Approx 4,000 runners turn out for the 2026 Raheny 5-mile road race - 25th Jan 2026

The big road race in Ireland last weekend was the Raheny 5-mile in Dublin. As can be seen from the start line above, it's a huge race but I wasn't aware of just how big a race it is.

The chip timing results show a total of 3993 finishers which is incredible for a 5-mile race. It just shows that some of the races in Dublin are on a different scale altogether.

Top 3 men & women...
1 Jonas STAFFORD 23:08 6 M MS UCD
2 Colm ROONEY 23:10 3610 M M40 Clonliffe Harriers A.C.
3 Hugh ARMSTRONG 23:27 2 M MS Ballina A.C.
1 Michelle FINN 26:35 5 F FS Leevael A.C.
2 Faye DERVAN 27:04 4 F FS Dublin City Harriers A.C.
3 Maria MCGEE 27:07 4780 F FS Rosses A.C.

Full results HERE

As can be seen from the results above, the first woman was Michelle Finn from Cork in a time of 26m 35s.

First 3 women (L-R)... Faye Dervan 2nd, Michelle Finn 1st & Maria McGee 3rd

Looking back at the race calendar, this race had a headline entry fee of €30. Allowing for some no shows on the day, the organisers took in about €130,000 in entry fees alone which just gives an idea of some of the sums involved.

There were 2422 non-club runners in the results so Athletics Ireland would have made about €4,500 for this race alone with their one-day licence.

Recent Athletics Appointments - Michelle Finn & Kate Veale

UCD Athletics Club recently announced that Michelle Finn from Cork joined their coaching team as the new Distance Coach.

UCD Athletics Club write... "🏃‍♀️ Exciting News for UCD Athletics!

We’re thrilled to welcome Olympian Michelle Finn to our coaching team as our new Distance Coach! ✨

Michelle brings a wealth of experience from the world stage, including representing Ireland at the Olympic Games and multiple international championships. Her passion, dedication, and elite-level knowledge across a range of track events & cross country will be a huge asset to our distance athletes."

Kate Veale is one of the top racewalkers in the country and she has just announced that she will be starting a new role at SETU in Waterford.

Kate writes... "Excited to announce my new role as Athletics Development Officer at SETU Waterford. Grateful for the opportunity to support and guide others in reaching their goals, and looking forward to sharing my passion for athletics both on and off the track 🏃‍♂️⚡"

Cork runner Michelle Finn wins the 2024 Dublin Half-Marathon...

The Dublin Half-Marathon is the largest half-marathon in Ireland and it was held this year on Sunday 22nd September 2024.

There were a  total of 6364 finishers this year, up 3.7% on the 2023 figure.

The first woman in the race was Michelle Finn from Cork in a time of 1h 15m 45s.

 Top 3 women at the Irish Life Dublin Half Marathon 🏆

1️⃣ Michelle Finn - Leevale AC 1:15:45 
2️⃣ Caitlyn Harvey - Roadrunners AC 1:17:55
3️⃣ Fiona Stack - Raheny Shamrock AC 1:20:24

Full results... https://raceresults.dublinmarathon.ie/

It's interesting to look at the number of finishers over the years and as can be seen from the chart below, it is gradually getting back to the pre-pandemic numbers.

Cork runner Michelle Finn wins the 2023 Streets of Portlaoise 5k on St Patrick's Day

First place finish for Michelle Finn

One of the big races on St Patrick's weekend was the Streets of Portaloise 5k and a number of the top runners from Cork traveled north to it. A total of 609 runners crossed the finish line with 151 going under 20 minutes.

The first woman home was Cork runner Michelle Finn who won in an impressive time of 16m 01s.

Top 10 women...

26 1 Michelle Finn Leevale A.C. F 0:16:00 0:16:01  
32 2 Grace Lynch Dundrum South Dublin A.C. F 0:16:21 0:16:21  
37 3 Ide Dhomhnail west Limerick AC F 0:16:31 0:16:32  
41 4 Lizzie Lee Leevale A.C. F40 0:16:38 0:16:38  
59 5 Courtney Mc Guire Clonmel A.C. F 0:17:10 0:17:12  
71 6 Fiona Gettings Longford A.C. F40 0:17:25 0:17:26  
72 7 Eimear Maher Dundrum South Dublin A.C. Jnr F 0:17:26 0:17:28  
74 8 Aislinn Domhnall west Limerick AC F45 0:17:31 0:17:32  
77 9 Hannah Steeds Leevale A.C. F 0:17:35 0:17:36  
78 10 Noreen Brouder Sportsworld A.C. F40 0:17:36 0:17:38  

In the men's race, Michael Harty of East Cork AC was the 1st M40 in a time of 14m 59s.

