WATERFORD HOSPICE TO BENEFIT FROM BAUSCH AND LOMB KILMACTHOMAS 5 THIS SUNDAY.

On Sunday next February 24th AT 11 AM (please note new starting time) the Annual Bausch and Lomb sponsored Kilmacthomas 5 mile road race will take place. All Proceeds from the race again this year will be donated to a most worth cause Waterford Hospice. Held over the fast Kilmac 5 mile course the race organisers urge runners and walkers alike to come along and support this year’s benefactors, The event is also race number three in this years Michael Roche Carpets spring series of road races which will attract its own share of interest Sunday as there is just one event left in this series the Eason Dungarvan 10k on Sunday March 2nd at 2 PM. The organising committee under the stewardship of Nicola and Michael Dee have all the ground work done for this race now so we request all our members to come along and support their efforts on the day. Entries will be taken at the community hall Kilmacthomas at the top of the town with the entry fee being 8 Euro. Shower facilities will also be available in this hall after the event for both Men and Women. With the help of the very generous sponsorship very kindly given by Bausch and Lomb a very attractive prize fund will be on offer with a total of over 1.000 Euro cash for the top competitors and plenty of spots for down the field finishers. The clubs one prize per athlete applies and outside of the overall winner in both Men’s and Women’s all athletes will score in the category they entered.
The categories are as follows:
MEN-1st 2nd and 3rd, 1st over 40,45,50,55 and 1st Junior.
LADIES- 1st 2nd and 3rd, 1st over 35,40,45,50,
Presentation of prizes will take place by kind permission at Kirwans Bar on the Main St. where sandwiches and refreshments will be available to all.

RUNNING QUOTE.

There is no doubt that 'Sport For All' is a 20th-century movement of real significance. Other mass movements have oppressed where they intended to liberate. This movement liberates because it has an essentially individual basis. The choice of speed, route, distance, or company is entirely yours. Pascal Proctor.

MICHAEL ROCHE CARPETS SPRING SERIES

26th ANNUAL EASON DUNGARVAN 10K.

The fourth and final race in the Michael Roche carpets spring series the Eason Dungarvan 10 k will take place on Sunday March 02nd next at 2 pm, Details of this year’s event were announced during the week at the race launch in the Eason store at Dungarvan Shopping Centre and all is now at the ready for what will be a great days athletics around the streets of the town. To have a successful race we need good sponsors and here again for the 26th Annual race one of the oldest on the athletics calendar in the area Pat Whyte and the Whyte family of Eason Dungarvan have once again kindly continued their association with the club and with this race in particular. As we said its now in its 26th year and is always one of the more popular races on the busy West Waterford calendar as a number of perpetual trophies will be presented on the day and we will be using the fast Canal circuit with the race head quarters at Dungarvan G.A.A.club by kind permission.
  
RACE CATEGORIES FOR EASON DUNGARVAN 10K.

The following are the race categories for The Eason Dungarvan 10k on Sunday march 02nd at 2 PM.
Men’s 1st 3 seniors, 1st Junior, 1st over 40,45,50,55,
Team event, 1st 3 Senior Men’s teams, plus 1st over 40,45,50 men’s team’s with three to score on each team.1st Ladies team.1st 3 West Waterford beginners Men’s and Ladies.
1.Overall individual winner of Men’s and Ladies race can come from any category.
2.Athletes are confined to the category they enter in.
3.Teams consist of 3 athletes.
4.Each team confined to own age category.
5.Plenty of spot prizes will be raffled among non-prize-winners.
6.One prize per athlete applies.
7.Entry fee is 8 Euro

ALLROUNDER SPORTS WINTER LEAGUE.

PB’S A PLENTY ON THE PENULTIMATE NIGHT.

