National even ages and junior and senior championships 

Last Sunday saw 23 young Donore athletes with their coaches and parents travel to Donegal to compete in the even aged National Cross Country Championships.  On a new and scenic loop on Rosapenna golf course, the conditions were good underfoot but there was wind and a few short sharp uphills.  We had 3 teams, the largest number of full teams for a long time in juvenile national cross country u/12 boys, u/16 girls, and u/16 boys and some individuals in the various agegroups. For a lot of our young athletes this was their first experience of national competition. Our u/16 girls took home the team silver with our u/16 boys taking home team bronze. We had also had numerous medals won for county and province teams. Congratulations to all!

In the men’s senior race over 10,000m, the club fielded four runners.  It was good to see John Travers back in action after a tough time with injury for a major portion of the year.  In the first few laps of the race John was in the front pack but slipped back somewhat and had to settle for 23rd place this time.  Likewise Gavin Curtin was making a comeback on a big stage after injury and he finished 39th and 12th U23 pronouncing himself delighted after a six week block of training and enjoying the buzz of being back at the nationals.  Josh O’Sullivan Hourihan after a busy week of an orienteering race, and the army cross country championship , finished in 66th. Ryan Aikins competed in his first senior cross country race and finished in 144th bringing the team to 11th place.

Earlier in the week Josh was the decisive winner of the Defence Forces cross country championship in the Curragh , for the third year in a row.

In Bath in the UK, trail and mountain runner Aideen Burke ran a 10k PB 49.47 in the Bath Skyline race, one of a series of trail races starting and finishing at university of Bath and winding into the surrounding countryside on muddy terrain.

Award for Jack Raftery and the 4×400 mixed relay team 

At the national Athletics awards in the Crowne plaza Hotel on Wednesday 23rd, the team of the year accolade went to the 4x400m mixed relay team that reached the World Championship final in Oregon.  Jack Raftery was an integral part of that team and was on hand today to accept the award on behalf of the team , congrats to Jack and the team !

Senior roundup 

Cross country

We just had one competitor in the Dublin senior cross country championships in the CityWest complex on Sunday November 6th.  Hosted by Tallaght AC, this course adjacent to the City West hotel in Saggart was a new one for all the competitors but got a favourable response despite some  wet weather on the day. After assisting his juvenile charges in the races earlier in the day at CityWest, Niall Lynch an M50 athlete and coach ran solo in the men’s race finishing 37th – unfortunately there was no men’s team on the day – the runaway winner was Clonliffe Harriers Efrem Gidey and there were 48 finishers

In the USA the NCAA cross country season continued this week with the regional championships.

In John Hunt Park Huntsville Alabama on Friday November 11th – the Southern Regional championship took place over 10,000m.  Louis O’Loughlin finished 42nd , 3rd scorer for his college Auburn in a 180 strong field in just under 31 minutes.  He helped to bring the  Auburn team to a 5th place finish

On the same day, The North East Division 1 regionals took place in Van Cortlandt park Bronx New York and Abdel Laadjel finished the 10k course in 38th place in a time of 30.29, 6th scorer for Providence out of the 227-strong field – at one point he was lying 3rd.  His team Providence finished in 4th place

The British and Irish 6 nationals masters cross country championship was back on this year taking place in Santry demesne on Saturday November 12th  where it has been held many times.  The sole Donore athlete competing in the Irish vest was long time member and Fit4Life coach Barry Potts who was part of the Irish M70 team.  Barry has competed in this race many times over the years.  Santry has a reputation for becoming a quagmire in the rain but on this day, the ground was very favourable , the weather was mild and the rain held off. Barry was off in the first race of the day where the M65+ and W65+ ran in a joint race over 6k – 4 laps of Santry demesne.  Barry had a solid race finishing 3rd scorer for Ireland, 15th M70 and 39th out of the 57 strong men’s field.  The Irish team comprising Martin Kerr, Brian McBride and Barry won bronze overall in the M70 category with Scotland claiming gold.

Road

In a quiet few weeks for Donore runners since the marathon, we had one Donore runner in the IUAA road relays held in their traditional venue of the grounds of Maynooth University. NUI Maynooth student Adam Foy was the first runner off for his team in the 1 mile leg which he finished in 5.56.  NUIM finished 25th out of 28th teams – the men’s title was won by the UCD A team.

Finally Josh O’Sullivan Hourihane emerged winner of the Munster Orienteering Championship held in Tramore Waterford  and incorporating sand on the terrain over a distance of over 12 miles

(Juvenile reports will resume soon)

It was an ideal morning for the 31st edition of the Jingle Bells 5k on Saturday 3rd December – quite cold but no wind or rain so it looked like it could be a day for fast times.

The course is a firm favourite with runners for being PB-friendly.  Starting half way up Acres Road, through the triangle and on to Chesterfield Avenue before turning down Ordnance Survey Road and then the upper glen road with a fast mile down to the finish in front of St Mary’s Hospital.  Santa Claus helped wave the field off at 930am and this year we had an impressive electric lead car courtesy of sponsors MSL Park Motors. 

Up top in the early stages was a group of runners including John Travers, Paul Robinson, Jack O’Leary, Mark Milner, Mitchel Byrne, Ger Forde and Conor Duffy – a formidable selection of current Irish endurance talent.  O’Leary (Mullingar AC) led in the early stages but was an unfortunately early casualty when he had to retire with a strain.  The group stuck together for a while but then gradually broke up as the pace hotted up.  In the last mile an epic battle developed between Paul Robinson and John Travers,  the two runners both with sub 4 minute miles and impressive pedigree over track middle distance.  Could the St Cocas man and track specialist have the edge here?  The two runners were nip and tuck in the last mile but in the end it was the Donore Harriers man who had the edge and he created a gap of 9 seconds.  John has won the race a few times but on this occasion he finished in an incredible 13.53 a new Jingle Bells course record, (and road PB) beating his old JB mark of 14.04.  It was also good to see after a year of injury which included surgery and a disappointing race in the National Senior Cross Country 2 weeks ago.  Robinson achieved a 14.02.
In third was Rathfarnham’s Mitchel Byrne in 14.17 who has been having a very good year.  Glaslough’s Conor Duffy was just three seconds behind in 14.20.  UCD AC’s Mark Milner 14.33 just pipped KCH.s Gerry Forde who ran 14.35.  The rest of the top 10 Peter Arthur, Michael Murphy, Eoin Molloy and Conor Burke all broke 15 minutes and there were some PBs in that number.

A remarkable performance on the day was 15th man Declan Toal who was the first over 40 master man over the line but is in fact in the M50 category and the North East Runners man finished in 15.13

45 runners in all broke the 16 minute barrier.  The clear women’s winner was Olympian Michelle Finn who goes in the European Cross country championship next week in Turin powering home in 15.47 and 39th overall.  This is the fastest female time since Mary Cullen’s 15.38 in 2014.
In 28th place was first male Junior Cian Gorham of St Peter’s AC Louth in 15.29.
First M40 was West Limerick’s Niall O Callaghan in 15.31.

The next female finishers were Grace Lynch DSD in 16.08, national 800m champion Carla Sweeney Rathfarnham AC was 3rd in 16.20, beating St Abban’s Maisy O’Sullivan on gun time who finished 4th.  Former JB winner Cliona Murphy DCH was next in 16.30 followed by Fiona Kenna UCD also 16.30 and Raheny’s Kate Purcell 16.33 who has had a great year.
Edel Monaghan DCH and Catherine Thornton GCH also broke the 17 minute mark.
First F40 Master was the legendary Maria McCambridge in 17.23.

In all 416 runners finished in under 20 minutes.
First of the men’s teams was home club Donore Harriers (John Travers, Darragh Keegan , Darragh Fitzgibbon) and first women’s team was DSD (Grace Lynch, Fiona Clinton and Maria McCambridge)

An array of AAI clubs from all over Ireland came to the race, some in large numbers as did many other fitness groups from around Dublin, and groups of workmates from Lisney and Eirgird.  St Anne’s school in Fettercairn also make an annual trip with teachers and parents.  Many repeat participants were back to fulfil what has now become an annual tradition and there was plenty of fancy dress on show.  Santa Claus was on hand again at the finish to greet the younger runners (and some of the big kids too) In all , there were 1230 chipped finishers

Age group first and second below – we are in the process of getting prizes to our winners (any race results queries please contact Pop Up Races

M40
Niall OCallaghan (West Limerick) 15.31
Conor Curran  (North Belfast) 15.33

M50
Declan Toal (North East Runners) 15.13
Kenny McAndrew  (MSB)16.29

M60
Peter Donohoe Celbridge 18.03
Conor Nolan 18.29

MJ
Cian Gorham  (St Peters) 15.29
Ben Manning Dunboyne (15.43)
Patrick Farrell

F40
Maria McCambridge DSD 17.23
Noreen Brouder Sportsworld 17.26

F50
Annette Kealy Raheny Shamrocks 17.52
Teresa O’Reilly Celbridge AC 19.26

F60
Eileen Rowland Sportsworld 22.52
Carmel Mac Dhomhnaill West Limerick 24.04

FJ
Charlotte Moore 18.40
Olivia Moore19.27
Sophie McGovern 19.34 (Brothers Pearse)

As always Pop Up races our timing partner provided impeccable service – thanks to Brian and the team.  A big thanks to our sponsors MSL Mercedes Benz Park Motors on the Navan Road and Dean Fullston for facilitating..  For the 31st year in a row Dublin Civil Defence provided first aid support and we thank the Garda Siochana and the OPW for their cooperation..  Festive tunes were provided by Blanchardstown Brass band.  We also thank Dunnes Stores, SL Sound-Hire.ie, Dublin Marathon Office, VitHit and the Last Lap Cafe.  An army of Donore Harriers volunteers led by race director Charlie O’Neill were out in force – thanks all

Congratulations to all our participants, we will hopefully see you all in 2023!

