SUCCESS FOR JOE GOUGH AT THE EUROPEAN MOUNTAIN RUNNING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Club member Joe Gough was one of 25 Irish athletes proudly wearing the Irish colours last weekend at the European Mountain Running Championships, held in Râșnov, Romania.The championships featured three events over the weekend, with the Vertical race on Friday, the Ultra on Saturday and the Classic Up/Down race on Sunday.Joe was in action in the Classic Up/Down event, a challenging race over 12 kilometres with 420 metres of elevation, including two major climbs.It proved to be tough going, but Joe produced a superb performance to take the silver medal in a time of 1:06:44.Gold was won by Italian Fabio Padovan in 1:05:15, with Joe finishing just under 90 seconds behind. England’s Chris Davies took the bronze medal in 1:09:11.Reflecting on his race, Joe said:“It was tough going and I had to stay strong. I was delighted with second place, as the Italian is 70 and was an M65 World Mountain Champion. To stay within 90 seconds of him was good, especially as I was giving him nearly four years!”Joe’s outstanding individual performance also helped lead the Irish team to gold in the team competition. Ireland finished on 15 points, with Joe in 2nd place, Matt Alexander 4th and Peter Bell 9th. Romania took the team silver, with Italy winning bronze.The achievement was particularly significant, as the Irish team was the only Irish team to win European team gold over the three days of competition.This latest success adds to Joe’s impressive international record. It will also go alongside the M70 World Team Gold won by Ireland in the Pyrenees in 2024, when Joe also took an individual silver medal.A tremendous achievement for Joe and a proud occasion for Irish mountain running. Congratulations to Joe and the Irish team from everyone at the club!
CHARLEVILLE HALF MARATHON .
The annual Charleville Half Marathon took place last Sunday, attracting a large field of 1,770 runners to the popular Co. Cork event.The overall race was won by John Travers of Donore Harriers AC, who recorded an impressive time of 1:05:05. Second place went to Liam Naughton of Ennis Track AC in 1:06:23, while Kane Collins of Donore Harriers AC completed the top three finishers.In the ladies’ race, Niamh Allen of Leevale AC produced an outstanding performance to take victory in 1:10:47. Her excellent run also saw her finish 17th overall in the race.Second place in the women’s race went to Sorcha Nic Dhomhnaill of West Limerick AC, who clocked 1:13:04, while her sister Íde Nic Dhomhnaill finished third in 1:15:58.West Waterford AC was also represented at the event, with three club members recording strong performances. Pat Hennessey was first of the West Waterford athletes home, finishing in an excellent 1:12:10. Cathal Reynolds completed the course in 1:24:33, while Kenny Kelleher crossed the line in 1:28:22.Well done to all the athletes who took part in another successful Charleville Half Marathon and congratulations to the West Waterford AC runners on
BE SAFE BE SEEN
It’s that time of the year again when we must remind all those out running on the road to wear a reflective bib, also most important is to wear bright coloured clothing, remember you can see that car but can the driver of that car see you it’s a simple motto, be safe be seen.
CROSS COUNTRY FIXTURES
The cross country season is about to kick off and it is again a very busy time of year for our club. The county championship season starts off with the Novice men’s and women’s due to be held on October 4th, here we hope to have a full Ladies and Men’s squads competing. This is not a pre-registered event so you pay on the day 5 euro. The annual St Senans open cross country will be held on Sunday 20th September if anyone fancies a run out before the counties.
Some of the dates for the cross country season.
Sunday Sept 20th St Senan’s Open Cross Country Kilmacow
Sunday Sept 27th Tramore AC open cross country
Sunday Oct 4th County Championships Evan Ages and Novice
Sunday Oct 11th County Championships Uneven ages and Senior
Sunday Oct 18th Autumn Open – Abbotstown
Sunday Oct 25th Munster Even ages and Novice
Sunday Nov 1st Munster Uneven ages and senior, under 23 and 20
Sunday Nov 15th Munster B’s and Intermediate
Sunday 22nd Nov National Even Ages, U20, and Senior (Abbotstown)
Sunday 29th Nov Munster Juvenile Relays and Masters
Sunday 6th Dec National Uneven ages and Novice Cross Country Abbotstown
DAMIEN SHINES IN FIRST HALF MARATHON
Club member Damien Murphy produced a fantastic performance in his first-ever half marathon in Switzerland recently finishing an impressive 15th overall from approximately 2,600 finishers. Damien completed the challenging race in 1:16:53, a remarkable achievement for his debut over the 13.1-mile distance. The course proved particularly demanding, with an undulating route and a tough final 5km.Despite the challenging conditions, Damien held a strong pace throughout and was delighted to record a personal best in his first attempt at the distance. Congratulations to Damien on an outstanding debut over the half distance.
DUNGARVAN GREENWAY
‘PARKRUN’ – VOLUNTEERS
The Group who are organising a park run in our area have asked the club to post the following info about the event Dungarvan Greenway ‘parkrun’ will be commencing soon. This event will be 5k ‘out and back’, every Saturday morning at 9.30 am, starting near the Railway Cottage. Parkrund’ are FREE weekly community events that take place in parks and at outdoor spaces globally; these are inclusive open-air social physical activities for runners, joggers, buggy-pushers, walkers, wheelchair-users, persons with children, spectators and for volunteers; are for persons of all ages and abilities; are dog friendly; are about local social interaction and are about promoting health and mental wellbeing. A small core team of volunteers is already in place, with more volunteers needed. An Information session for Volunteers will be held in the Park Hotel on Thursday 24th September at 7pm. Volunteering at parkrun is a hugely positive experience and is a form of parkrun participation that is accessible to everyone. To find out more about volunteering and the various and rewarding roles, come along to the Park Hotel on Thursday 24th September at 7pm : or contact / text Thomas at 086 206 1083 or Pascal at 086 170 6610.