1 1 Eoin Everard Kilkenny City Harriers A.C. M 0:14:36 0:14:36  
2 2 William Maunsell Clonmel A.C. M 0:14:37 0:14:37  
3 3 Jake O Regan St Johns AC M 0:14:44 0:14:44  
4 4 David Mansfield Clonmel A.C. M 0:14:49 0:14:49  
5 5 Jack Fenlon St Abbans A.C Jnr M 0:14:51 0:14:51  
6 6 William Fitzgerald Craughwell A.C. M 0:14:51 0:14:51  
7 7 Gerry Forde Kilkenny City Harriers A.C. M 0:14:54 0:14:54  
8 8 Killian Mooney Dundrum South Dublin A.C. M 0:14:56 0:14:56  
9 9 Conor Duffy Glaslough Harriers A.C. M 0:14:56 0:14:56  
10 10 Colin Maher Ballyfin A.C. M 0:14:57 0:14:57  
11 11 Michael Harty East Cork A.C. M40 0:14:59 0:14:59

Full results HERE

Photos HERE

Cork runner Michelle Finn records 4th place finish at the 2022 Great South Run in Portsmouth

55:58 for Michelle Finn at the 2022 Great South Run. Photo: Graham Smith

Following on from her first place finish in the Great Scottish Run Half-Marathon in Glasgow at the start of October, Michelle Finn finished 4th in the Great South Run in Portsmouth last Sunday, the 16th of October 2022.

Michelle's time for this 10-mile race was 55m 58s.

This is one of the largest 10-mile road races in the UK and attracts a field of about 20,000 runners.

TOP RESULTS WOMEN
1. Lily Partridge - 54:29
2. Natasha Cockram - 54:35
3. Stephanie Twell - 54:51
4. Michelle Finn - 55:58
5. Olivia Tsim - 56:26
6. Rebecca Murray - 56:26
7. Kate Estlea - 57:45
8. Sarah Winstone - 58:25
9. Hannah Pullen - 59:32
10. Alice Murray-Gourlay - 59:34

Cork runner Michelle Finn wins the Great Scottish Run Half-Marathon - Sun 2nd Oct 2022

Another result from last weekend. Michelle Finn of Leevale AC was the first woman home in the Great Scottish Run Half-Marathon in Glasgow!

Michelle's time was 1h 12m 33s which is 2m 41s of her previous best time.

Her splits for the 5k split was an impressive 17:04 with the 10k split being 36:52.

Michelle is the brand ambassador for O'Callaghan Motors of Kanturk who posted info about Michelle's win up on Twitter.

Cork runner Michelle Finn wins the Farranfore 5k - 26th Dec 2021

First 3 women (L-R) 2nd Sorcha Ní Dhomhnaill, 1st Michelle Finn, 3rd Niamh O'Mahony

There have been plenty of races outside of Cork during the Christmas period including the annual Farranfore 5k on St Stephen's Day. The first woman home was Cork runner Michelle Finn of Leevale AC.

1 16:05 Michelle Finn F Sen Leevale AC
2 16:19 Sorcha Ní Dhomhnaill F Sen Donore Harriers
3 17:20 Niamh O'Mahony F Sen An Ríocht

Full results HERE 

This was the third win for Michelle in 9 days. On the 19th she won the Newmarket 5k, on the 26th it was the Farranfore 5k and on the following day the 27th of December, she finished first in the Togher 5k.

In Farranfore, Michelle broke the old course record by 13 seconds and also broke the course record in Togher the following day.

Friday Jigsaw: Michelle Finn from Cork winning the 2021 Irish Senior Cross Country Championships

For this weeks jigsaw, we go back to last weekend when Michelle Finn from Cork won the 2021 Irish Senior Cross Country Championships in Dublin.