(Full results on Pop Up Races site and photo gallery)
https://www.popupraces.ie/race/jingle-bells-5k-2022/

HIGHLIGHTS The marathon returned to the streets of Dublin on Sunday 28 October for the first time since 2019 and a strong Donore contingent took to the line on a mild and sunny October day. The wet and windy weather conditions of the week leading up to the race did not materialise on race day. This also made for what was probably the best spectatorship of any Dublin marathon of recent years according to runners and observers

REPORT First Donore man home was the ever improving Wayne Waldron who finished inside the top 50 in a PB of 2.37.53. Running with Wayne for some of the race was another relatively recent member Ian Fitzgerald who ran 2.40.58 – in 2019 Ian ran 3.45 in this same race showing the remarkable improvement he has made in the past 3 years. The pair of Ken Nugent 2.44.32 and Luke Boland 2.44.37 (PB) were next in. First Donore female in an incredible 2.45.43 was Sorcha Loughnane after the European 50k championship only a few weeks ago. Running in tandem with her was Niamh Clifford who finished in 2.46.05, another remarkable achievement after her 2.45 in Berlin only 5 weeks ago. These performances put these runners well up in the ranks of Irish female endurance runners at the moment finishing 5th and 6th Irish women in the national championship and 8th and 9th females overall.

Dave McConn admitted he had a tough last 15 miles but still finished in 2.47.10. Fergal Whitty who has many great runs in the Dublin marathon finished in 2.47.38. Alan Keogh was delighted with his 2.48.30 PB. Peter Gaffney has made a good return to form in recent months and the M50 runner finished in 2.49.22. Alasdair Brown in his 12th marathon was next in 2.55.09, a one minute PB. Declan Lynch ran 2.57.59 despite illness during the week. Andy Kinane finished in 2.58.31. Grace Kennedy-Clarke made a play for running under 3 hours and was very close – 3.01.48 in a 4 minute PB and the 3rd Donore woman over the line. Paul Whitty brother of Fergal came in next in 3.03.50.

Kevin Odgers’ marathon didn’t quite go to plan but he still got 3.08.01 and a PB. Juvenile club coach Joe Kelly finished in 3.08.13. Anne Curley in her 30th marathon and only 5 weeks after racing the Berlin marathon ran an excellent 3.08.28 and in the top W50 national finishers. Chris Muldoon and Tony Barry had been on sub 3 hour pace but had to settle for 3.11.46 and 3.12.35 respectively. A very tough last 6 miles saw Florence Curley fade to 3.24.38 after a good start. Likewise Gavin White in his marathon debut had hamstring trouble on the course and had to make many stops but finished in 3.25.01. Amy Moriarty was very pleased with her 3.25.51 in her first marathon in many years. Dean Fullston was just a few seconds off his PB in 3.26.18. Tony Griffin was next in 3.26.42. Pam White got a PB of 3.27.52. JP O’Hanlon was delighted to break 3.30 in a new PB of 3.28.59. Ariana Ball had a tough race but she finished in 3.31.16, and Oliver O’Hara was next in 3.31.21 Louise Kelly had an excellent run in a new PB of 3.38.01. Stephen Dawson had a hard day out on the course but battled to the finish in 3.43.05. An injury picked up in the last 2 weeks meant Suzie Henley Willis had to adjust her original race pace from original target and she finished in 3.50.31. Des Gill achieved a 3.50.43.

Katherine Marsh came in under the 4 hour mark in 3.56.59. Noel Davis finished in 4.04.49 and Sean Browne 4.06.14. Dana Mackey has several Dublin marathons to her name and she finished here in 4.45.36. Michelle Dawson had a tough day but finished in 4.52.47 and Anna McMahon ran 5.44.36.

Like every marathon there were ups and downs – PBs and some tremendous performances, not everyone hit their target time and some suffered, we had a few athletes who unfortunately had to retire mid-race , but all should be proud of taking on the beast that is the marathon.

The support around the course was tremendous, Donore supporters seemed to pop up everywhere. Also a great job as always was done at the water station outside the clubhouse just after the 9 mile mark where an army of Donore volunteers had set up from very early in the morning – thanks Peter Nugent and Tom Fagan for leading the effort. Many Donore members also work at the marathon finish area and it was great to see friendly and familiar faces after coming over the finish line.

We await the official results of the national, Leinster and Dublin marathon championships where we will definitely feature in categories and team honours – well done all. Thanks to Mick Bourke, Amy Moriarty,Suzie Henley Willis and Charlie O’Neill for the selection of photos

Results list (chip times)

Wayne Waldron 2.37.53
Ian Fitzgerald 2.40.58
Ken Nugent 2.44.32
Luke Boland 2.44.37
Sorcha Loughnane 2.45.43
Niamh Clifford 2.46.05
Dave McConn 2.47.10
Fergal Whitty 2.47.38
Alan Keogh 2.48.30
Peter Gaffney 2.49.22
Alasdair Brown 2.55.09
Declan Lynch 2.57.59
Andy Kinane 2.58.31
Grace Kennedy 3.01.48
Paul Whitty 3.03.50
Kevin Odgers 3.08.01
Joe Kelly 3.08.13
Anne Curley 3.08.28
Chris Muldoon 3.11.46
Tony Barry 3.12.35
Florence Curley 3.24.38
Gavin White 3.25.01
Amy Moriarty 3.25.51
Dean Fullston 3.26.18
Tony Griffin 3.26.42
Pam White 3.27.52
JP O’Hanlon 3.28.59
Ariana Ball 3.31.16
Oliver O’Hara 3.31.21
Louise Kelly 3.38.01
Stephen Dawson 3.43.05
Des Gill 3.50.43
Katherine Marsh 3.56.59
Noel Davis 4.04.49
Sean Browne 4.06.14
Dana Mackey 4.45.36
Michelle Dawson 4.52.47
Anna McMahon 5.44.36

While the excitement of the Dublin marathon took over this weekend, over in the US, the college cross country season is in full swing. Abel Laadjel and Louis O’Loughlin were in action for their college teams Providence and Auburn

“The Big East” is a major race in the season and this year it was hosted by Abdel’s college Providence on Saturday October 28th on the Mark Coogan course in Attleboro Massachusetts. The “Friars” finished 2nd out of 9 teams with Abdel securing a 24th place for this team on the 5.6k course in 24.25 – there were 85 runners in all.

Down in the deep South Louis O’Loughlin was happy with his performance at the South Eastern Conference (SEC) cross country championship held at Oxford Mississippi by “Ole Miss” college. He finished 25th out of a field of 125 in the 8k course in 24.04.23 and ran the last kilometre under 2.50

In other race news, a belated result from the Athgarvan GAA & LGFA funrun on October 23rd, Maura Kearns was 5th overall and first woman in the 5k race in 18.55

HIGHLIGHTS: Barbara Cleary 3rd woman & 1st W45 in AMSTERDAM HALF-MARATHON; John Travers an impressive 4th in AUTUMN OPEN CROSS; Girls and Boys Under 16 teams won DUBLIN EVEN-AGES XC CHAMPS with Lorraine O’Connor 1st in U16 Girls; Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan won the AN COSANTOR 10KM CHAMPIONSHIPS; Louis O’Loughlin solid run in ALABAMA CRIMSON CLASSIC. Sean Fox and Niall Lynch completed the AMSTERDAM MARATHON

REPORT: <report/results by Gerry Naughton & Florence Curley>
John Travers impressed with his first race back after a long injury lay-off in the AUTUMN OPEN CROSS INTERNATIONAL 7.5km RACE at Abbotstown on Sunday afternoon. Travers previous race was the National Road Relays back in April and he has undergone surgery and rehab since then. So, to finish 4th in a top-class field will be encouraging for the Donore Harriers star ahead of the championship season.
The race was won by Daragh McIlhenny (22.16) of UCD AC with his 2021 Euro Cross Under 23 gold medal Irish team colleague Keelan Kilrihill (22.24) of Moy Valley AC the runner-up. Travers was timed at 22.39, which given his lack of race sharpness, was a super effort.
In the Junior race held over 6km (4 laps) James Bolton (19.23) came 19th of 31 finishers, whilst in the Men’s Masters race over 7.5km Gavin Keogh (27.17) came 50th and 16th in the M40 category, whilst Des Tremble (28.04) was 70th and 15th in the M50 class. There were 107 finishers.
Maura Kearns contested the Women’s Masters race, also over 6km, and she placed 21st of 58 finishers – and came 9th in the W40 category.
The Jim McNamara Golden Shoe awards for the winners of the Men’s masters race and Women’s master race were presented to John Shine and Sinead O’Connor, both from Leevale AC, by the family of the late Donore Harriers athlete and coach. These awards were first presented in 2016.