Round fourteen of the winter league certainly possessed all the ingredients for a fine run. A clear, calm and cool night as what we witnessed last week meant that personal bests were on the minds of many of the participants and all succeeded in delivering. The conditions coupled with the fact that we are all battling it out in our relevant divisions made each runner more determined than ever and all were thrilled with their performances. There were many that ran their fastest time ever in the winter league last Wednesday. The first person home was our new sponsor for the club annual Brian Byrne. Brian moved from the 3 mile to the 6-mile and recorded 35.11, which was great running indeed. Hugh O’ Connor will also be thrilled with his time of 46.11. Liam Kavanagh and Paul Brunnock are two very deserving recipients of PB’s. These two ran a blinder to say the least and crossed the line at 38.26 and 38.28 respectively. They have certainly shown that consistent training is the key and their dedication and commitment to training is certainly reaping just rewards for the two lads. Tom Scanlon and Alice Fitzgerald, currently first and second placed at the moment, gave it their all on the night and Alice has managed to close the gap another little bit on Tom. Both were well under 43 minutes for the 6 miles. Jim Barry was another who had made his mind up to go for it and finished with a time of 39.20. Jason Dee’s fine run for the night also earned him a PB and into the bargain has made him leader of division 2. Last week was Jason’s first time running under 38 minutes and considering the fact that his overall aim at the beginning of the league was to break 40 minutes, this is a major accomplishment. Triona Wall also had a personal best and clocked 42.22 on the night and will be looking to get closer to 42 minutes tonight no doubt. Alan Lyons and Quentin Hickey also had a great battle on the night and both finished with the same time of 36.39. Carol Whelan recorded 48.02 which was great running and Camille Mulhearne clocked 44.17.
At the moment there is 46 points separating Tom Scanlon and Alice Fitzgerald. Liam Kavanagh’s super performance has put him in 3rd place, a mere 5 points behind Alice. This will make it very close in the final shake up and at present it’s too close to call. The same can be said for division 3 with only 12 points separating Hugh O’ Connor and Michael Dunford. Both will have to pull off another great performance tonight. Paul Brunnock is leading division 4 but will need to pull off a double to keep Andrea Gaffney at bay. Patrick O’ Reilly looks safe enough in division 5. Division 6 is by far the closest with just two points separating Noel Drohan and Tracey Dwyer. Previous league winner Tony Shalloe is in third place and a fine run by Tony tonight could also see him leading that division. It all rests on tonight’s run. Cathal Dwane, Gerry Cantwell and Tony Hamilton are fairly safe in their respective divisions. Bríd Breathnach and Billy Coleman will have a battle on their hands to become winner of division 10 as there is only 11 points between them with Brid currently leading. It’s between Onra Power and Dixie Deegan in division 11, Ray Dwyer will need to reel Justin Coonan in by 35 points in order to get to the top of division 12. Micheal O Callaghan is safe in division 13. Tom Byrne and Michael Moloney will be fighting it out for division 14. Paddy Power is safe in his division and Ann Wright and Tom Shanley will have to pull off another great run in division 16. Ann is currently leading by 19 points. Anthony Dwyer has a 25-point lead over David McNally in division 17 and Marian Keane has a 20-point lead over Aaron Cartlidge in division 19. Eamon Flavin and Carmel Corcoran are safe enough in their divisions.