You can find the 121-piece jigsaw HERE

Cork runner Michelle Finn wins the National Cross Country Senior Title - Sun 21st Nov 2021

Cork runner Michelle Finn of Leevale AC was this years winner of the Irish Senior Cross Country Championships which were held in Dublin.

1 Michelle FINN 00:27:22 77 F Senior Leevale A.C.
2 Sarah HEALY 00:27:34 145 F Senior F U23 U.C.D. A.C.
3 Roisin FLANAGAN 00:27:41 59 F Senior Finn Valley A.C.
4 Aoibhe RICHARDSON 00:27:42 71 F Senior Kilkenny City Harriers A.C.
5 Aoife COOKE 00:27:56 53 F Senior Eagle A.C.
6 Annmarie MCGLYNN 00:28:01 85 F Senior Letterkenny A.C.
7 Mary MULHARE 00:28:06 110 F Senior Portlaoise A.C.
8 Ciara MAGEEAN 00:28:13 15 F Senior City of Lisburn A.C.
9 Niamh ALLEN 00:28:30 32 F Senior Crusaders A.C.
10 Niamh KEARNEY 00:28:32 111 F Senior Raheny Shamrock A.C.

Full results HERE

Unlike the Cork County Senior Championships where the numbers were so bad that they couldn't hand out some team medals, the national event had much better attendance.

In the women's race there were 109 finishers with some of the best female runners in the country appearing in there.

In the men's race, there was an even bigger turnout with 192 taking part. The full results are on the MyRunResults website.

Interesting fact... While Michelle Finn won the women's race, the men's race was won by Hiko Tonosa. Both are coached by Feidhlim Kelly.

Cork Runner Michelle Finn secures Olympic Qualification

From Leevale AC... Michelle Finn has secured her place at this year’s Tokyo Olympic Games in the 3000M Steeplechase when the crossed the line in second place at Paavo Nurmi Games

A stunning new personal best of 9:29.25, knocks almost ten seconds off her previous PB and is within the Olympic Qualification Standard time of 9:30.00. Michelle’s time in Finland moves her up to second on the all-time Irish list, just over a second behind Roísín McGettigan’s 14 year old all-time Irish record.

Full story... https://www.leevale.org/2021/michelle-finn-secures-auto-qualification-for-tokyo-olympics/

Cork runners Michelle Finn and Lizzie Lee selected for Irish Cross Country Team

Following on from their 3rd and 4th place finish at the Senior Cross Country Championships in Dublin last Sunday, Cork runners Michelle Finn (#98) and Lizzie Lee (#81) have been selected for the Irish Cross Country Team. The European Cross Country Championships will take place in the Slovak Republic in December.

Announcing the team, Athletics Ireland High Performance Director Paul McNamara said: "The European Cross Country championships are of critical importance to Irish endurance running. We have an outstanding tradition at ‘Euro Cross’ and we are certainly looking to build on that in the 2017 edition of the event. Athletes have been selected based on their preparedness to compete with the best in Europe and this team travels intent on adding to recent successes."

Team Selections
Senior Women
Shona Heaslip (An Riocht A.C.), Kerry O'Flaherty (Newcastle & District A.C.), Michelle Finn (Leevale A.C.), Lizzie Lee (Leevale A.C.), Fionnuala Ross (Armagh A.C), Fionnuala McCormack (Kilcoole A.C.)
Senior Men 
Paul Pollock (Annadale Striders A.C.), Kevin Dooney (Raheny Shamrock A.C.), Hugh Armstrong (Ballina A.C.), John Travers (Donore Harriers A.C.), Sean Tobin (Clonmel A.C.), Kevin Maunsell (Clonmel A.C.)

Under-20 Women
Laura Nicholson (Bandon A.C.), Stephanie Cotter (West Muskerry A.C.), Jodie McCann (Dundrum South Dublin A.C.), Fian Sweeney (Dublin City Harriers A.C.), Sophie Murphy (Dundrum South Dublin A.C.), Fiona Everard (Bandon A.C.)

Under-20 Men
Craig McMeechan (North Down A.C.), Brian Fay (Raheny Shamrock A.C.), Charlie O'Donovan (Leevale A.C.), Fearghal Curtin (Youghal A.C.), James Edgar (City of Lisburn A.C.), Darragh McElhinney (Bantry A.C.)

Under-23 Women
Bethanie Murray (Dundrum South Dublin A.C.)

