It was another incredibly busy weekend for the athletes of St Abban’s AC competing up and down the grades and even internationally.
National Juvenile B and National Masters Cross Country Championships
The National Juvenile B Cross Country Championships were held in conjunction with the National Masters Cross Country in Dundalk, Co Louth this weekend.
Underfoot conditions were testing in places as a result of all the rain which has fallen in the last week. Nonetheless, the club’s athletes gave it their all.
Kalem Buggy was rewarded for his determination when he claimed an individual medal in the Boys U-15.
Kalem finished in 10th place and was also a scoring member of the Laois County team which finished in 2nd place.
The Girls U-13 team found the tough underfoot conditions challenging but packed well with Leah Dunphy finishing in 71st, Ellie Knowles 72nd and Mollie Kelly 99th.
In the Master’s events Claire Phelan was in action in the Women’s 4000m race finishing 23rd in the F40 race (72nd overall),while Dick Mullins finished just outside the medals in 5th place in the M75 race (33rd overall M-65+).
IUAA Indoor Track and Field Championships
St Abban’s had a number of athletes swap their club vests and college singlets over the weekend, as the Irish Universities Athletics Association (IUAA) Indoor T&F Championships took place in the National Indoor Arena.
Daena Kealy (DCU) shared top honours in the HJ with a clearance of 1.79m.
Both Daena and her DCU teammate Ciara Kennelly couldn’t be separated throughout the competition and with identical records throughout the competition they shared the gold medals.
Niall Harvey (SETU) clocked 4:12.42 in the 1500m, Sergio Chico Vazquez (SETU) ran in the 3000m finishing in a time of 10:19.66.
Leinster Schools Cross Country Championships
Laura and Rachel Ayers were in excellent form at the Leinster Schools Cross Country where both claimed individual medals and will progress on to the All-Ireland Schools Championships on the March 9.
The Cross Country was held in the shadows on the Papal Cross in the Phoenix Park.
Laura got the day off to a perfect start when she sprinted away from the leaders over the last 200m to take victory in the Minor Girls 1500m.
Katie Hartnett also competed strongly in the race finishing in 44th place.
In the Intermediate Girls 3500m Rachel Ayers emerged from the chasing group to finish in 2nd place and her St Leo’s teammate Cara English finished in 30th place.
Kalem Buggy competed in the Junior Boys 2000m where he finished in 27th place.
Will Duffy and Eoghan Mitchell were our final competitors in the Intermediate Boys 4500m. Will finished just outside the qualification places in 16th place while Eoghan finished in 86th place.
Jack Fenlon in America
Jack Fenlon travelled to the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston last weekend to take part in the High Schools Boys mile.
Jack thoroughly enjoyed the experience getting to rub shoulders with some of the best milers around the world.
As well as this, Jack’s accommodation was alongside all the other professional athletes, with him bumping into some of the biggest names in the sport regularly over the weekend.
In the race itself, Jack ran a PB of 4:10.22 in the Junior Boys International Mile coming home in 9th place and this is an experience that he or his family will remmeber for a long time to come.
St Michael’s AC
St Michael’s AC also played a big part the National B Cross Country Championships in Dundalk.
U-17 Girls – Siobhán O’Loughlin 9th
U-17 Boys – Sean McAuliffe 3rd, Shane Maher 7th
U-15 Boys – Riley Connolly 3rd, Peter Fanning, Dylan Yarrow, Gearoid McCann, Jack Bennet
U-15 County Team – Riley Connolly, Dylan Yarrow, Gearoid McCann and Jack Bennett, along with David Warjak, Kalem Buggy.
U13 Boys – Adam Yarrow
U-11 Girls – Roisin McCoubrey, Emma Dunne, Pippa Bennett, Helen Emerson
“A big thank you to all the parents that stepped up to organise teams and prepare our athletes for their race,” the club said.
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