HUGE IMPROVEMENT BY ALL IN THE THREE MILE

The same enthusiasm and effort was ever present in the three-mile route. First home yet again were Helen Fraher and Anna Landers. Helen clocked 23.35 and Anna and John Reynolds were battling it out for second position with a mere second separating the two of them in the end. Anna clocked 23.42 and John 23.43. Nan O’ Brien is another to show huge improvement in the last few weeks. Two weeks ago Nan recorded 18.11 but for round 14 she completed the route in a fine time of 16.49, which is a great achievement, well done Nan. Pat O’Connell is another than can join the ranks of the improvers-Pat ran 17.36 last week, down from 18.21, which he recorded 2 weeks ago. Cyril Flavin knocked 40 seconds off his time last week and ended up with an admirable time of 17.17. Karolina Mazur ran under 20 minutes last week, getting very close to 19 minutes in the process. Stephen Greene got very close to 20 minutes and a last effort from him tonight should see him break the 20-minute barrier. Judging by her performance last week Andrea O’ Neill will be well capable of breaking 17 minutes for the route and it also looks like Paul McGrath will be out to break 16 minutes after clocking 16.33 last week. Alan Curran (74) ran a blinder and having clocked 15.09 should be well under 15 tonight. Denise Nugent and Brigid Blackwell had a great run together and recorded 22.04 and 22.07 respectively. With a mass start tonight they will have each other for company on the route along with all the others hoping to break 22 minutes. Martin Quinlan and Joan Navin finished with the same time last week, 19.38 each so they will be able to give each other a push along the way tonught. David Regan must be well pleased to have recorded 19.55; another fine night tonight could get him down to 19.30.
In the divisions, Carolyn Byrne has an eighty-point lead going in to tonight’s run. This lead should see her safely through. It is from there on that it’s a bit too close for comfort! Geoff Bullen and Cyril Flavin will both be battling it out for second place with only 9 points separating the two. Alan Curran (74) is currently in 4th place and it’s the overall 5th position that can realistically go to any of the following- Mark Radley, Pat O’ Connell, Alan Curran (75), Marian Moloney and Colette Bannon. There is only 7 points separating these 5 runners and only one can claim the overall 5th spot, it’s literally down to the wire for these 5 people and it all hinges on tonight’s performance. Sean Moore and Anita Lyons look likely to hold onto their leads. Michael Hennessey and Brigid Blackwell will be battling it out to be crowned leader of division 5 with only nine points between the two of them. A mere three points separates Niamh Budds and Mary Riordan in division, could it get much closer than that? Leisa Fleming, Yevgeniy Chizhikov, Geraldine Barry, Mark Cliffe and Josie Harty are fairly safe in their divisions.  In division 12, Avril Doocey has 30 points to spare over Ann Wright so she will have to keep that in mind for her final run of the league tonight as will Seamus Casey who has a 14 point lead over Aine O Connell. The best of luck to everybody tonight!

LEAGUE DIVISIONS.

The prizes for the winter league in both the 3 mile and the 6 mile route will go to the top five overall in the league, these will be the 5 people with the lowest scores overall. These five people may come from division one, two or three. At the moment there are people in division one that have a higher score than some people in division two or three but in the final tally it will be the top five with the lowest scores. After that, there will be prizes for the winner of each division. There are 20 divisions in the 6-mile route and 15 divisions in the 3-mile route.

MYSTERY TOUR

Our much awaited mystery tour will be held on Friday night, February 22nd. Our meeting point in town is Downey’s Bar between 6.30 and 7 p.m. From there, we will be picked up by coach and brought to the mystery tour destination known only to the mystery tour organiser. At this venue, the names of the overall winners and the division winners will be revealed and they will be presented with their prizes. Music and dancing will follow and a great night is in store for you all. There are still some seats left on the bus, €5 keeps your seat for you. Triona Wall will be taking the names tonight at the Sports Centre.

TRAYS

There are some trays left over from the recent Dungarvan ten-mile road race. They will be at the Sports Centre tonight so if you’re missing a tray or two come along and collect them tonight. If you can’t make it tonight, they will be kept in the club van for collection at a later date.

MUNSTER ROAD RACE

This year’s Munster Road Race will be held in Ennis on Sunday March 16th. The club will be sending a male and a female team to represent the club. The ladies’ race is 2 miles and the men’s race is 4 miles. All those interested in running this race, give your names to our road-racing co-ordinator Gerry Cantwell as soon as possible please.

EMERALD FINANCIAL CLUB ANNUAL.

With just weeks to go now for the launch of the Emerald Financial sponsored club Annual which will cover all club activities and much more besides during 2007.Editor Dermot Dwyer tells us that it is really taking shape now and the first proofs have been sent to the publisher, This years edition will be the 5th and it promises to be the best to date with a Hugh array of articles submitted and defiantly our finest collection of club photos ever published. Out thanks once again to our Annual sponsor’s John Organ and Brian Byrne of Emerald Financial without their support it would not be possible to publish such a record of the clubs activities, indeed it is a very important record to have of what was an outstanding year for the club in 2007.Below we wet the appetite with a small article which will appear in the Annual many of the names mentioned will be familiar in athletics circles, so a kind of a blast from the past. Read on.   

