West Waterford Athletic ClubWest Waterford Athletic Club

Huge Munster medal haul in the hills of Ballyea.

MUNSTER A.A.I.ROAD CHAMPIONSHIPS.

HUGE MEDAL HAUL IN THE HILLS OF BALLYEA.

It was a fine early start for some of our club athletes last Sunday morning as they made their way to Ballyea, outside Ennis in Co. Clare to represent West Waterford Athletic Club in the Munster Road Race Championships. The course itself was very tough and in fact was one of the toughest courses in a few years. There were several hills and many many potholes along the way but nevertheless the athletes took it in their stride and it was an extremely successful day for both the men’s and the ladies teams.
First up were the men and the distance covered was 4 miles. As already stated the terrain would test the strongest of athletes and it was in this race that the spirit and determination of each and every athlete was tested. Our first finisher was none other than Raivis Zakis. Raivis produced a superb performance to finish third overall and first for the club. From the gun, he gave 100% and was a most deserving winner of his medal. Next up for the club was Rory Moloney who finished 8th overall and will be well pleased with his efforts. Rory ran a great steady race and was as strong as ever on the hills and proved what a force he can be on the road scene especially with the new aero-dynamic hair cut! Sean Stilwell was the third scorer for West Waterford and will be glad to see that all his hard training is paying dividends. Sean finished in 37th place and certainly helped his teammates to claim third club over-all. Our fourth scorer on the day was our road racing co-ordinator Gerry Cantwell. Not only did Gerry take charge of the teams and entries, he also played a huge part in helping the team to claim bronze medals and for his efforts he also claimed 3rd individual over 50, not a bad day’s work in anyone’s book. Colin Lyons was the next representative for West Waterford and proved what a great club person he really is. Colin finished a very credible 68th place and was very close to Gerry and Sean, which is what club running is all about. The team were delighted to claim third spot and will now look to improve on that for next year. Well-done lads. Directly after the men’s race was the women’s race. Both races began in the same spot with a tough uphill start. The course for the women was straight out for close to a mile, with a few hills along the way and then a right turn uphill, one down hill and a tough hill back up to the finish. All the girls ran the course prior to the race and so had an idea as to how tough and undulating the course was. In the beginning, all our girls were cautious and it wasn’t until that turn up the hill that the race really began and the girls dug deep and gave it their all. Corinna Walsh was in the leading pack and ran a very steady race and turning up the hill was in 4th spot but she gave it all she had going up that hill and finished second overall, a great performance indeed and richly deserved. Corinna was very close behind Carmel Parnell of Leevale, the overall winner. Corinna will definitely be looking towards next year and having a go at becoming the Munster road race champion, something that is well within her capabilities. Diane Behan was 7th place overall and had another fine run. Diane’s training in the woods of Portlaw certainly stood to her on Sunday and she attacked those hills with gusto and along with being the second scorer on the team, she was the second individual over 35. Next up was Norma Wall who was the third scorer for our club, finishing in 12th position. Eibhlis Ní hAodha was our fourth scorer on the day and in doing so was also the first lady over 45. A great day for Eibhlis as she picked up a total of 7 medals altogether. Following Eibhlis, Triona Wall delivered a top-drawer performance on the day and was our third scorer on the novice team. Like many of the girls, Triona chose to use the hills to improve her placing within the race and it certainly proved successful for her. Both Triona and Ann Dunford pushed each other all the way up that final hill; a great example of what club running is all about. Ann Whelan was another to deliver a great performance and helped her teammates to claim the top master club for the ladies.
It was without doubt, one of our most successful outings so far this year.
The following is the tally of medals won on the day.

West Waterford A.C. Ladies, Inter Club Results
1st Senior Team: Corinna Walsh, Diane Behan, Norma Wall and Eilis Ní Aodha
2nd Novice Team: Norma Wall, Eibhlis Ní hAodha, Triona Wall and Ann Dunford
1st Masters Team: Diane Behan, Eibhlis Ní hAodha, Ann Dunford and Anne Whelan

Inter County Results
3rd Senior Team:  Corinna Walsh, Diane Behan, Norma Wall and Eibhlis Ní hAodha
3rd Novice Team:  Norma Wall, Eibhlis Ní hAodha, Triona Wall and Ann Dunford
2nd Masters Team: Diane Behan, Eibhlis Ní hAodha, Ann Dunford and Anne Whelan

West Waterford Athletic Club Men’s Results
3rd Senior Team: Raivis Zakis, Rory Moloney, Sean Stilwell and Gerry Cantwell.