Donore Harriers fielded 4 teams in the NATIONAL INTER-CLUB JUVENILE UNEVEN AGE RELAYS at Abbotstown on Sunday. These national relay races were held prior to the International Open-Cross competitions. All races were 4 x 500 metres.
The Under 11 Girls team of Zara Kellegher, Lola Nagle-Mullaly, Robyn McCluskey, and Lola Blake came 29th in a time of 8.38. The Under 11 Boys quartet of Alan Maddox, Mark Carville, Conor O’Hara, and Cadel Senyk – a step-up athlete – were 30th in 7.48.
In the Under 13 races the Girls team (7.19) of Petra Cunningham, Freya Ryan, Kim Sutcliffe, and Kate Phelan finished in 32nd place, with the Boys team (7.05) comprising of Dylan O’Connor, Ethan Ryan, James O’Hanlon, and step-up team member Max Henley-Willis came 19th.

The DUBLIN JUVENILE EVEN-AGES CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS were also held on the national cross-course in Abbotstown on Sunday morning. Note that this is only a preliminary report whilst we await the official results.
Both of the Donore Harriers Under 16 teams were victorious. The Girls team was led home by race winner Lorraine O’Connor – and she was closed followed by Emily Bolton in 2nd, Julie Cleary in 4th and Eden Brangan-Walsh in 10th.
The Boys team also packed well to ensure victory – with Liam Morris placing 5th, Charlie White in 6th, Sam O’Connor in 12th and Daire McCarthy in 13th being the scoring 4.
Other strong performances came from Laura Nunan 8th in the Under 18 Girls; Eoin Mooney and Cillian McCooey 8th and 15th respectively in the Under 14 Boys; Lily Hanrahan-Clarke 8th in the Under 14 Girls; and Olyver Whelan and Mark Nunan 8th and 12th in the Under 12 Boys.
A full report will follow…

Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan set a new personal best time of 30.58 to win the 41st AN COSANTOR 10KM CHAMPIONSHIPS in the Phoenix Park last Wednesday afternoon. The Donore Harriers athlete won with a minute to spare over runner-up Conor Tiernan (31.57). The strongest challenge to Josh came from previous multi & 40th edition (2019) winner Kenneth Rodgers. The two pre-race favourites battled it out over the first 5km reached in 15.23. Soon after Rodgers stepped off the road and O’Sullivan-Hourihan found himself running solo to victory. He was cheered on the side-line by his Donore Harriers club-mates, work colleagues from the Ordnance Survey, and his coach Willie Smith. When he reached the finish line in the Army HQ, he was greeted by his father Paul who had travelled from Cork for the occasion.
The race served as a trial for the CISM (International Military Sports Council) Championships. O’Sullivan-Hourihan has now set PBs for 3km, 5km, 10km, 10-mile and the half-marathon in 2022.
M75 athlete Barry Potts came 121st of 337 finishers in a time of 46.21.

Stateside on Friday, Louis O’Loughlin came 28th of 143 finishers in the ALABAMA CRIMSON CROSS-COUNTRY CLASSIC at Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Auburn University student was the 3rd scorer (of 5) on the ‘Tigers’ team that placed 6th of 15. The race was held over 8,075 metres (5-miles +) and O’Loughlin timed 24.50. He said afterwards: “I’d love to make the Irish under 23 Euro Cross team, but I really need to be sub-24 minutes for 5-mile. Still, sessions are going well, and I feel that I am in a good block of training”.

Barbara Cleary – 108th overall – was the 3rd woman home and 1st in the W45 category in Sunday’s MIZUNO AMSTERDAM HALF-MARATHON. The Donore Harriers athlete recorded a time of 1.19.04 to win convincingly. Harry Vaughan (1.20.03) came 138th overall and there were more than fourteen and-a-half thousand finishers.

Two master athletes Sean Fox and Niall Lynch lined up in the TCS AMSTERDAM MARATHON that preceded the half-marathon. Fox set a time of 2.45.46 to place 269th overall and 12th in the M45 age-group, whilst Lynch (2.54.13) was 595th and 22nd in the M50s. There were 12,083 finishers.

Mark Devine was the club’s sole entry in the DONADEA 10KM RACE on Saturday morning. The race included 2 x 5km laps inside picturesque Donadea Forest. The Donore Harriers man came 60th out of 169 finishers in a time of 47.43 and was 16th in the M40 category.

The remarkable Ann Woodlock, a W80 athlete, placed 59th at the BRICKFIELDS PARKRUN in a time of 33.46. More parkrun results below.

Results in brief:
AN COSANTOR 10KM CHAMPIONSHIPS inc. CISM TRIAL at Phoenix Park (12.20.2022)
1st Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan (30.58 PB)
121st Barry Potts M75 (46.21)
337 finishers
ALABAMA CRIMSON CLASSIC 8,075M CROSS-COUNTRY at the Harry Pritchett Running Course at Tuscaloosa, Alabama (14.10.2022)
28th Louis O’Loughlin (24.50)
143 finishers
DONADEA 10KM (15.10.2022)
60th & 16th M40 Mark Devine (47.43)
169 finishers
TCS AMSTERDAM MARATHON (16.10.2022)
269th & 12th M45 Sean Fox (2.45.46)
595th & 22nd M50 Niall Lynch (2.54.13)
12,083 finishers
MIZUNO AMSTERDAM HALF-MARATHON (16.10.2022)
108th, 3rd woman & 1st W45 Barbara Cleary (1.19.04)
138th Harry Vaughan (1.20.03)
14,623 finishers
AUTUMN OPEN CROSS INTERNATIONAL at Abbotstown (16.10.2022)
SENIOR WOMEN 6,000M
MASTER WOMEN 35-64 6,000M
21st & 9th W40 Maura Kearns (23.19)
58 finishers
JUNIOR MEN 6,000M
15th James Bolton (19.23)
32 finishers
SENIOR MEN 7,500M
4th John Travers (22.39)
51 finishers
MASTER MEN 35-64 7,500M
50th & 16th M40 Gavin Keogh (27.17)
70th & 15th M50 Des Tremble (28.04)
107 finishers
DUBLIN JUVENILE EVEN AGES CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS at Abbotstown (16.10.2022) – only selected results
U12 BOYS 2,000M: 8th Olyver Whelan, 12th Mark Nunan
U14 GIRLS 3,000M: 8th Lily Hanrahan-Clarke
U14 BOYS 3,000M: 8th Eoin Mooney, 15th Cillian McCooey
U16 GIRLS 4,000M: 1st Lorraine O’Connor, 2nd Emily Bolton, 4th Julie Cleary, 10th Eden Brangan-Walsh
U16 BOYS 4,000M: 5th Liam Morris, 6th Charlie White, 8th Sam O’Connor, 12th Daire McCarthy, 13th Reuben McCormick, also Lucas Collender & Aryell Sheedy
U18 GIRLS 4,000M: 8th Laura Nunan
NATIONAL INTER-CLUB JUVENILE UNEVEN AGE RELAYS at Abbotstown (16.10.2022)
U11 GIRLS 4 x 500M: 29th Donore Harriers <Zara Kellegher, Lola Nagle-Mullaly, Robyn McCluskey, Lola Blake> (8.38) 30 teams
U11 BOYS 4 x 500M: 30th Donore Harriers <Alan Maddox, Mark Carville, Conor O’Hara, Cadel Senyk (step-up)> (7.48) 32 teams
U13 GIRLS 4 x 500M: 32nd Donore Harriers <Petra Cunningham, Freya Ryan, Kim Sutcliffe, Kate Phelan> (7.19) 38 teams
U13 BOYS 4 x 500M: 19th Donore Harriers <Dylan O’Connor, Ethan Ryan, James O’Hanlon, Max Henley-Willis (step-up)> (7.05) 23 teams
PARKRUN (15.10.2022)
BRICKFIELDS: 59th Ann Woodlock W80 (33.46), 65th Shiofra McCarthy W45 (35.05)
BUSHY: 134th Thomas Halton M65 (33.33)
CORKAGH: 85th Terry Mee M75 (31.20)
GRIFFEEN: 60th Charlie O’Neill M60 (26.16)
NEW ROSS: 23rd Eugene MacCurtain M55 (24.29), 39th Liz MacCurtain W55 (27.32)
WATERSTOWN: 68th Andrew Maguire M55 (54.08)

HIGHLIGHTS: Sorcha Loughnane 6th in the IUA EUROPEAN 50KM CHAMPIONSHIPS in Spain. Barbara Cleary & Grace Kennedy-Clarke 1st & 3rd in the IRISH 3-QUARTER MARATHON at Longwood with 11 from Donore Harriers in the field. Danny O’Sullivan & Craig Scott ran PBs in the CHICAGO MARATHON. Daragh Keegan 2nd in the FASTLANE HALF-MARATHON. Deirdre NicCanna and Ryan Aikins were the club’s first finishers in the DUBLIN NOVICE CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS. Emily Bolton, Lorraine O’Connor & Thomas Bolton won their respective age category races in Fixture 2 of the DUBLIN JUVENILE XC LEAGUE.