REMEMBERING OTHER DAYS

FORTY YEARS AGO   1968

DEISE AC ATHLETES SCORE AT TRAMORE

Tramore strand was the venue for last Sunday’s open races and proved once again a happy hunting ground for the Dungarvan athletes.
The u/14 race attracted a strong field from Youghal, Midleton, Castlecomer and Carlow.  Here, the individual winner was Liam O’Brien (Midleton) but the Deise runners packed very well and had four runners in the first eight home.  The winning team was Seamus Fox (2nd), Pa Meehan (3rd), Philip O’Driscoll (6th) and Michael Russell (8th).
In the u/18 race, Pat Terry (Deise AC) finished fourth behind the Dunhill pair Dan Cowman and Matt Nolan, and Gerry Goodwin(Tramore).  In the senior race Jimmy Costin (Deise AC) ran his best race this season and it was only in the last lap that he was outpaced by Ollie Jones (Carlow).  Fifty nine runners lined up here and Joe Sheehan (Deise AC) ran a great race to finish sixth.
Once again the Deise ladies showed the way home to the opposition.  A very big ladies entry of 49 runners lined up for the start of this half-mile race but Elizabeth Mountain (Deise AC) once again showed that on road, track or sand, class will always show.  She led all the way from her club mates Rita Costin and Wally Landers.  Brid Costin was fifth and Deise athletes also filled the next three places.

NOEL CARROLL WINS AT WATERFORD AC SPORTS

A typical Noel Carroll double (440 and 880 yards), a great win for St Finbarr’s AC in the Irish 4x110 yards relay championship, a shock 200 metres title for Mallow’s Gerry O’Sullivan, a 6’4” high jump by Bob Russell and an outstanding performance from Liz Mountain (Deise AC) in the 100 yards open were highlights of the successful Waterford AC sports in Kilcohan Park last Sunday.

1968 WATERFORD JUVENILE TRACK CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

Boys under 12
100 yards:   1 N. Prendeville (D.L.S) 2. Kevin O’Keefe (D.L.S) 3. Ted Healy (Tramore)
800 yards:   1.T. Ryan (Deise)  2. T. Healy (Tramore)  3. K. O’Keeffe (D.L.S)

Under 14
100 yards:    1.Pa Meehan (Deise)  2. John Purcell (Tramore)  3. Pat Kennefick (Deise)
1 mile:       1.Seamus Fox (Deise)  2. N. Molloy (D.L.S)  3.Pa Meehan (Deise)

Under 16
100 yards:    1.Tom Connors (D.L.S.)  2. M. Sutton (Deise)  3. S. Cleary (D.L.S)
800 yards:    1.Pat Tobin (Deise) 2. F Byrne (D.L.S)  3. Gerry Goodwin (Tramore)

DEISE GIRLS DOMINATE

Deise AC juvenile athletes dominated the second section of the Waterford championships in Waterford city.  For the girls of the club it was a night to remember.  They were first in every track and field event except the 100 yards u/12 and on a few occasions Deise AC athletes fought out all three placings.
Tramore and De La Salle provided the main opposition.  In the girls u/14 Marion Connors was first, Helene Hamilton second while there was a very disputed decision before a Tramore girl was awarded third place.  To all neutral observers it seemed that Anne Sandford (Deise) had beaten her but the judge’s decision was final.  In the girls u/16 100 yards and 800 yards the Deise pairing of Elizabeth Mountain and Rita Costin were first and second respectively.
One of the most thrilling contests was the high jump u/14.  On the last jump three Deise girls and a De La Salle girl were level at a height of 4’2”.  The three Deise girls jumped clear and on a count back the result was:  1. Denise Barron.   2.  Breda Flynn.   3.  Anne Sandford.     Patricia Donnelly was a good third in the under 12 100 yards.

WATERFORD COUNTY BOARD A.G.M.

