Juvenile Notes, 9th January 2012

Albert McGrath to Sponsor Colligan Cup on Sunday January 22rd

Sunday January 22nd will be a busy one in Colligan. At 1.00 p.m. the juvenile Colligan Cup will get under way.  This event, which will again be sponsored by Albert McGrath, challenges an athletes pace and judgement as well as their running skills.

This is an open event and anyone can take part. The juvenile race will be run over one circuit of Colligan.  The person with the slowest predicted time will start first and the fastest runners will go off last so speed or age makes no difference. The winner will be the first person home after the clock hits zero.  Last year seventy-three juveniles took part in this event and we hope for even bigger numbers this year. Last years winner was Eoin Dwyer who was just four seconds outside his predicted time.  Remember it is not how fast you run that counts but how near you are to your predicted time. Last year just 18 athletes ran faster than predicted which was the lowest number ever.  Registration starts at 12.15.

Park Hotel Awards

Kate Veale will represent West Waterford Juvenile A.C. in the Park Hotel Awards, which will be held on Sat. 21st. Kate has had a fantastic year and with her world championship performance must be a serious contender for the overall award. Any club members who wish to attend the awards dinner contact Mary Ashe. Kate was competing in Scotland in the great Edinburgh Run. The junior race was a combination of the Celtic International and the G.B. v U.S.A. v Europe. In the Celtic International Kate finished in 4th place and helped Ireland to the silver medals behind Scotland. This was Kate’s last cross-country race and she now turns her attention to qualify for the 10k race walk for the World Junior Championships.

Training for Schools Cross Country

Some of our more dedicated athletes have been back in training since Dec 28th. They are training for the East Munster Schools Cross Country, which will be held in Waterford on Thurs Jan 26th. Training will continue this week on Tues and Friday in St Augustines @ 4pm. All second level students are welcome.

A Note of Sympathy

Club members were saddened over the Christmas period to learn of the passing of three stalwarts of athletics. Noel O’Doherty was the chief timekeeper of Tony’s league for many years. He was the first to operate the smart clock for the juvenile club and he patiently explained the workings of the eletronic timekeeping to the rest of us.

Fr. O’Donnell was active in Dungarvan athletics in the 60’s and 70’s and he maintained an interest in the sport throughout his life. In the last few months he often made the short journey to the training field to meet our young athletes and always made enquiries about their results.

Nora Healy was a founder member of West Waterford juvenile club and was a great supporter of juvenile athletics. For many years she served on the juvenile committee and was the contact person and organiser of the Primary School Sports. Each of them gave many hours voluntarily to a sport they loved and were great examples of community involvement. To the families of Nora, Noel and Fr. O’ Donnell we extend our sincerest sympathies.