REPORT: <report/results by Gerry Naughton & Florence Curley>
Sorcha Loughane finished a fantastic 6th in the INTERNATIONAL ULTRA-RUNNERS ASSOCIATION EUROPEAN 50KM CHAMPIONSHIPS at Avila, Spain on Saturday morning.
Loughnane, who was recently accredited with the World W45 record time for the distance, trained diligently for the event. A recce of the course prior to the race indicated that she would have to tackle almost 1,900 feet of elevation and deal with some sharp bends on the 5km (x 10 laps) circuit. She lined up with 30 other women from Great Britain, Poland, the Czech Republic, Spain, Croatia, Denmark, Latvia, Netherlands, Slovenia, Romania, and Ukraine. She also had former Irish Olympic marathon runner Catriona Jennings – one of the pre-race favourites – in the field.
Kerry native Loughnane covered the opening 5km laps at an average close to 20.15. She described this part of the race: “I locked in with Catriona and some others for the first few laps but once Catriona created a gap from the group, I fell off a little and found myself running the second half solo”.
The difficult part of the run was the mid-section as she was cut adrift in 7th position. She explained: “I had my usual mid race conversation about whether I should just quietly drop out… and my breathing was pretty ragged after a few days with a head cold, and unsurprisingly I wasn’t really enjoying myself”.
However, Sorcha Loughnane is an absolute warrior! She added: “I just gritted out the last few laps at a pace I was comfortable with… The last 3 laps felt OK, and I picked off one of the runners, and was annoyingly close to catching another. A top 5 finish would have been nice, but I am satisfied with my effort and now I am hungry for more!”
Catriona Jennings won the race in 3.19.42 ahead of Alison Lavender (3.21.26) of Great Britain. The pity is that Ireland did not have a 3rd runner to score a team! Sorcha will next target the World 50km Championships due to take place at Port Elizabeth, South Africa on 23rd of May 2023.

Several Donore Harriers athletes competed in the IRISH 3-QUARTER MARATHON at Longwood, Co. Meath on Sunday. The evergreen Barbara Cleary won the women’s category with a time of 2.03.59 for the 31.64km distance. She withheld a stiff challenge from Isobel Oakes (2.04.32) of Sligo AC, with another Donore Harriers stalwart Grace Kennedy-Clarke (2.11.37) the 3rd woman home. Cleary placed 14th overall in the race, whilst Kennedy-Clarke was 39th.
This was the 11th running of the event and the 5th time to be staged at the Longwood venue. The scenic route twice crossed the Boyne and Blackwater rivers and the Royal Canal – and passed the historical sites of Castlerickard Church, the Boyne Aqueduct and the Royal Canal greenway. Many athletes were using the race as a final ‘distance’ workout before the Dublin Marathon later this month.
The first club finishers were Ian Fitzgerald and Wayne Waldron who occupied 7th and 8th places – both with a time of 1.58.12. Then came Barbara Cleary in 14th stop.
Ken Nugent (2.04.35) placed 17th, with Peter Gaffney (2.04.55) in 20th and Chris Muldoon (2.10.22) in 27th. Tony Barry (2.11.29) led a group of runners home in 30th spot, that included the aforementioned Kennedy-Clarke in 39th.
The other Donore athletes among the 834 finishers were J.P. O’Hanlon (2.31.12) in 137th and Noel Davis (3.02.54) in 450th. The race was won by Gary O’Hanlon of Clonliffe Harriers in 1.51.33.

Danny O’Sullivan and Craig Scott, both M40 athletes, set new personal best times in Sunday’s CHICAGO MARATHON. O’Sullivan was probably too quick over the opening half of the race as he passed the halfway mark in 1.22.14. However, he battled bravely over the second half of the race to finish 721st overall in 2.47.38. He was 100th in the M40 category.
Craig Scott ran a more measured race with halves of 1.26.28 and 1.26.18. He came 1,091st overall and 1,006th and 161st in the M40s.

Daragh Keegan came 2nd in the FASTLANE HALF-MARATHON at Clondalkin on Sunday morning. He recorded a new personal best time of 1.15.24 to finish less than a minute behind winner Peter Thompson (1.24.27) of Victoria Park & Connswater AC – a club based in East Belfast.

In the FASTLANE 3-QUARTER MARATHON there was strong running from Ariana Ball (2.30.42) who placed 57th overall and 7th woman. Tony Griffin (2.39.21) was 102nd of 313 finishers

The DUBLIN NOVICE CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS were hosted by Sportsworld AC at Tymon Park on Sunday. In the women’s race over 4km a strong finish by Deirdre NicCanna (16.24) saw her finish in 14th position. Audrey Gahan was next in 26th spot in a time of 16.24. The 3rd Donore Harriers finisher was Aisling Kirby (17.37) who placed 26th. The scoring four was completed by debutante Saoirse Groves-Murphy (18.21) in 51st position. The non-scoring athlete was Treasa Boylan (19.02) who came 57th of 69 finishers. The Donore Harriers team came 7th of 9 closing teams.
In the Men’s race over 6km Ryan Aikins placed 20th in a time of 20.15. Emmet O’Briain (21.53) and Simon O’Toole (22.46) placed 34th and 52nd respectively. Alan Kinsella withdrew from the race after completing just one of 4 laps with an illness, thus Donore Harriers did not complete a team. There were 108 finishers.
The women’s race was won by Faye Dervan (15.00) of Dublin City Harriers, whilst the men’s race had a manic finish between Shane Spring (19.30) of Raheny Shamrocks and Eddie O’Connor (19.30) of Brothers Pearse AC with both athletes diving over the line in what was judged a draw.

In the 2nd fixture of the DUBLIN JUVENILE CROSS-COUNTRY LEAGUE at the same venue there were conclusive successes for Emily Bolton in the Under 15s, Lorraine O’Connor in the Under 16s and Thomas Bolton in the Under 17s.
A full programme of cross-country running began with Rachel McCarthy and Farrah Blake finishing 21st and 25th in the Under 9 Girls race over 500 metres.
Then an improving Ruairi Quinn came 12th in the Under 9 Boys over the same distance with Eli Henley-Willis placing 24th.
Michael McCarthy Jnr was the club’s only Under 10 competitor, and he came 20th in the Boys race over 700 metres.
Anna Whelan was involved in a melee to the line and came 3rd in the Under 11 Girls race after 900 metres. Lola Blake in 53rd and Lola Nagle-Mullaly in 55th contested the same race.
Conor O’Hara made his debut in the Under 11 Boys 900m race and placed 35th and seems a fine prospect.
Next up Anabella Omozee came 11th in the U12 Girls race over a distance of 1,200 metres and was supported by Bella Rose Waldron in 56th and Tess O’Donoghue in 58th. Max Henley-Willis was the club’s sole contestant in the Under 12s 1,200m race and he came home in 26th spot.
In the Under 13 Girls race (1,200m) Ruby Blake placed 29th, Lauren Tolan 35th and debutante Kim Sutcliffe 52nd.
Lily Hanrahan-Clarke and Eoin Mooney showed more progress in the Under 14 races. Lily came 6th in the Girls race and Eoin 3rd in the Boys race. Both races were over 1,500m.
Emily Bolton had a gun to finish line win in the Under 15 Girls race over 2,000m.
The club had 6 finishers in the Under 15 Boys – also over 2,000m – with Reuben McCormick leading the group home in 4th place, followed by Arlen Szeb-Szabo in 10th, Daniel Hughes in 12th, Aryell Sheedy in 16th, Sam Clancy in 22nd and Ross Cassidy in 29th.
Lorraine O’Connor was a convincing winner in the Under 16 Girls race over 2,500m with Eva Crowe in 4th place.
In the Under 16 Boys 2,500m race Lucas Collender lost out on 6th place in a sprint finish and had to settle for 7th spot.
Thomas Bolton made a conservative start in the Under 17 Boys race over 4,000m. He was 4th after the first kilometre, then gained to 3rd by halfway before stretching away to victory in the latter half of the race.

In the BROTHERS IN ARMS SCHOOL CROSS-COUNTRY RACES at Santry Demesne last Wednesday Lily Hanrahan-Clarke came 4th in the Under 15 Girls race over a 1,500m route – with Amber Lynch placing 14th. Both girls were representing Loreta Stephen’s Green. The event was organized by Clonliffe Harriers.

In this week’s PARKRUN series Fergal Whitty was the first finisher at HARTSTOWN in a time of 17.57. More results below.