Delegates from all county Waterford athletic clubs met in the Friary, Dungarvan on Sunday last for the A.G.M..   The officers elected were:  President:  Fr. Doherty, Chairman: Paddy Byrne, Treasurer: Eddie Wymberry, Secretary: Fintan Walsh, Registrar: Fintan Byrne.
Two new Dungarvan clubs were affiliated, Friary A.C. for boys and St Mary’s AC for girls.  Both were members of Deise AC up to now, who again affiliated for the coming season.  A further new club from the city affiliated and it will be known as St John’s Park AC.
From a Dungarvan point of view it was most gratifying to see the award of “Young Athlete of the Year” presented to Elizabeth Mountain.  Her record in track events and in cross-country makes her a worthy winner of the Bishop Russell Perpetual Trophy.

FRIARY AC WIN BOYS U/17 TEAM PRIZE

The Waterford cross country season got underway at Tramore Racecourse on Sunday last and 237 athletes from Munster and Leinster took part.  Naturally, competition was keen and the senior race was dominated by outside athletes.
Best juvenile club performance came from the Friary boy’s u/17 who won the team prize.  The race was won by B. Swift (Tramore) while the winning Friary squad was Gerard Cummins (3rd), Seamus Fox(5th), David Dwyer(6th) and Philip O’Driscoll (9th).Best performance by a Dungarvan athlete on the day was by the St Mary’s AC girl Christine O’Shea who finished second in the girl’s u/14 race.

CHRISTINE O’SHEA WINS IN WATERFORD

Friary AC and St Mary’s AC won all the team events they contested at the St John’s Park AC promoted cross-country meeting in Waterford last Sunday.
Once again the 13-year-old Caseyville girl, Christine O’Shea beat all comers in the u/14 race.  She hit the front in the early stages of the race and romped home an easy winner.  She also led the St Mary’s girls to the team victory, the other members being Joan McGregor (5th), Breda Flynn (7th), Kay Dwyer (10th) and Anne Sheehan (11th).

ANOTHER U/16 VICTORY FOR PAT TOBIN

The experienced and free striding Kilrossanty boy Pat Tobin (Friary AC) ran a brilliant tactical race to win the under 16 race at the De La Salle grounds last Sunday.
After the first lap he was tucked in at the end of the field and only gradually worked his way up through the field to the leaders.  His teammate David Dwyer was setting a hot pace with Seamus Fox in support.  However, on the last lap it was a De La Salle runner who tried to break away from the field, Tobin pressed on and as they reached the brow of the hill, both runners were level.  However, Tobin switched into top gear and the race was over.  The Friary boy also led his team to victory with four runners in the first six home.

JIMMY COSTIN AND JOAN MCGREGOR WIN AT KILOSSERA

Heavy rain during the week made the course at Kilossera very testing for the Deise AC promoted cross-country races last Sunday.
The outstanding feature of the meeting was the welcome return of Jimmy Costin (Deise AC) in the senior race.  Jimmy, whose stride seems to lengthen with his beard, revelled in the heavy conditions and looked to be enjoying the tough gruelling underfoot conditions.  He was a clear winner from Dan Cowman (Dunhill AC), J. O’Brien (Waterford) and Joe Sheehan (Deise AC).
There was another very popular local winner in the girl’s races when St Mary’s AC Joan McGregor won the u/14 race form her club mate Mary Tobin.  Joan was a worthy winner who lasted the tough race in grand style.
Finally a word of thanks to the landowners for their permission to race on their lands and for allowing their gaps and barriers to be opened.

27TH BELFAST CITY MARATHON.

