O'DONOVAN, John unatt/Shanballymore M45 26 22
23 1:11:59 SHEEHAN, Mary Grange-Fermoy AC F50 33 23
24 1:13:01 DUGGAN, Loretto St. Marys AC F35 38 24
25 1:13:09 EVANS, Kieran unatt/Cork M 35 25
26 1:13:15 DALY, Paul Eagle AC M40 4 26
27 1:13:45 O'DONOGHUE, Patrick unatt/Cloyne M 7 27
28 1:13:48 COGAN, Denis unatt/Cork M 502 28
29 1:13:49 COTTER, Paul Eagle AC M50 31 29
30 1:14:06 LENNON, Donal unatt/Douglas M 6 30
31 1:14:07 KELLEHER, Colm unatt/Glanmire M40 17 31
32 1:14:31 MELLAMPHY, Paul unatt/Cork M 10 32
33 1:14:47 GIBSON, Andy Eagle AC M40 5 33
34 1:14:50 DUNPHY, John unatt/Cork M40 32 34
35 1:15:19 O'DONNABHAIN, Donnchadh unatt/Cobh M 30 35
36 1:15:26 RAHILLY, Patrick unatt/Cork M 27 36
37 1:16:22 BYRD, Charlie unatt/Cork M45 14 37
38 1:16:34 O'CALLAGHAN, Denis unatt/Glanmire M40 19 38
39 1:17:17 GYVES, Paddy Mallow AC M60 47 39
40 1:20:21 MACKAY, James unatt/Ballyhooly M45 2 40
41 1:21:18 O'KEEFFE, Pat unatt/Cork M40 15 41
42 1:21:19 EIGHAN, Irene unatt/Cork F 51 42
43 1:21:32 KEARNEY, Batt Leevale AC M50 36 43
44 1:22:48 MCDERMOTT, Barry unatt/Dromahane M 22 44
45 1:22:49 GRIFFIN, Carmel unatt/Barryroe F 23 45
46 1:22:53 O'CALLAGHAN, Jim unatt/Glanmire M45 18 46
47 1:26:03 HOWLEY, Noel unatt/Ballyhooly M 40 47
48 1:26:26 LENIHAN, Sean unatt/Ballyhooly M 52 48
49 1:27:16 O'CONNELL, Pat Mallow AC M40 42 49
50 1:27:51 HEGARTY, Simon unatt/Cobh M 46 50
51 1:28:44 O'CONNELL, Barry unatt/Ballyhooly M 44 51
52 1:30:08 KIERNAN, Bernard unatt/Ballyhooly M 3 52
53 1:30:34 FURLONG, Brian unatt/Carrigaline M 25 53
54 1:34:24 O'CONNELL, Donnacha unatt/Cork M 50 54
55 1:35:42 CASHMAN, Mairead unatt/Dublin F40 45 55
56 1:41:32 PHILLIPS, Barry unatt/Mallow M 43 56
Results produced by Liam O'Brien of Ballycotton Running Promotions.

Preview of the 'John Harnett Challenge'.......Sun 16th Aug 2009
This is a new race on the race calendar and it should live up to it's title. It's roughly 9.5 miles long (not 10 miles) and is over a mixed public road/forest track surface.

Getting there.......the race starts and finishes just to the south of Ballyhooly near Fermoy in NE Cork. To get there, you need to drive into Fermoy and follow the old Dublin road. After you cross the bridge, you need to turn left at the church with the 3 statues outside and take the N72 west for Castletownroche and Mallow. Ballyhooly is on this road. When you enter the village, look out for signs for the GAA pitch. The registration and changing rooms are there. The start and finish points are just to the south of Ballyhooly....see the map here for an idea of where it is.

The race starts at 12:30pm.


Route.......the race starts just to the south of the village near the bridge over the Blackwater river. You run south to the road junction and straight away, you're climbing. Pretty soon, you turn off right onto forest track with a well packed smooth surface. This is shown as Green on the map. The running is flat for a while but you turn right and then start climbing again. After that, the gradient eases off until you are back onto the public road again (shown in Blue).
Then you have a 3 km long but gradual climb until you turn off right again into the forestry, shown in Red. This section has a lot fewer big trees and is probably the hardest part of the run. The forest road surface this time is a bit rougher but should be ok. The incline starts easily but soon, it really gets tough until you reach the highest point at 330m asl, about 300 metres higher than when you first started out. Just to put that into perspective, Cork Airport is about 140 metres above Cork City so this is over twice the climb.

At the highest point, I'd reckon you are close to the 4 mile mark. After that, it's downhill all the ways. You lose height on the forest road until you re-join the public road (blue), down the road a bit, accross a straight section of forest road and then downhill to the finish.

Overall.........this is no fun run. It will live up to it's name....i.e. a challenge run. The first 4 miles will be uphill and slow and the last 5.5 miles are downhill and fast. It's probably best not to wear racing shoes....just use the regular runners for a bit extra cushioning.

Race flyer HERE