Results in brief:
I.U.A EUROPEAN 50KM CHAMPIONSHIP at Avila, Spain (08.10.2022)
6th Sorcha Loughnane (3.26.46)
31 starters
FASTLANE HALF-MARATHON at Clondalkin (09.10.2022)
2nd Daragh Keegan (1.15.24 PB)
204 finishers
FASTLANE 3-QUARTER MARATHON at Clondalkin (09.10.2022)
57th & 7th woman Ariana Ball (2.30.42)
102nd Tony Griffin (2.39.21)
313 finishers
IRISH 3-QUARTER MARATHON at Longwood, Co. Meath (09.10.2022)
7th Ian Fitzgerald (1.58.12)
8th Wayne Waldron (1.58.12)
14th Barbara Cleary W40 (2.03.59)
17th Ken Nugent (2.04.35)
20th Peter Gaffney M50 (2.04.55)
27th Chris Muldoon M40 (2.10.22)
30th Tony Barry M40 (2.11.29)
39th Grace Kennedy-Clarke (2.11.37)
105th Oliver O’Hara M40 (2.25.28)
137th JP O’Hanlon (2.31.12)
450th Noel Davis M40 (3.02.54)
834 finishers
CHICAGO MARATHON (09.10.2022)
721st & 100th M40 Danny O’Sullivan (2.47.38 PB)
1,091st & 161st M40 Craig Scott (2.52.46 PB)
DUBLIN NOVICE CROSS-COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS at Tymon Park (09.10.2022)
WOMEN’S 4KM RACE:
14th Deirdre Nic Canna (16.24)
26th Audrey Gahan (17.06)
35th Aisling Kirby (17.37)
51st Saoirse Groves-Murphy (18.21) club debut
57th Treasa Boylan (19.02)
69 finishers
TEAM: 1. Dublin City Harriers 20, 7. Donore Harriers 126. 9 teams closed
MEN’S 6KM RACE:
20th Ryan Aikins (20.15)
34th Emmet O’Briain (21.53)
52nd Simon O’Toole (22.46)
DNF Alan Kinsella
108 finishers
BROTHERS IN ARMS SCHOOL CROSS-COUNTRY at Santry Demesne (05.10.2022)
U15 GIRLS 1,500m RACE:
4th Lily Hanrahan-Clarke
14th Amber Lynch
NOTE: some results may be missing – please forward
DUBLIN JUVENILE XC LEAGUE FIXTURE 2 at Tymon Park (09.10.2022)
U9 GIRLS 500m: 21st Rachel McCarthy; 25th Farrah Blake (debut)
U9 BOYS 500m: 12th Ruairi Quinn (debut), 24th Eli Henley-Willis
U10 BOYS 700m: 20th Michael McCarthy
U11 GIRLS 900m: 3rd Anna Whelan, 53rd Lola Blake, 55th Lola Nagle-Mullaly
U11 BOYS 900m: 35th Conor O’Hara (debut)
U12 GIRLS 1,200m: 11th Anabella Omozee, 56th Bella Rose Waldron, 58th Tess O’Donoghue
U12 BOYS 1,200m: 26th Max Henley-Willis
U13 GIRLS 1,200m: 29th Ruby Blake, 35th Lauren Tolan, 52nd Kim Sutcliffe
U14 GIRLS 1,500m: 6th Lily Hanrahan-Clarke
U14 BOYS 1,500m: 3rd Eoin Mooney
U15 GIRLS 2,000m: 1st Emily Bolton
U15 BOYS 2,000m: 4th Reuben McCormick, 10th Arlen Szeb-Szabo, 12th Daniel Hughes, 16th Aryell Sheedy, 22nd Sam Clancy, 29th Ross Cassidy
U16 GIRLS 2,500m: 1st Lorraine O’Connor, 4th Eva Crowe
U16 BOYS 2,500m: 7th Lucas Collender
U17 BOYS 4,000m: 1st Thomas Bolton
PARKRUN (08.10.2022)
BRICKFIELDS: 65th Ciaran McCarthy M45 (32.18)
BUSHY: 116th Thomas Halton M65 (32.23)
CASTLETOWN: 39th Joan McTernan W60 (27.38)
CORKAGH: 47th Nicola Dowdall W45 (25.55), 111th Terry Mee M75 (31.34)
GRIFFEEN: 22nd Aidan Kelly MS (22.10)
HARTSTOWN: 1st Fergal Whitty M45 (17.57)
MARLAY: 15th Patrick Moriarty M45 (18.52)
WATERSTOWN: 49th Andrew Maguire M55 (47.17)

HIGHLIGHTS: Deirdre NicCanna & Ryan Aikins were winners of the EDDIE HOGAN CUP & the SLATER CUP incorporated into the Club’s Opening Run. Daragh Keegan 1st in the SIMON HOME RUN 5-MILE. Abdel Laadjel, Louis O’Loughlin, and Kane Collins all competed STATESIDE. Lorraine O’Connor & Liam Morris were winners in the CO. DUBLIN SCHOOLS XC. Anna Whelan 1st overall in the OPENING RUN JUVENILE RACE

REPORT: <report/results by Gerry Naughton & Florence Curley>
Abdel Laadjel placed 89th of 416 finishers in the LeHIGH UNIVERSITY PAUL SHORT CROSS-COUNTRY RACE at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on Friday morning. The race is one of the open-season classics with 46 teams on the start line. Laadjel covered the 8km course is a highly respectable time of 23.55 and was the 5th scorer on the Providence Friars team that placed 6th.

Louis O’Loughlin lined up for the Auburn University Tigers in the 21st edition of the LOU CROSS-COUNTRY CLASSIC at the Tom Sawyer Park in Louisville, Kentucky on Saturday morning. The 8km race was held in 61% humidity in a mostly tree-sheltered course that surrounding soccer pitches and a BMX track.
O’Loughlin placed 95th of the 301 finishers and was the 3rd scorer on the Tigers team that came 12th of 31 closing teams.

Daragh Keegan topped up his impressive run in the Rathfarnham 5km last week by winning the SIMON HOME RUN 5-MILE ROAD RACE in the Phoenix Park on Saturday morning. Strong winds and an undulating course that finished with the long climb up the Kyber Road was not conducive to good times, but Keegan can be content with his 27.11 effort in his first 5-mile race.

Coach and former Club President Willie Smith again organised the OPENING RUN EVENT on Saturday morning, incorporating the SLATER CUP and EDDIE HOGAN CUP club novice cross-country championship races. The races took place on an undulating route near the Magazine Fort in the Phoenix Park.
There were 5 starters in the 3.65km women’s race for the Eddie Hogan Cup.
The winner was ‘scratch’ runner Deirdre NicCanna, with Suzie Henley-Willis in
2nd and last year’s winner Katherine Marsh in 3rd.
The men’s race was over a 6.4km route. Ryan Aikins claimed the Slater Cup
ahead of Emmet O’Briain and Stephen Dawson. There were 10 starters,
including ‘scratch’ runner Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan, and juvenile members
Oliver Hopkins and Eoin Mooney.

The above races were complimented by a JUVENILE OPENING RUN over a 900m route. The finishing order was Anna Whelan U11, Max Henley-Willis U12, Michael McCarthy Jnr U10, Abbie Keogh U10, Lacy Cleary U12, and Rachel McCarthy U9. All won gold medals as there was only one competitor in each age and gender category.

In the RUN GALWAY BAY HALF-MARATHON newcomer Tommy Allen placed 9th in the time of 1.24.13. There were more than 800 finishers.

Kane Collins ran a personal best in the MEDTRONIC TWIN CITIES MARATHON at St. Paul, Minneapolis on Sunday. His time of 2.33.13 was about 6 or 7 minutes short of his target time, but the hot and humid conditions took a toll on the Donore Harriers athlete in the latter stages of the race. He passed the halfway mark in 1.13.22, but lost time and positions after the 35km mark and had to settle for 18th place overall. The race was won by Yuya Yoshida of Japan in 2.11.28. There were more than 5-thousand starters.

The COUNTY DUBLIN SCHOOLS CROSS-COUNTRY RACES were held in the Phoenix Park on Thursday morning (29.09.2022) with a good contingent of the club’s juvenile members representing their respective schools. All races were run over 2km on the flat Papal Cross lap.
Lorraine O’Connor and Emily Bolton – both Mount Sackville – made it a 1-2 in the 3rd Year girl’s race. Abigail Tolan placed 17th in the same race.
In the 2nd Year Boy’s race Liam Morris (Colaiste Chillian) romped to victory – with Reuben McCormick in 6th, Daniel Hughes 10th, Eoin Mooney 17th and Fraser Marr 38th.
Daire McCarthy continues to impress and came an excellent 3rd in the 3rd Year Boys. He was followed over the finish line by Sam O’Connor in 5th, Lucas Collender in 10th, Adam Mulhall in 18th, Aryell Sheedy in 27th and Aaron Callanan in 60th. This race was spoilt by several runners who short-cutted at the top of the course.
In the 1st Year Girls Lauren Tolan came 63rd and in the 2nd Year race Claire O’Hanlon was 17th.
The first fixture in the DUBLIN JUVENILE CROSS-COUNTRY LEAGUE was held at a farming location near the village of Lusk on Sunday 18th September. The course was undulating and over a hard surface with straw bale fences adding to the woes of tiring legs.
In the Under 15 Grades Emily Bolton won out in the Girls and Liam Morris in the Boys. Lorraine O’Connor won the Under 16 Girls race over 2,000m, with brothers Thomas and James Bolton winning respectively in the Under 17s and Under 19s.
There were excellent efforts also from Anna Whelan 8th in the Under 11 Girls, Anabella Omozee 7th in the Under 12 Girls, Lily Hanrahan-Clarke 4th in the Under 14 Girls, Eoin Mooney 5th in the Under 14 Boys and Dylan McKenna 4th in the Under 17 Boys.
Donore Harriers were strongest in the Under 16 categories. Behind winner Lorraine O’Connor there were strong performances from Julie Cleary in 4th, Eva Crowe in 5th and Eden Brangan-Walsh in 7th. In the Under 16 Boys, newcomer Charlie White came 2nd and Lucas Collender was 5th. More results below.

