UK runner who collapsed at Dublin Marathon passes away...

On a sadder note, Ricki Savage from England who took part in the Dublin City Marathon last Monday has passed away. The 27 year old had just finished the race in 3 hours and 10 minutes and was taking part to raise funds for the British Heart Foundation. He unfortunately suffered a heart attack at the finish line and was rushed to hospital.

The president of Thanet Roadrunners Athletic Club said..."We were told earlier this afternoon that he hasn’t pulled through and we’re all devastated at the club. It was his first marathon but he was a very competent runner and he had done long distances before that. The paramedics worked on him for over 40 minutes before getting him to hospital. We’d like to express our gratitude for their work and for doing all they could.”

RIP

(Ricki Savage's charity page...http://www.justgiving.com/RickiSavage )

The Mysterious H.O'Neill and how he nearly won the 2013 Dublin City Marathon

Due to the fact that there was no live TV coverage of this year's Dublin City Marathon, many people chose to follow the proceedings online and tracked the various runners as they passed over various timing mats along the route.

In the build up to the race, there was plenty of speculation as to who the winner of the mens race might be, especially as there was no elite field from abroad this year. The media seemed to have it down as a contest between two rival camps....Sean Hehir who is coached by the 1980 winner Dick Hooper and Joe Sweeney who is coached by the 1982 winner Jerry Kiernan.

On the day, that's the way it turned out but for those following online, a certain unknown 'H.O'Neill' seemed to be giving the two boys a run for their money and was ahead for much of the race.

John Meade tells the full story below...

Dublin Marathon 2013 and The Mysterious Case of H.O’Neill?.....

Finally there’s an explanation for the mysterious case of the pace-defying tactics from one H. O’Neill during last Monday’s Dublin Marathon.

Many people watched the astounding progress of elite no. 32, H. O’Neill, on the online tracker, as he ghosted just ahead of Hehir and Sweeney through 10 km then half marathon, in what appeared online like a brave solo effort. Who is this fella? How can someone we haven’t heard of before be leading for so long? Is a huge upset on the cards here?

At the 20 Mile mark, the next point for online tracking, race no. 32, H. O’Neill had mysteriously vanished. Blown up? Pacing work completed? Enough done for the day?

In post race reports and race photos, there was not a sight nor mention of the astounding early efforts of H. O’Neill. Was history being written selectively by the running establishment, no space for the unknown dark horse!

Too many questions, something odd is happening here!

Race no. 32 is Henry O’Neill, from Tyrone, who was not running at all on the day. An injury a few weeks back put an end to his marathon prospects but he remained hopeful until the end. When he didn’t show at registration by Sunday evening, race organisers held onto his number, thinking he might arrive on Monday morning. Monday morning and still no sign. The bag with Henry’s number & timing chip ended up in the press bus and from there, merrily made its way around the course, a little bit ahead of the lead runners. No one on the bus realising the furore the little bag on the floor was unknowingly causing around the country, around the world. Not that the bag would ever have known!

So there ends the mysterious case of the fleet footed Phantom Runner of Dublin Marathon 2013. Mind where you leave your chips!

Date for 2014 Ballycotton 10 announced...

The 37th annual Ballycotton 10 mile road race will take place on Sunday March 9th, 2014. The full entry details will be available in a few days time.

Results & Photos of the 2013 Dublin City Marathon...Mon 28th Oct 2013

Conditions for this year's Dublin City Marathon were almost ideal....blue skies, sunshine, cool with no showers. There was a strong breeze but at street level with all of the buildings and the large crowds, it wasn't really an issue.

What made this year a lot more interesting as well was all of the Irish runners competing for the top prizes. 