Under-23 Men
Tom O’Keeffe (Kilkenny City Harriers), Eoin Strutt (Raheny Shamrock A.C.)

Photo: Gearóid Ó Laoi

Shona Heaslip wins National Senior Cross Country Title & Leevale AC secure team win

The National Cross Country Championships were held in Abbotstown, Dublin on Sunday the 26th of November.

In the Senior women's race, Shona Heaslip of An Ríocht AC in Kerry broke away from a group of four in the last lap to take the national title.

Great photo from Gearóid Ó Laoi showing Shona Heaslip on her way to winning the 2017 National Senior Cross Country Championship title

In the women's team event, Michelle Finn's 3rd and Lizzie Lee's 4th place finishes helped Leevale AC secure the Gold. Claire McCarthy and Sinead O'Connor were the other scoring members of the team.

28:31 1 Shona  Heaslip An Riocht A.C. An Riocht A.C. (A)
28:38 2 Kerry O'Flaherty  Newcastle & District AC Newcastle & District AC
28:44 3 Michelle Finn Leevale A.C.  Leevale A.C. (A)
28:51 4 Lizzie Lee  Leevale A.C.  Leevale A.C. (A)
29:16 7 Laura  Crowe An Riocht A.C. An Riocht A.C. (A)
29:43 10 Claire McCarthy Leevale A.C. Leevale A.C. (A)
30:25 18 Sinead O'Connor Leevale A.C. Leevale A.C. (A)

Club Team Points Place Club Positions Points
1 Leevale A.C. (A) 3, 4, 10, 18...35 pts
2 Dundrum South Dublin A.C. (A) 9, 11, 12, 14...46 pts
3 An Riocht A.C. (A) 1, 7, 50, 54...112 pts

Photo from Leevale AC of their Gold medal team

The same four Leevale athletes of course also represented Cork in the inter-county competition to take Gold there as well.

Full results of the women's race

In the men's competition, Mark Hanrahan of Leevale AC finished 6th while the East Cork AC team finished in 7th place, just ahead of Leevale AC in 8th.

Full results of the men's race

Photos...
1) Kieran Carlin of Finn Valley AC has 529 photos HERE
2) Athletics Ireland have a small gallery HERE
3) Gearóid Ó Laoi has a few photos of the start of the women's race HERE

Michelle Finn of Leevale AC is selected for the 2017 World University Games

Michelle Finn of Leevale AC has just been selected for the 2017 World University Games (or known as the Universiade) which will be hosted by the city of Taipei, Taiwan from the 19 – 30 August. Michelle represented Ireland in the Rio Olympics in 2016 in the 3000m Steeplechase.

Irish team announced for the European Cross Country Championships

The Irish team was announced yesterday for the European Cross Country Championships in Chia, Italy on December 11th and includes a number of athletes from Cork.

In the Senior men's section, Mark Hanrahan secured selection with his 3rd place finish in the

Senior Men....Name.............Club..............Coach
1 Mark Christie Mullingar Harriers A.C.  Jerry Kiernan
2 Mick Clohisey Raheny Shamrock A.C.  Dick Hooper
3 Mark Hanrahan  Leevale A.C. Martin McCarthy
4 Liam Brady  Tullamore Harriers A.C.    Paul McNamara
5 Paul Pollock Annadale Striders A.C.    Andy Hobdell
6 Kevin Dooney Raheny Shamrock A.C. Jerry Kiernan

Junior Men....Name.............Club..............Coach
3 Darragh McElhinney    Bantry A.C.    Steve Macklin
4 Fearghal Curtain    Youghal A.C.    Noel Curtin
6 Charlie O'Donovan    Leevale A.C.    Ken Nason/Michelle O'Donovan

In the Senior women's section, Michelle Finn from Cork and Shona Heaslip and Laura Crowe from Kerry were selected.