Best club runner in the PARKRUN series this week was juvenile member Leah Nunan who was 5th overall and 1st female finisher at PORTERSTOWN. More results below.
Results in brief:
COUNTY DUBLIN SCHOOLS CROSS-COUNTRY RACES at Phoenix Park (29.09.2027)
1st YEAR GIRLS: 63rd Lauren Tolan
2nd YEAR GIRLS: 17th Claire O’Hanlon
3rd YEAR GIRLS: 1st Lorraine O’Connor, 2nd Emily Bolton, 17th Abigail Tolan
2nd YEAR BOYS: 1st Liam Morris, 6th Reuben McCormick, 10th Daniel Hughes, 17th Eoin Mooney, 38th Fraser Marr
3rd YEAR BOYS: 3rd Daire McCarthy, 5th Sam O’Connor, 10th Lucas Collender, 18th Adam Mulhall, 27th Aryell Sheedy, 60th Aaron Callanan
LeHIGH UNIVERSITY PAUL SHORT XC RUN at Bethlehem, PA (30.09.2022)
89th Abdel Laadjel (Providence Friars) 23.55
416 finishers
LOU CROSS-COUNTRY CLASSIC at Louisville, Kentucky (01.10.2022)
95th Louis O’Loughlin (24.45)
301 finishers
SIMON HOME RUN 5 MILE ROAD RACE at Phoenix Park (01.10.2022)
1st Daragh Keegan M35 (27.11 PB)
44th John Gleeson M50 (37.14)
615 finishers
OPENING RUN CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP HANDICAP RACES at Phoenix Park (01.10.2022)
SLATER CUP 6.4KM MEN’S RACE: 1st Ryan Aikins, 2nd Emmet O’Briain, 3rd Stephen Dawson. 10 finishers
EDDIE HOGAN CUP 3.65KM WOMEN’S RACE: 1st Deirdre Nic Canna, 2nd Suzie Henley-Willis, 3rd Katherine Marsh. 5 finishers
OPENING RUN 900m JUVENILE RACE at Phoenix Park (01.10.2022)
1st Anna Whelan (1st U11 Girls)
2nd Max Henley-Willis (1st U12 Boys)
3rd Michael McCarthy Jnr (1st U10 Boys)
4th Abbie Keogh (1st U10 Girls)
5th Lacy Cleary (1st U12 Girls)
6th Rachel McCarthy (1st U9 Girls)
RUN GALWAY BAY HALF-MARATHON (01.10.2022)
9th Thomas Allen MS (1.24.13)
839 finishers
MEDTRONIC TWIN CITIES MARATHON at St. Paul, Minneapolis (02.10.2022)
18th Kane Collins (2.33.13 PB)
5,094 finishers
DUBLIN JUVENILE XC LEAGUE FIXTURE 1 at Lusk (18.09.2022) ‘official results’
U9 GIRLS 400m: 16th Rachel McCarthy; 44th Farrah Blake (debut)
U9 BOYS 400m: 21st Ruairi Quinn (debut), 22nd Eli Henley-Willis
U10 BOYS 600m: 21st Bobby Farrell, 25th Michael McCarthy
U11 GIRLS 800m: 8th Anna Whelan, 44th Lola Blake, 55th Emani Meagher (debut)
U11 BOYS 800m: 34th Alan Maddox
U12 GIRLS 1,000m: 7th Anabella Omozee, 29th Lacy Cleary (debut), 62nd Tess O’Donoghue, 67th Alva Sullivan, 72nd Hannah Kelly
U12 BOYS 1,000m: 29th Max Henley-Willis
U13 GIRLS 1,000m: 31st Rosie-May Morris, 45th Ruby Blake, 47th Lauren Tolan
U14 GIRLS 1,200m: 4th Lily Hanrahan-Clarke
U14 BOYS 1,200m: 5th Eoin Mooney, 23rd Conor O’Neill, 26th Declan Creedon (debut)
U15 GIRLS 1,500m: 1st Emily Bolton, 21st Abigail Tolan, 31st Ava Hoare
U15 BOYS 1,500m: 1st Liam Morris, 14th Daniel Hughes, 17th Aryell Sheedy, 24th Fraser Marr, 30th Aaron Callanan
U16 GIRLS 2,000m: 1st Lorraine O’Connor, 4th Julie Cleary, 5th Eva Crowe, 7th Eden Brangan-Walsh
U16 BOYS 2,000m: 2nd Charlie White, 5th Lucas Collender
U17 BOYS 3,000m: 1st Thomas Bolton, 4th Dylan McKenna
U19 BOYS 3,500m: 1st James Bolton
PARKRUN (01.10.2022)
BRICKFIELDS: 57th Ann Woodlock W80 (33.54)
BUSHY: 88th Thomas Halton M65 (30.53)
CORKAGH: 68th Terry Mee M75 (30.59)
GRIFFEEN: 41st Aidan Kelly MS (23.33)
MARLAY: 8th Patrick Moriarty M45 (18.52)
NEW ROSS: 17th Eugene MacCurtain M55 (24.20), 27th Liz MacCurtain W55 (24.40)
PORTERSTOWN: 5th & 1st woman Leah Nunan W11-14 (20.51)
SPORTS CAMPUS: 6th Mark Nunan M11-14 (22.31), 16th Paul Nunan M45 (24.40)
WATERSTOWN: 38th Andrew Maguire M55 (48.00)

HIGHLIGHTS: Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan 3rd overall & Des Tremble 2nd M50 in the CHARLEVILLE INTERNATIONAL HALF-MARATHON. Niamh Clifford ran a PB 2.45.54 and Anne Curley (3.07.14) 8th in the W50s in the BERLIN MARATHON.
Daragh Keegan M35 silver, Maura Kearns W40 gold, and W35 team of Kearns, Audrey Gahan, Pamela White and Ruth Chambers silver in the RATHFARNHAM/DUBLIN CHAMPIONSHIP 5KM ROAD RACE. Rory Burke and Deirdre NicCanna both 3rd in the WICKLOW ECO-TRAIL 46KM. Sorcha Loughnane’s time of 3.20.33 confirmed as W45 World record by the INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF ULTRA-RUNNERS.

REPORT: <report/results by Gerry Naughton & Florence Curley> Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan continues in a rich vein of form with a very fine 3rd place overall in the CHARLEVILLE INTERNATIONAL HALF-MARATHON on Sunday.
The Irish Orienteering international, coached by Willie Smith, knocked four and a-half minutes of his personal best time to relegate Olympic marathon runner Mick Clohissy (1.07.57) to 4th place. The race, which took place on the roads between Charleville and Kilmallock, attracted a field of 750 starters and was won by Jonathan Escalante-Phillips (1.06.21) – a GB international athlete who finished 3rd in the European Cup 10,000m last year. Another Irish international Sergio Ciobanu (1.06.24) of Clonliffe Harriers came 2nd.
Josh described his race on Strava: “A lead group formed relatively early of Jonathan, Sergiu, Mick C and me all going off the front. The pace was brisk enough and I think things were about 15:35 through the first 5km, with that downhill first mile. After 4-miles Sergiu moved on a bit with Jonathan and I got cut adrift a bit with Mick a few yards further behind’
‘Heading into Kilmallock the gap had opened another small bit and Mick had closed in on me so I pushed on as best I could through the village and onto the back roads to try and get some breathing space. It worked and I had a lonely solo last 10km home and was able to see the 2 lads ahead and afraid to look back’
‘I struggled a bit in the last mile up the hill and I was fairly on the limit … nice to get another podium place, get a few scalps and be first Cork man home. A 4min 30sec PB over the half-marathon distance”
Des Tremble came 33rd overall and took the runner-up spot in the M50 class in an excellent time of 1.17.36. The category was won by Robert Whyte in 1.17.08, with John Murphy of (1.19.20) of Grange Fermoy AC in 3rd place.
The other Donore Harriers to compete were Alasdair Brown (1.18.04) who came 35th and Liam Keane (1.19.32 PB) who was 48th and 13th in the M40 category.

As 37 years old Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge ran an incredible world record of 2.01.09 in the 48th edition of the BMW BERLIN MARATHON on Sunday a group of Donore Harriers athletes were putting their own special marks on the race.
Kerry native Niamh Clifford (2.45.54) ran a superbly judged race to finish as 52nd woman overall and 25th in the senior category. She passed the halfway point in 1.24.21 and held 83rd position – and thereafter she picked up places with a fine 1.21.33 second half of the race.
M45 athlete Didier DaCosta (2.45.47) ran an excellent race to finish 775th overall and 82nd in his age-group.
Anne Curley chalked up her 29th marathon in fine style by recording a time of 3.07.14 to place as the 271st woman and 8th in the W50 category. Anne said afterwards: “This was my 5th time doing Berlin. It was the best marathon experience ever in this cool city. I am very happy with that, it went smooth enough, had a pit stop and two stops to take on some water, same niggles as always with my leg, ankle, and a new back pain but it came together in the second half – a case of hammer down and mind over body. Those last few miles never get easier”. Curley ran 1.35.19 for the opening half, and a superb 1.31.55 for the back half.
The club had two other finishers in David McGrath (3.16.39) in 4,149th place and 820th M50 and Joan McTernan (4.09.48) who was 4,425th woman and 74th in the W60 age group.
Robert Murphy was on course to break his 2.22.08 time set at Seville in February 2022 but was forced to retire from the race just past the 30km point that he reached in 1.40.14.