On Monday 5th May 2008, Belfast City Marathon celebrates its 27th year!!
The marathon numbers reached record levels again in 2007 with over 14,300 people taking part in the cocktail of events (Marathon 1800 entrants, Relay 1800 teams, Walk 1900 entrants and Fun Run 1700 entrants). The level of participation has virtually doubled in the last 5 years. The Deep RiverRock Belfast City Marathon is also funded by the Northern Ireland Athletics Federation, Sport Northern Ireland and Belfast City Council. To build on this past record of success and to celebrate its 27th year the organisers have developed a number of innovations for 2008 to ensure that even more people are attracted to take part on marathon day;
- £1,000 bonus to the first male and female athlete to break the current Belfast Marathon record times set by Marty Deane (2:15:51) and Lemma Urge (2:41:33)
- A new increased Prize lists in all categories for both male and female athletes. Please visit the website on www.belfastcitymarathon for more information.
- Exciting route is provided to bring runners into the Belfast community
- All events start at the City Hall and finish at Ormeau park; the Marathon, Relay and Walk will start at 9:00am whilst the Fun Run sets off at 9:20am
- There will be a family fun day of events at Ormeau Park, including bands, food and drink and funfair.
- Showers and limited changing facilities will be available at the Tennis Arena.
Further details of these arrangements including maps and directions for the new routes can be found on our website, www.belfastcitymarathon.com
Due to the ever increasing scale of the event, the organisers have decided to have a final cut-off point for entries on the 18th April 2008. No entries will be accepted after this date. Participants are urged to get their entries in as soon as possible.

NATIONAL MASTERS INDOORS CHAMPIONSHIPS.

GOLD GALORE FOR WEST WATERFORD MASTERS.

The national Masters indoors championships were held last Saturday in Nenagh and West Waterford athletes were in sparkling form with all four competitors coming home with a hat full of medals each. We had two male athletes Joe Gough and Brendan Moran plus two Female athletes Sandra Brazil White and Terri Gough representing the club on the day. First out of the blocks was the invincible Terri Gough competing in the over 60 category Terri took three gold and one silver when winning the 200-400 and 800 Meters and taking her silver in the 60 Meters, this great individual performance was followed by another top drawer performance from Sandra Brazil Whites taking gold in the over 35 200 meters followed by a double silver performance in the Long Jump and 60 Meters sprint. Brendan Moran was back to winning ways also in the over 50 when taking gold in the 60 Meters and gold in the 200 Meters this was followed by the new Irish record holder in the 400 meters over 55 Joe Gough’s win in yet another 400 meters event when he took gold, so all in all another most successful day for our Masters in Nenagh well done to all concerned.

WEST WATERFORD AC FILL WINNERS PODIUM AT ANNE VALLEY 5.

The Anne Valley 5 mile road race in aid of The Children’s hospital in Crumlin was held in brilliant running conditions last Sunday morning in Dunhill. The club had a hand full of athletes taking part but we did manage to fill the overall winning positions. In the Men’s race the top three positions were filled by West Waterford athletes when Raivis Zakis took 1st for the second year in a row with a time of 26.30 on the undulating course he was followed home by club mate Sean Stilwell second in 27.59 and third was Declan McGrath 28.09,not to be outdone Diane Behan had the flag flying for our Ladies when she took a good victory with a good time of 32.09,also taking part were Jim Fleming 31.49,John Leahy 32.49,Cathal Dwane 35.37,Jim Duhig 37.24,Ray Murray 41.06,well done to those mentioned and to all who participated.

JAMIE COSTIN IN SPLENDID FORM AT SPANISH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS.

Jamie Costin took another forward step in his preparations for this years Beijing Olympics when competing in Bilbao in Spain on Sunday last in the Spanish national 20 km race walking championships. Over a distance much shorter than Jamie’s best 50 km event he never the less covered the race in an excellent time of 1.26.35 to take 6th place overall. This was a very y important race for Jamie as he also was inside the 1.27 time set down by Athletics Ireland for the upcoming world cup of race walking in Russia in May. Before that he will also compete in Ibiza in four weeks time again over the 20km distance.Speaking with a delighted Jamie on the phone on Sunday afternoon it was obvious that his performance earlier in the day delighted him and his long arduous training schedule this past couple of months is starting to pay dividends.  His meticulous preparations is all a work in motion for this year’s Olympics and his training is certainly going in the right direction.

DUNPHY VIVAS HEALTH FINISHERS CUBES.

Those runners who didn’t recieve their finishers crystal cube at the recent Dungarvan 10 mile road race can now do so at Ger Wyley Sports.