Senior Women....Name.............Club..............Coach
1 Shona Heaslip    An Riocht A.C.  Niamh O'Sullivan
2 Kerry O'Flaherty    Newcastle & District A.C. Richard Rogers
3 Ciara Mageean    U.C.D. A.C. Jerry Kiernan
4 Fionnuala McCormack  Kilcoole A.C.   
5 Laura Crowe    An Riocht A.C. Donie Walsh
6 Michelle Finn    Leevale A.C.  Donie Walsh

L-R...Kerry O'Flaherty, Shona Heaslip, Ciara Mageean, Laura Crowe and Michelle Finn

Michelle Finn records another sub 9:50 time in 3000m Steeplechase race in Berlin

Michelle Finn of Leevale AC was in action in the womens 3000m steeplechase race at the ISTAF meeting in Berlin on Saturday evening (3rd Sept 2016) and recorded yet another sub 9:50 time. As you can see from the results below, the Cork woman recorded a time of 9m 47.51s. The other Irish contender in the race was Kerry O'Flaherty who finished in 10:10.57.

3000m Steeplechase Women
3 SEP 2016 / 19:10
Rank Name Nat Date of Birth Order Result
1 CHESPOL Celliphine Chepteek KEN 22 JUN 1998 9 9:25.49
2 KRAUSE Gesa Felicitas GER 3 AUG 1992 11 9:30.95
3 SHATALOVA Mariya UKR 3 MAR 1989 8 9:34.97
4 KIRUI Purity KEN 13 AUG 1991 10 9:39.80
5 SUSSMANN Jana GER 12 OCT 1990 2 9:41.05 PB
6 KOWAL Matylda POL 1 NOV 1989 3 9:46.46
7 FINN Michele IRL 16 NOV 1989 5 9:47.51
8 FENTE Birtukan ETH 18 JUN 1989 4 10:07.61
9 O´FLAHERTY Kerry IRL 15 JUL 1981 1 10:10.57

 

As the outdoor season draws to a close, it has been a great year so far for Michelle. These are her 3000m Steeplechase times this year ...

3000 m steeple
9:54.89   SB 1 Univ Ch Dublin 16 Apr
9:58.84   6 Hamburg 22 May
10:10.32   15  IFAM Oordegem 28 May
9:46.81   SB 1 National Championships Dublin 26 Jun
9:45.93   SB 4h1 European Championships Amsterdam 8 Jul
9:43.19   PB (82)  7 European Championships Amsterdam 10 Jul
9:49.45   11h2 Olympic Games Río de Janeiro 13 Aug

Her 9:54 time in April was practically a solo time trial. In May, it was 9:58 for in Hamburg. In June, she won the Irish National Championships in 9:46. In July, she ran 9:43 at the European Championships and in August, she ran 9:49 in the heat of the Olympics in Rio.

In case you're wondering just how fast 9:47 for 3000m is then it's 5m 15s per mile pace with numerous hurdles and water jumps to negotiate.

Reception at Áras an Uachtaráin for Irish Olympic team

On Sunday the 28th of August, President Michael D. Higgins held a special reception for the Irish athletes just back from the Olympics in Rio. Included in the entourage were Michelle Finn and Lizzie Lee from Cork.

Centre of attention...Annalise Murphy with her Olympic Silver medal

Timetable for Irish athletes at the Rio Olympics...

The action in the athletics at the Olympics in Rio kicks off on Friday the 12th of August and the schedule for the Irish athletes is shown below (Cork athletes in Bold). Also keep an eye on Ciara Mageean who is one of the best Irish athletes at the moment.

For a full athletics schedule and results, go to this link... https://www.rio2016.com/en/athletics-schedule-and-results

Irish Olympic Timetable...Irish time

Day 1 Friday August 12
14:10 800m...Round 1 Mark English (UCD)...3rd. QUALIFIED FOR SEMI
18:30 20km Race Walk...M Final Alex Wright (Leevale)
Sat 00:30 1500m...W R1 Ciara Mageean (UCD)...2nd... QUALIFIED FOR SEMI

Day 2 Saturday August 13
14:05 3000m Steeplechase...W R1
Kerry O'Flaherty...heat 1 @ 14:05,
Michelle Finn...heat 2 @ 14:21
Sara Treacy...heat 3 @ 14:37....QUALIFIED FOR FINAL AFTER APPEAL FOR BEING OBSTRUCTED
Mark English...Semi-Final 3 800m@ 2:26am

Day 3 Sunday August 14
13:30 Marathon W Final Fionnuala McCormack (Kilcoole), Lizzie Lee (Leevale), Breege Connolly (North Belfast Harriers)
1:30am 1500m W SF Ciara Mageean (UCD)

Day 4 Monday August 15
15:15 3000m Steeplechase Final W... Sara Treacy (Dunboyne);
15:35 400m H M R1 ...Thomas Barr (Ferrybank)...QUAIFIED FOR SEMI

Day 5 Tuesday August 16
13:45 Pole Vault W Q A+B...Tori Pena (Finn Valley)
1:35am 400m H M SF...Thomas Barr (Ferrybank)...Finished 1st! Though to Final on Thursday.