The RATHFARNHAM 5KM ROAD RACE is one of the fastest and most competitive road races in Ireland. This year’s event incorporated the first running of the DUBLIN 5KM ROAD CHAMPIONSHIPS.
Second-season athlete Daragh Keegan ran a great race to lead the Donore Harriers representation home with a new personal best time of 15.31. After a conservative start, Keegan gained several places to finish in 23rd spot. He finished 4th overall in the M35 category and came 2nd in his age group in the Dublin championship to win his first individual medal.
Next came Ryan Aikins (15.45) in 45th place overall and 6th in the Dublin senior category. Luke Boland (16.03) placed 54th overall and was 6th in the M35 Dublin contest as Gavin Keogh (16.22,0) came 71st overall and 5th M40 in the Dublin championships
Keegan, Aikins, Boland and Keogh made up the scoring 4 in the Open team (7th) and Dublin senior team (4th) contests.
Simon O’Toole ran a PB of 16.46 to place 93rd overall and 9th individual in the Dublin senior ranks.
The second medal of the day went to Maura Kearns (17.32) who ran a personal best time to place 131st, being the 16th woman to cross the finish line and 1st in the Dublin W40 category.
Audrey Gahan (19.15) ran a personal best to place 260th overall, 49th woman and 4th in the Dublin W45 class. Pam White (19.39) ran yet another PB as she came 282nd overall and 5th in the Dublin W35 category, with Ruth Chambers (21.56) 417th and 10th in the W35 Dublin’s. The scoring 4 of Kearns, Gahan, White and Chambers came 7th in both the Women’s Open and Dublin Senior championships. The same 4, however, won the silver medal in the Dublin W35 team championship behind winners Brothers Pearse AC with Lucan Harriers in 3rd place.
Also among the 892 finishers were Des Gill (20.15) 318th and 9th M55, John Curran (21.06) 361st and 11th M50, Frank McNally (22.16) 421st and 4th M60, and Ciaran McCarthy (28.38) 755th and 27th M45. Gill was the 4th scorer on the M35 team that came 4th in the Dublin championship.
More detailed results are listed below.

In Saturday’s ECO-TRIAL RACES in Co. Wicklow, it was a case of mixed fortunes for the competing Donore Harriers athletes. The 46km race started and finished at Bray harbour and followed a route up Bray Head, then across mixed terrain at the Little and Great Sugarloaf Mountains, before passing through the scenic Kilruddery Estate, then past the Powerscourt Waterfall and Belmont Estate before returning to Bray Head.
Rory Burke (3.55.01) came 3rd overall of the 203 finishers. The race was won by Enda Cloake in 3.45.07. Deirdre NicCanna (5.23.02) placed 55th overall and was the 3rd woman finisher.
In the 19km race that went past the Kilruddery Estate, the Little Sugarloaf and Belmont Estate Katherine Marsh (2.19.49) was 121st overall out of 293 finishers and came 40th in the women’s category.
Aideen Burke went in the 80km race that took in parts of the Wicklow Way but was forced to retire at 56km with a recurring injury.

Back in February (Report No. 7) we reported that Sorcha Loughnane was awaiting confirmation as to whether her 3.20.33 time in winning the DONADEA/NATIONAL 50KM race would constitute as a World record. The International Association of Ultrarunners has now confirmed that her time of 3.20.34 does indeed constitute a World record time. Many congratulations to Sorcha. We all wish her the best as she prepares to represent Ireland in the European 50km road championships in Spain in early October.

In PARKRUNS Aisling Kirby was first woman home at FAIRVIEW and junior athlete Sean Kinsella was 2nd at WATERSTOWN. More results below.
Results in brief:
WICKLOW ECO-TRAIL RACES (24.09.2022)
19KM TRAIL RACE: 121st & 40th woman Katherine Marsh (2.19.49) – 293 finishers
46KM TRAIL RACE: 3rd Rory Burke (3.55.01), 55th & 3rd woman Deirdre NicCanna (5.23.02) – 203 finishers
80KM TRAIL RACE: DNF Aideen Burke (dropped out at 56km)
CHARLEVILLE INTERNATIONAL HALF-MARATHON (25.09.2022)
3rd Josh O’Sullivan-Hourihan MS (1.07.04 PB)
33rd & 2nd M50 Des Tremble (1.17.36)
35th Alasdair Brown MS (1.18.04)
48th & 13th M40 Liam Keane (1.19.32)
743 finishers
RATHFARNHAM 5KM ROAD RACE (25.09.2022)
23rd & 4th M35 (2nd DC) Daragh Keegan (15.31 PB) SILVER
45th & 23rd MS (6th DC) Ryan Aikins (15.45)
54th & 12th M35 (6th DC) Luke Boland (16.03)
71st & 11th M40 (5th DC) Gavin Keogh (16.22)
93rd & 35th MS (9th DC) Simon O’Toole (16.46 PB)
131st, 16th woman & 2nd W40 (1st DC) Maura Kearns (17.32 PB) GOLD
260th, 49th woman & 5th W45 (4th DC) Audrey Gahan (19.15 PB)
282nd, 57th woman & 8th W35 (5th DC) Pamela White (19.39 PB)
318th & 13th M55 (9th DC) Des Gill (20.15)
361st & 19th M50 (11th DC) John Curran (21.06)
417th, 103rd woman & 16th W35 (10th DC) Ruth Chambers (21.56)
421st & 11th M60 (4th DC) Frank McNally (22.16)
755th & 73rd M45 (27th DC) Ciaran McCarthy (28.38)
892 finishers
MEN’S OPEN TEAM COMPETITION: 1. Kilkenny City Harriers 1.00.36, 7. Donore Harriers <Keegan, Aikins, Boland, Keogh> 1.04.00. 20 teams closed.
DUBLIN SENIOR MEN’S TEAM: 1. Rathfarnham WSAF AC 1.00.38, 4. Donore Harriers <Keegan, Aikins, Boland, Keogh> 1.04.00. 11 teams closed.
DUBLIN M35 TEAM: 1. Crusaders AC 1.04.41, 4. Donore Harriers <Keegan, Boland, Keogh, Gill> 1.08.28. 10 teams closed.
WOMEN’S OPEN TEAM COMPETITION: 1. Raheny Shamrocks AC 1.10.04, 7. Donore Harriers <Kearns, Gahan, White, Chambers> 1.19.04. 13 teams closed.
DUBLIN SENIOR WOMEN’S TEAM: 1. Raheny Shamrocks AC 1.10.04, 7. Donore Harriers <Kearns, Gahan, White, Chambers> 1.19.04. 11 teams closed.
DUBLIN W35 TEAM: 1. Brothers Pearse AC 1.17.30, 2. Donore Harriers <Kearns, Gahan, White, Chambers> 1.19.04, 3. Lucan Harriers 1.21.51. 8 teams closed.
48th BMW BERLIN MARATHON (25.09.2022)
775th & 82nd M45 Didier DaCosta (2.45.47)
52nd woman & 25th WS Niamh Clifford (2.45.54 PB)
271st woman & 8th W50 Anne Curley (3.07.14)
4,149th & 820th M50 David McGrath (3.16.39)
4,425th woman & 74th W60 Joan McTernan (4.09.48)
DNF Robert Murphy M40 (retired at 30km)
PARKRUN (24.09.2022)
BRICKFIELDS: 43rd Ann Woodlock W80 (34.30), 60th Ciaran McCarthy M45 (53.58)
BUSHY: 86th Thomas Halton M65 (31.24)
CORKAGH: 40th Nicola Dowdall W45 (25.19), 108th Terry Mee M75 (31.22
FAIRVIEW: 7th & 1st woman Aisling Kirby WS (22.20)
GRIFFEEN: 32nd Aidan Kelly MS (22.13 PB), 71st Charlie O’Neill M65 (25.49)
NAAS: 4th Fred Kiernan M45 (18.55)
PORTERSTOWN: 8th Tom Fagan M55 (21.40)
WATERSTOWN: 2nd Sean Kinsella MJ (19.29)

The 129th Annual General Meeting of  Donore Harriers will take place on Wednesday October 26th 2022 at 7 PM in the clubhouse.

Agenda and Important Notes regarding the AGM are outlined below.

AGENDA

• Minutes of last A.G.M.
• President’s Address.
• Secretary’s Report.
• Financial Report.
• Athletics Reports.
• Election of officers/directors and vice-presidents.
• Announcement of Coaches/handicappers.
• Motions.
• Close of Meeting.

Important Notes:

Nominations of officers/directors and Motions must be submitted for the attention of the Club Secretary by email to info@donoreharriers.com or by post to Donore Harriers, Chapelizod, Dublin 20 not less than 21 days before the AGM in accordance with Article 38 of the Articles of Association (i.e. NOT later than Wednesday 5th October 2022). They both require a proposer and seconder

At the discretion of the committee motions and nominations will be considered even if they are submitted after this date but the committee reserves the right to rule these inadmissible. Nominations/ Motions can be forwarded directly for the attention of the Hon Secretary. Completed proxy forms must be deposited at the club office not less than 48 hours before the AGM in accordance with Articles 32 and 33 of the Articles of Association. Members who have paid their annual Subscription to the club for the preceding year will be considered by the Committee to be members in Good Standing.

Nominations can be just written/typed out and should state

(1) the name of the member nominated.

(2) the position s/he is nominated for

(3) should be signed by the (not less than two) members nominating him/her i.e. along the following lines is sufficient:

 We [NAME] and [NAME] hereby nominate [NAME] for the position of [President/Honorary Secretary/Honorary Treasurer/Director].

Signed:

(Name in Block capitals)

Signed:

(Name in Block capitals)

We look forward to seeing you there !

The Committee

HIGHLIGHTS: Barbara Cleary won the DUBLIN HALF-MARATHON. Sean Fox 1st M45, Peter Gaffney 2nd M50 and Grace Kennedy-Clarke 3rd W35. Luke Boland first DH finisher in 1.14.46. Louis O’Loughlin began his American experience with a fine 60th place in the NORTH ALABAMA SHOWCASE XC. Fred Kiernan 5th in the MEDIEVAL 10KM. Emily Bolton, Liam Morris, & Lorraine O’Connor were winners in the 1st fixture of the DUBLIN JUVENILE XC LEAGUE.