Individual prizes were won by Raivis Zakis (3rd Senior), Gerry Cantwell (3rd Over 50), Corinna Walsh (2nd Senior), Diane Behan (2nd Over 35) and Eibhlis Ní hAodha (1st Over 45)

COMERAGH CRYSTAL ATHLETE OF THE YEAR AWARDS.

The clubs athlete of the year and Master athlete’s of the year awards were presented recently and this year we are delighted to welcome on board as sole sponsor of these awards Comeragh Crystal Dungarvan.Comeragh Crystal is a family run business headed up by Trevor McNamara and his workshop and store is located at unit 3 The Mews O’Connell St.Dungarvan where the old tradition continues with the hand cutting of crystal and glass wear, All their products can be engraved and personalised to suit all occasions such as weddings, christenings, anniversaries etc, They also cater for sporting occasions, athletics, Golf, football, hurling etc etc.Anyone who has seen the recently awarded athlete of the year pieces will vouch for the craftsmanship and quality of the work provided by Trevor McNamara at Comeragh Crystal. In the words of one of this years recipients.” It’s a piece I will always treasure as it will be a reminder to me of my days in athletics.” The overall winner of athlete of the year for 2007 was Raivis Zakis who is the very first athlete to have retained the title. Raivis also won this prestigious award in 2006 so it was a back to back double for the genial Raivis.His winning tally of points in 2006 was 95 and for 2007 he almost equalled that when he achieved a massive 92 points. His biggest monthly points total came in August when he clocked up 13 points for a single month indeed this was equalled by only one athlete when Anne Whelan did likewise for the month of October, From as early as the fourth month April, when Raivis went into an outright lead he was never in any danger of being caught at any stage. To have won this club competition takes a huge sustained effort over the full 12 months of the year, to win it twice with such authority is a remarkable achievement and is deserving for an athlete as committed and dedicated to the club as Raivis is.
We also had in the top ten no less than 4 previous winner’s of the title along with Raivis 2006 and 2007.was Ann Dunford 2003,Judy Hanrahan 2005 and Norma Wall 2004.Only 12 points separated the placings from 2nd to 10th with Ann Dunford taking the second place slot recording 72 points 2 more than her tally for 2006,very consistent performing again on weekly bases here, Anne Whelan was third just one point behind with 71 again Anne finished with 2 points more on her total for 2007 which helped to move her up into a top 3 finishing position this year. Winner of the competition two years ago Judy Hanrahan was 4th with 68 points with the appearance of our second male runner Michael Tutty popping up in 5th place with 66 points. Well done to all and our thanks to Raivis who had the task of looking after the tables for the past year, and indeed is doing likewise for the current 2008 season.

NEW ATHLETE OF THE YEAR FORMAT.

As and from this year a new format will be in place for this club competition. The same points system will be in place for overall honours where each athlete will be awarded a point each time they represent the club plus a bonus point will be awarded if the event is a championship event, be it on the road. hill running. track and field indoors and out doors. Cross country running. The athlete after the twelve-month period January to December with the highest point total will be deemed the overall club athlete of the year. The format to pick the Master female and male athlete of the year will change from the old system of a sub committee of judges picking the winners to the winners being the top points scoring male and female Master athlete on the table come the end of December each year will be deemed to be female and male master athlete of the year.

COMERAGH CRYSTAL MONTHLY AWARDS.

New to our athlete of the year awards will be a new monthly competition where our sponsor Comeragh Crystal will awarded the athlete who records the highest points tally from each of the 12 months of the year, he or she will receive a very nice engraved crystal piece to mark this achievement. An athlete can only win one month of any year so if an athlete wins January for having the highest points tally they will receive the crystal for the month and in February if they also have the highest they won’t receive the award it will be awarded to the next highest points scoring athlete. If two athletes have drawn in any given month,(The same points) the athlete who recorded the highest tally the previous month will be deemed to be the winner on a count back system. Finally we thank Trevor McNamara at Comeragh Crystal for his kind sponsorship of this club award.

MASON MORTGAGES AND FINANCIAL SERVICES COLLIGAN LEAGUE STARTS TONIGHT.