1 Sean Hehir    Rathfarnham Wsaf    MS 2:18:19
2 Joe Sweeney    Dsd Ac    MS 2:19:26
3 Sergiu Ciobanu    Clonliffe Harriers A.c.    MS 2:22:02
4 Thomas Frazer    Crusaders Ac    MS 2:22:34
5 Paddy Hamilton    Annadale Striders    MS 2:23:37
6 Gary O' Hanlon    Clonliffe Harriers A.c.    M35 2:23:54
7 Alun Vaughan        MS 2:24:32
8 Eddie Mc Ginley    Annadale Striders    MS 2:24:52
9 Michael Mac Diarmada    Clonliffe Harriers A.c.    MS 2:25:53
10 Stephen Trainer        MS 2:26:36
11 Alan O' Shea    Bantry AC    MS 2:26:46
12 Mark Hoey    Star Of The Sea A.c    MS 2:28:47
13 Eoin Callaghan    Star Of The Sea A.c    MS 2:29:29
14 Brian James Murphy    Carrick-on-suir A.c.    M35 2:30:24
15 Conor Shelley        MS 2:31:28
16 Sandis Bralitis    West Waterford A.c.    MS 2:31:34
17 Bernard Roe    Raheny Shamrock A.c.    MS 2:32:02
18 Ismael Pereira Da Silva        M45 2:32:04
19 John Frazer    Crusaders Ac    MS 2:32:30
20 Pauric Mc Kinney    Inishowen A.c.    M45 2:33:03
21 Garreth Coughlan        MS 2:33:14
22 Paul Duffy    Sportsworld A.c.    MS 2:33:18
23 Peter Mooney        M35 2:34:08
24 Fergal Whitty    Donore Harriers    M35 2:34:51
25 Cedric Schramm        M35 2:34:51

1 Maria    Mc Cambridge F35     DSD AC 2:38:51
2 Claire    Mc Carthy F35     Leevale A.C. 2:39:27
3 Pauline    Curley F40     Tullamore Harriers 2:42:57
4 Fiona    Stack FS     Raheny Shamrock A.C. 2:49:04
5 Annette    Kealy F45     Raheny Shamrock A.C. 2:50:08
6 Emma    Murphy FS     St. Finbarrs A.C. 2:50:32
7 Angela    Mc Cann F40     Clonmel A.C 2:53:53
8 Ann Marie    Holland F35     St. Finbarrs A.C. 2:56:34
9 Orna    Dilworth FS     Sportsworld A.C. 2:57:31
10 Catherine    O' Dwyer F35 2:58:01
11 Lucy    Brennan F50     Sligo AC.     2:58:46
12 Anne    Curley F40     Donore Harriers 2:58:43

I'm not sure what it was like in previous years but there were substantial prizes on offer as can be seen above. Any Irish man breaking 2:35 or Irish woman breaking 3:00 got time bonuses.

The full results with splits can be seen HERE (..much faster than the official Dublin Marathon website)

National Championships results can be seen HERE

Photos...(Updated Thurs @1pm)
1) Peter & Rory Mooney have a large gallery of photos HERE 
2) 'Wendy' has a gallery of 362 photos HERE 
3) William Murphy has a gallery HERE 
4) Rory Williams has a gallery HERE 
5) Joe Murphy of Eagle AC has a gallery of photos HERE 
6) Markus Schroeder has a gallery HERE 
7) Lindie Naughton has a gallery of 170 photos HERE 
8) Maurice Frazer has 47 photos HERE 
9) Tatyana Turchina has a number of the 5 hour plus finishers HERE
10) Alan Bannon has a gallery of over 1,000 photos HERE

Video...

1) 12 minute video...Fenian Street (near the Macken Street junction), near the finish line at the corner of Merrion Square and Lincoln Place, and finally on Grand Canal Street. Most of those filmed on Fenian Street and at the finishing line were running between a 3 hour and 3.30 hour pace. Those filmed on Grand Canal Street were running between a 4.30 and 5 hour pace.


2) Start of the 2013 Dublin City Marathon....and this is only the first wave!


3) This 55 minute video was taken near the earlier part of the race...

Ongoing...

The Science of Running on RTE

A recent RTE programme called The Science Squad had a look at some of the science behind the sport of running.

You can see it on the RTE Player Service until the 13th of November. The relevant clip is 8 minutes long.

Event notice...The Great Railway Run - Sun 10th Nov 2013

Following last year's inaugural event, this year's Great Railway Run will take place on Sunday, 10th November 2013. There are a choice of three distances.......a 25 km race starting at 9:30am from Cork City to Carrigaline, a 10 km race from Monkstown to Carrigaline starting at 10:15am or a 5 km fun run from Shanbally to Carrigaline starting at 11:15am.

The run will roughly follow the route of the old Cork, Blackrock and Passage Railway which ran from 1850 until 1932.

For a large part of the run, the route will follow the old railway line that skirts the shores of Cork Harbour. Each event will finish at Carrigaline GAA Club. Shower facilities will be available in the GAA Club after the race and there will be bus transport to take runners back to the start areas after the race.