Day 6 Wednesday August 17
14:55 800m W R1...Ciara Everard (UCD)

Day 7 Thursday August 18
16:00 400m Hurdles M Final...Thomas Barr (Ferrybank)...4th!


Day 8 Friday August 19
12:00pm 50km Race Walk M Final...Robert Heffernan (Togher), Brendan Boyce (Letterkenny), Alex Wright (Leevale)


Day 10 Sunday August 21
13:30 Marathon M Final...Kevin Seaward (St Malachy’s), Paul Pollock (Annadale Striders), Mick Clohisey (Raheny Shamrock)

Leevale AC athletes Michelle Finn, Lizzie Lee & Alex Wright en route to Rio

Womens Marathon......Lizzie Lee of Leevale AC will be in action in the womens marathon on Sunday the 14th of Aug at 1:30pm. There will be a group watching it live in The Sportsman Arms on the Bandon Road in Cork City, very close to the Jackie Lennox Chipper. Lizzie's husband Paul will be texting back live updates.

From Lizzie Lee....."The Sportsmans Arms on Bandon Road (beside Lennoxes) are showing the marathon at 1.30pm Sunday for anyone who wants to watch it with a gang (thank you lovely father in law). Sandwiches for hungry runners. Paul will be texting live updates on my progress from the course. Please share and invite anyone interested!!"

'Donie the Redeemer'...Leevale AC coach Donie Walsh at the Rio Olympics. Photo:Gearóid Ó Laoi

Sara Treacy & Tori Pena

The42 Sports website previews Michelle Finn & Lizzie Lee

As part of the run in to the upcoming Olympic games in Rio, The42 Sports website had short pieces on two of the Cork athletes heading to Brazil.

Michelle Finn... http://www.the42.ie/ireland-olympic-team-michelle-finn-steeplechase-2894923-Jul2016/

Lizzie Lee... http://www.the42.ie/lizzie-lee-team-ireland-2016-rio-olympics-2895951-Jul2016/

O'Callaghan Toyota Kanturk present Olympic athlete Michelle Finn with a new car

In a show of support for a local athlete, O'Callaghan Toyota of Kanturk presented Michelle Finn with a new car recently. Michelle will be representing Ireland in the 3000m Steeplechase in a few weeks time at the Olympics in Rio.

From O'Callaghan Toyota of Kanturk........"A very welcome visitor at our showroom today. Michelle Finn, Olympic Athlete & New O' Callaghan Toyota Brand Ambassador, collected her New 162 Toyota Aygo. Denis Roche, Sales Executive, presented Michelle with her New Car."

Four athletes from Cork selected for Irish Olympic team for Olympics in Rio

The 17 strong Irish athletics team for the Olympics in Rio was announced today and it included four from Cork...Lizzie, Lee, Michelle Finn, Alex Wright and Rob Heffernan.


Michele Finn...Leevale AC...Event: 3000mSC...Personal best: 9:43.34...Coach: Donie Walsh


Lizzie Lee...Leevale AC...Event: Marathon...Personal best: 2:32:51...Coach: Donie Walsh

Alex Wright...Leevale AC...Event: 20km Race Walk/ 50km Race Walk...Personal Best: 1:21:56/3:48:31...Coach: Robert Heffernan

Robert Heffernan...Togher AC...Event: 50km Race Walk...Personal best: 3:37:54...Coach: Marian Heffernan

The other 13 athletes are...
Mark English...800m
Thomas Barr...400m hurdles
Mick Clohisey...Marathon
Paul Pollock...Marathon
Kevin Seaward... Marathon
Brendan Boyce...50k Walk

Ciara Everard...800m
Ciara Mageean...1500m
Kerry O’Flaherty...3000m steeplechase
Sara Treacy...3000m steeplechase
Fionnuala McCormack...10000m & Marathon
Breege Connolly...Marathon
Tori Pena...Pole vault

More info on the Athletics Ireland website