All roads lead to Colligan wood tonight Wednesday March 19th at 6 .15 pm for the start of the four week Mason Mortgages and financial services Colligan running league for beginners and regular runners, From the off we would like to thank club member Mark Mason for his sponsorship of the event, one which we hope will benefit us both along the way. We will of course have as usual all runner’s catered for with a five mile run over the hilly circuit for regulars and the 2.5 mile run on the flat we are also continuing with the 5 mile on the flat run which proved so popular when introduced to the league last year for the first time. Entry fee each night is 2 Euro, and all are welcome once they are over 16 years of age, We would especially encourage newcomers to come along and join in the fun, The overall winner of the league will receive the Veale family perpetual shield, The league will continue for four Wednesday March 19th  -26th April 2nd and finishing on 09th.See you on the hill.!!!

RUNNING QUOTE.

Workouts are like brushing my teeth; I don’t think about them, I just do them. The decision has already been made.Corinna Walsh.

SYMPATHY.

West Waterford Athletic Club extends sincere sympathy to the families of Paudie Organ Abbeyside, Alice Morrissey Kilmacthomas and Alicia Browne Dungarvan who passed away last week .May they rest in peace.

JAMIE COSTIN 7TH IN IBIZA 20K.

West Waterford’s Jamie Costin continued with his Olympic preparations with a 7th place finish last Saturday in a very strong field over 20k in Ibiza at the European athletics race walking permit meeting. Jamie recorded a time of 1.26.03 which was 35 seconds faster than his 20k time of three weeks earlier was a seasons best time. Speaking to a delighted Jamie just before he boarded his flight back to Ireland Sunday evening he really feels it alls coming together for him now as he enters the final couple of months presentations before the big day The Beijing Olympics in August. The top three placings were filled by three of the world’s best 20k walkers with former world champion over 20k Russia’s Markov winning, with Osaka bronze medallist Ghoula of Tunisia second and the local hero Spaniard Molina third.
Jamie now after a couple of days at home will be heading to South Africa for altitude training for a couple weeks before the 23rd World race walking challenge cup in Russia on the 10th May. Keep up the good work Jamie.

LOST PROPERTY

A medium sized West Waterford running jacket was found in Ballycotton last week.
It will be kept in the club van for you to claim it. The van will be at all our races beginning with Colligan this evening.

ST.SENANS ATHLETIC CLUB OPEN SPORTS.

The St.Senans Athletic Club Kilmacow open sports will take place on Monday 24th March 2008 At 1pm in the Sports Complex, Kilmacow, Co. Kilkenny.A full programme of events as listed below will be held on the day.

Girls and boys Under 8   80mtrsGirls and boys Under 9   80mtrsGirls and boys Under10   80mtrsGirls and boys under 11   80mtrs &  300mtrs
Girls under  12    80 & 700 mtrs & LJ  Girls under  13  100 & 700 mtrs & Shot & HJ                                                                                                               Girls under  14  100 & 700 mtrs & LJGirls under  15  100 & 700 mtrs & Shot & HJGirls under  16  100 & 700 mtrs & LJGirls under  17  100 & 700 mtrs & ShotJunior Girls       100 – 400 – 1500 – LJ Boys under  12   80 & 700 mtrs & Shot Boys under  13  100 & 700 mtrs HJ & LJ.Boys under  14  100 & 700 mtrs & Shot.Boys under  15  100 & 700 mtrs HJ & LJBoys under  16  100 & 700 mtrs & Shot.Boys under  17  100 & 700 mtrs & LJ.Junior Boys       100 – 400 – 3000 – L.J.
 
RELAYS: Girls & Boys under 10 – 12 -14 – 16    4 x 200 mtrsJunior Relays:  2 Men 2 x 200 & 2 Ladies 2 x 200Entry Fee: €8.00 per TeamNote: Junior Relay age is U/17 – U/20 only – also Athletes can move up one age group in Field Events & Relays only
Senior Men’s 3000 mtrsSenior Ladies 1500 mtrsPrizesFirst 3 IndividualsFirst 2 VetsEntry Fee:  €5.00 (One prize per athlete)
Enquiries: Bill Lacey Molum, Kilmacow. Tel: 051 – 885 684
Admission: €3.00 Adults – €2.00 Juveniles
 

 

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