The pre-entry fee is €30 for the 25K and €20 for the 10K until the 7th of November. All proceeds from the event will go towards Carrigaline Lions Club

More details on the event website.

A full preview of the course can be seen HERE

Athletics Ireland announce selection standard for 2014 European Championships

Athletics Ireland have just announced the standards required to qualify for the European Athletics Championships in Zurich, Switzerland in August 2014.

For most events, the qualifying period runs from the 1st of January to the 21st of July 2014. The athlete in most cases either has obtain one 'A' standard or if they are a named 'Development Athlete' then they need two 'B' performances.

The full info can be seen HERE

Quinn Brothers Run Dublin City Marathon For MS Ireland

Back in 1980, the four Quinn brothers became a media sensation in the USA when they lined up to take part in the 1980 New York City Marathon. At the time, they were the first set of four brothers in the world to run in a marathon together. Reflecting on those times, Mick Quinn said......“We were four fairly unfit lads but we had youth on our side. We were about 22/23 years old and played GAA so we weren’t too worried. Once the media picked it up there was no turning back – we had to get fitter and fitter.”

Fast forward 33 years later to 2013 and the same four brothers have gone back into training for this year's Dublin City Marathon. On Monday, they will be running to raise funds for MS Ireland......“33 years later we’re doing again. While we’re a bit more rotund now, let’s say, and we may not do it in the same time as before, our intention is the same – to raise funds for a very worthy cause like MS Ireland.”

6 year old girl runs 2:47 Half-Marathon in Texas

At a recent Half-Marathon in Texas, 6 year old Keelan Glass ran the 13.1 mile course in 2h 46m. This works out as being 12:42 per mile pace. It is also being claimed as a world record for a six year old.

A short video report from local TV station KTXS can be seen HERE

This of course raises the whole debate about whether young children should be running in distance races anyway. As a one off, it's unlikely to do them any harm whereas if a six year old was doing it on a regular basis then it might be different. The current guidelines from Athletics Ireland is that no-one under 18 should be racing distances longer than 10 kms.

Update....There is a story about 10 and 12 year old sisters running races on a regular basis in the New York Times . These include half-marathons and a full marathon.

Looking ahead to the 2013 Dublin City Marathon

Looking at a national level, the big race this weekend is of course the Dublin City Marathon. As well as being the National Marathon, it is also the largest Marathon in the country with some 14,000 runners taking part.

Weather Forecast........(Updated Sun 8am)...Last weather forecast for the Dublin City Marathon. Monday morning...Bright and cool for most of the event. Strong breeze from the west / north-west making it feel colder than it is. Showers possible but overall, looks reasonable enough.

Course Map......Click on this link to see the map for the 2013 course

Video of the course......

Here is the official race video from 2012 to give you a flavour of whats in store...

Cork Runner looking for sponsorship for Cancer charities

John Quigley, who is the chairman of Eagle AC, a local club in Cork, is running in the Dublin City Marathon next Monday and hopes to raise funds for two cancer charities. You might consider making a donation to these fine causes...

John Quigley.........."As some of you may be aware, I am a Cancer Survivor, having had a Radical Prostatectomy for Prostate Cancer. That was in May 2008. I'm running the Dublin City Marathon again next Monday. This will be my fourth Marathon since then and I will again be running Dublinwith my "Cancer Survivor" strip on my singlet.
 
I have opened two charity pages which are in aid of the Irish Cancer Society and Cork ARC. 

My Irish Cancer Society fundraising page

My Cork ARC fundraising page
Cork ARC Cancer Support House is a voluntary organisation and registered charity located at O’Donovan Rossa Road, Cork. ARC standing for Aftercare, Research, Counselling was established to provide a holistic centre in which people with cancer and their families can find emotional support and practical help. Our aim is to provide therapies that complement the medical model, so as to make a difference to the lives of those affected by cancer. All Services are provided free of charge and supported through fundraising initiatives.

Both of these charities provide wonderful services, help and assistance to those facing Cancer.

I found them both badly needed and wonderful when I required most help, and now, in turn, do what I can to help them.  I am a mentor for Prostate Cancer, through the Irish Cancer Society FREEFONE Helpline  1800 200 700.