REPORT: <report/results by Gerry Naughton, Florence Curley & Suzie Henley-Willis> Barbara Cleary ran a well-judged race to win the DUBLIN HALF-MARATHON in the Phoenix Park on a fresh, dry Saturday morning. The Co. Clare native was 40 seconds down on pre-race favourite Caitlyn Harvey of Annadale Striders at the 5-mile point, but thereafter used her experience and endurance base to finish the race 10-seconds clear of her rival. Cleary finished 44th overall in a time of 1.18.14 with Harvey in 47th position. Jan Corcoran (1.20.40) of Le Cheile AC was the 3rd woman home.
Luke Boland (1.14.46) led home the large contingent of Donore Harriers athletes placing 13th overall and 5th in the M35 category. Just one place behind was David McConn (1.15.26) who was unlucky not to get among the medals as he came 4th in the M40 class. His consolation was a new personal best time.
Sean Fox (1.15.51) came 19th overall and was the winner of the M45 category. He was followed home by Wayne Waldron, clearly feeling the Ratoath Half-Marathon from the previous weekend in his legs, who came 35th in a time of 1.17.13. Then came overall women’s winner Cleary, followed by Peter Gaffney (1.19.13) in 59th spot and 2nd in the M50 category.
Chris Muldoon ran a time of 1.20.27 to secure 79th position and finish 9th in the M45 age grade – and he was followed across the finish line by Declan Lynch in a PB time of 1.22.23 for 121st overall and 38th in the M40s.
The next Donore Harrier home was Grace Kennedy-Clarke (1.25.16) who ran a personal best to finish 3rd in the Women’s over 35 category. She placed 226th overall.
The other competing club members were Kevin Odgers (1.24.14 PB) 230th and 34th M45; Tony Barry (1.25.47) 247th and 73rd M40; Patrick Moriarty (1.27.17) 317th and 48th M45; Stephen Dawson (1.29.00) 451st and 111th M40; Ariana Ball (1.30.54 PB) 538th overall, 34th woman and 9th W35; Dean Fullston (1.32.37 PB) 618th and 14th M55; an ever improving Pam White (1.32.42 PB) 624th; 40th woman and 11th W35; Owen Robinson (1.32.18) 663rd and 162nd M40; Des Gill (1.35.10) 771st and 18th M55; Tony Griffin (1.36.45) 830th and 6th M60; club debutant Marc Walsh (1.36.54) 996th overall; John Gleeson (1.39.43) 1,169th and 80th M50; Suzie Henley-Willis (1.41.11) 1,311th overall, 136th woman and 41st W40; Louise Kelly (1.41.28) 1,329th overall, 38th woman and 30th W35; Noel Davis (1.45.54) 1,678th and 334th M40; Katherine Marsh (1.45.06) 1,847th overall, 263rd woman and 82nd WS; Mark Devine (1.47.52) 2,111th and 317th M45 and Dana Mackey (2.13.16) 4,527th and 101st W50. There were more than five and a half thousand finishers.

Master athlete Fred Kiernan finished 5th of 201 finishers in the MEDIEVAL 10km ROAD RACE at Kilkenny on Saturday. His time was 40.40.

Louis O’Loughlin got his American experience off to a good start in the NORTH ALABAMA SHOWCASE CROSS-COUNTRY at Huntsville, Alabama on Friday. Representing Auburn Tigers, the Donore Harriers star placed 60th of 360 finishers in a time of 24.42. The meandering course around John Hunt Park proved a good test for the Auburn University student, who made a conservative start and then used his middle-distance pace to gain around 30 places in the final 2 kilometres to finish as 4th scorer (of 5) on his team that placed 6th of 37.

The domestic cross-country season kicked off with Fixture One of the DUBLIN JUVENILE LEAGUE at Lusk on Sunday morning. A good contingent of young club athletes competed with Emily Bolton, Liam Morris, and Lorraine O’Connor among the winners. There were top 10 finishes for Anna Whelan, Anabella Omozee, Lily Hanrahan-Clarke, Eoin Mooney, Julie Cleary, Eva Crowe, Eden Brangan-Walsh, newcomer Charlie White, Lucas Collender, Dylan McKenna and James Bolton.
Provisional results below.

Simon O’Toole was best among the club’s PARKRUNNERs this week with 1st place at BRICKFIELDS in a time of 18.52.
More results below.

Results in brief:
NORTH ALABAMA SHOWCASE 8KM XC at Huntsville, Alabama (16.09.2022)
60th Louis O’Loughlin (24.42)
360 finishers
DUBLIN HALF-MARATHON at the Phoenix Park (17.09.2022)
13th & 5th M35 Luke Boland (1.14.46)
14th & 4th M40 David McConn (1.15.26 PB)
19th & 1st M45 Sean Fox (1.15.51) GOLD
35th & 11th M35 Wayne Waldron (1.17.13)
44th, 1st woman, 1st W45 Barbara Cleary (1.18.14) GOLD
59th & 2nd M50 Peter Gaffney (1.19.13) SILVER
79th & 9th M45 Chris Muldoon (1.20.27)
121st & 38th M40 Declan Lynch (1.22.23 PB)
226th & 3rd W35 Grace Kennedy-Clarke (1.25.16 PB) BRONZE
230th & 34th M45 Kevin Odgers (1.25.14 PB)
247th & 73rd M40 Tony Barry (1.25.47)
317th & 48th M45 Patrick Moriarty (1.27.17)
451st & 111th M40 Stephen Dawson (1.29.00)
538th & 9th W35 Ariana Ball (1.30.54 PB)
618th & 14th M55 Dean Fullston (1.32.37 PB)
624th & 11th W35 Pam White (1.32.42 PB)
663rd & 162nd M40 Owen Robinson (1.32.18)
771st & 18th M55 Des Gill (1.35.10)
830th & 6th M60 Tony Griffin (1.36.45)
996th & 251st MS Marc Walsh (1.36.54 debut)
1,169th & 80th M50 John Gleeson (1.39.43)
1,311th & 41st W40 Suzie Henley-Willis (1.41.11)
1,329th & 30th W35 Louise Kelly (1.41.28)
1,678th & 334th M40 Noel Davis (1.45.54)
1,847th & 82nd WS Katherine Marsh (1.45.06)
2,111th & 317th M45 Mark Devine (1.47.52)
4,527th & 101st W50 Dana Mackey (2.13.16)
5,562 finishers
MEDIEVAL 10KM ROAD RACE at Kilkenny (17.09.2022)
5th Fred Kiernan (40.40)
201 finishers
DUBLIN JUVENILE XC LEAGUE FIXTURE 1 at Lusk (18.09.2022)
Provisional results only
U9 GIRLS 400m: 16th Rachel McCarthy, also Farrah Blake (debut)
U9 BOYS 400m: 21st Ruairi Quinn (debut), 22nd Eli Henley-Willis
U10 BOYS 600m: 21st Bobby Farrell, 25th Michael McCarthy
U11 GIRLS 800m: 8th Anna Whelan, 44th Lola Blake, 55th Emani Meagher (debut)
U11 BOYS 800m: 36th Alan Maddox
U12 GIRLS 1,000m: 7th Anabella Omozee, 28th Lacy Cleary (debut), 61st Tess O’Donoghue, 67th Alva Sullivan, 72nd Hannah Kelly
U12 BOYS 1,000m: 28th Max Henley-Willis
U13 GIRLS 1,000m: Lauren Tolan (not top 15), Rosie-May Morris (not top 15)
U14 GIRLS 1,200m: 4th Lily Hanrahan-Clarke
U14 BOYS 1,200m: 5th Eoin Mooney, 23rd Conor O’Neill, 25th Declan Creedon (debut)
U15 GIRLS 1,500m: 1st Emily Bolton, 21st Abigail Tolan, 30th Ava Hoare
U15 BOYS 1,500m: 1st Liam Morris, 14th Daniel Hughes, 17th Aryell Sheedy, 24th Fraser Marr, 30th Aaron Callanan
U16 GIRLS 2,000m: 1st Lorraine O’Connor, 4th Julie Cleary, 6th Eva Crowe, 8th Eden Brangan-Walsh
U16 BOYS 2,000m: 2nd Charlie White, 5th Lucas Collender
U17 BOYS 3,000m: 4th Dylan McKenna
U19 BOYS 3,500m: 2nd James Bolton
LATE/AMENDED RESULT: DUBLIN 10 MILE ROAD CHAMPIONSHIP incorporated into the FRANK DUFFY 10 on 20.08.2022
M35 TEAM: 1. Raheny Shamrocks 315, 2. Donore Harriers <Fergal Whitty, Peter Gaffney, Chris Muldoon, Declan Lynch> 382, 3. Clonliffe Harriers 520

PARKRUN (17.09.2022)
BRICKFIELDS: 1st Simon O’Toole MS (18.52), 60th Ciaran McCarthy M45 (47.47)
BUSHY: 96th Thomas Halton M65 (32.42)
GRIFFEEN: 25th Aidan Kelly MS (23.11 PB)
NEW ROSS: 15th Eugene Mac Curtain M55 (24.29), 25th Liz Mac Curtain W55 (27.47)
WATERSTOWN: 35th Andrew Maguire M55 (48.13)