One of my main aims is to demonstrate that there can be life after a Cancer diagnosis, and to provide inspiration and hope to those faced with Cancer in their daily life. Cancer diagnosis is a traumatic event for everyone, patient and those who care for them. Some of us get a second chance - this is my way of saying thanks!

Any donation no matter how small is hugely appreciated. Many thanks in advance for your support........John Quigley

PS both pages will remain open for donations until Nov 29th.

Marine Corps Marathon bans halloween masks and hydration packs

The Marine Corps Marathon is one of the largest Marathons in the USA and attracts some 30,000 runners. Following on from the bombings at the Boston Marathon back in April, security has been tightened for the race next Sunday with various items like halloween masks and hydration packs being banned.

The report below shows how things have changed for major running events in the US.

Event notice...John Treacy Dungarvan 10 mile road race - Sun 26th Jan 2014

Now as we head towards the end of 2013, it's time to look ahead to the Spring of 2014 and what lies ahead. This is the traditional season for 10 mile road races in Munster and the four big ones are Ballycotton, Dungarvan, Mallow and Cobh.

The first one up is the John Treacy Dungarvan 10 mile road race on Sunday the 26th of January 2014. This is for me one of the best road races in Munster and it attracts runners from all over the country. Please note there is an entry limit of 2,000 this year and it will almost certainly close well before race day. The entry fee is €20 and that includes a Nike dry-fit running top. It really is an excellent top and as good as you'd get in any race. The entries are flying in already so enter asap

Here is some details from the organising club West Waterford AC...

At a photo launch recently in the towns Walton Park, John Treacy along with race sponsors and club committee members, details were announced of the 23rd Annual John Treacy Dungarvan 10 Mile Road Race.

The event now in its 23rd year has established itself as a must run race on the Irish road running calendar with participants from all four corners of the country and beyond participating. The race has grown year on year and is a pre-entry race only with the close date January 13th for the January 26th 2014 race or when 2,000 entries is reached .Please note that race entries closed in a matter weeks last year leaving hundreds disappointed on not being able to participate.( please get your entry in immediately )

To stage such a big event of course requires good sponsors and we are fortunate to have the support of the local authorities, Go Dungarvan, GlaxoSmithKline, Dungarvan Shopping Centre, Glanbia, Optimum Nutrition, Tipperary Water, Flahavan’s, Nike Ireland along with many other local businesses and individuals who are all giving valuable support helping to make the day a great occasion for the town of Dungarvan.

Introduced to the event three years ago the John Treacy Club Challenge Cup for men’s and ladies teams is proving to be highly successful. We will again be calling on all the athletic clubs of Ireland to take on the challenge in the 2014 event.

The John Treacy Dungarvan 10 bring’s together the ideal race combination of fun runners, joggers, club athletes and top class internationals who compete over a fast flat 10 mile course around the historic town of Dungarvan as we all look forward to an even bigger and better event on January 26th  next.

All race and entry details can be found at www.dungarvan10mile.org

Postal entry forms HERE

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

82 year old Canadian Ed Whitlock runs record 3:41 Marathon

A year ago, I had a post up about Ed Whitlock from Canada who ran a 3:30 Marathon in Toronto aged 81 years old, a new record for that age group. Now one year later, he is rewriting the record books again aged 82.

At the 2013 Toronto Waterfront Marathon last Sunday, Ed Whitlock ran 3:41:58 setting a new record for an 82 year old. The previous record of 3:48:35 was set by Ed Benham in 1989.

Having started the race initially just faster than 8 min/mile pace, his pace began to slow around 15 miles and then more so at 20 miles. For the last 3 miles, his pace had dropped to about 10 min/mile pace before finally getting to the finish line in 3:41.

A short article about how he train can be seen in this earlier post.

US Medical expert says Ireland is following USA on obesity path

Despite the current running and fitness boom, it would seem that a very high percentage of the Irish population are heading in the other direction.

At a launch of a SafeFood programme, Professor John Lewis PhD from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine said that with 60% of Irish adults were obese or overweight and that Ireland was following in the footsteps of the USA.

Prof Lewis said......."Ireland is already not far behind America, so I would be very concerned. The overweight/obesity crisis is a global, not just a US, problem. If Ireland is the 7th most obese country in the world, I believe it would be difficult to move out of the top 10 with any strategy in less than 24 months. Getting a large enough percentage of the population to lose weight that rapidly would probably be very challenging."