All Ireland Juvenile Track & Field Championships

Katie Bergin, Jack Hickey and Sean Burke were the club representatives at Day 2 & 3 of the All Ireland Juvenile Track and Field Championships held on Saturday and Sunday, July 13 & 14, in Tullamore.  In the Girls U/18 100mts Katie finished 5^th in Heat 2 of the 100mts in a time of 13.32 but despite her best efforts it was not enough to make it through to the final.  However, in her favoured event, the 200mts she ran a cracking race in her heat to finish 3^rd in a time of 27.24 and an automatic qualification for the final.  On an extremely warm day she took her place in that final and produced yet another superb performance to finish 6^th in an even quicker time of 27.11.  Well done Katie.  Jack Hickey entered the 100mts, 200mts and 400mts and again in such competitive surroundings he produced three great performances.  In the 100mts it was a straight final where Jack finished 7^th in a time of 12.03.  In the 400mts he raced in Heat 1 and following a quick race finished 5^th in a time of 55.14 but unfortunately did not proceed to the final – missing out by just .15 of a second.  His 200mts event was also a straight final with eight athletes in contention and Jack powered around the track to finish an excellent 5^th overall in a time of 24.33.  Great running Jack.  Our final athlete at these championships was Sean Burke who participated in the U/19 400mts and was listed in Heat 2 of the event.  Having the advantage of seeing the times from the first heat, the athletes involved raced very strongly and resulted in the top five qualifying for the final but unfortunately for Sean he was the sixth man over the line in 57.43 to end his competition.  Well done Sean on a terrific race.  It takes a fantastic effort to make these championship finals and all three athletes should be very proud of their achievements.

Another year down and another great occasion.  Blessed with a lovely evening, following the earlier downpours, the club pulled out all the stops to produce another top-class track & field competition.  Athletes travelled from all corners of the Country to participate and each one to a man/woman was so delighted with how the event was organised and ran.  Everything went like clockwork so much so that our final event of the night commenced ahead of schedule.  A huge word of thanks must go to all those who put in so many hours of preparation beforehand, those who helped to clean up and set up the track, those who stewarded on the night, those who provided refreshments and those who manned the kitchen and served up the fantastic food to all the athletes and spectators.  To all our officials, our starter, timer and pa, thanks for a great job, it really meant a lot to the club for your support and assistance.  In fact, a special word of thanks to everyone on the night for your help and support in whatever capacity this was. 

We had several club athletes participating on the night and great credit is due to them for their fantastic performances.  Our first athletes to take part were Aaron Moore and Adam Phelan and both gave a great display of running in the U/14 600mts with Aaron timed at 1.53.09 and Adam 1.59.89.  Then followed the U/12 relays and what support these young athletes got on the night – a great response to their dedication over the past few weeks.  The Girls team of Roisin Wall, Eleanor Doyle, Alanna Spillane, Niamh Cleere and Ruth Phelan came home the victors with a time of 1.06.85 while the Boys team of Max Doyle, Joey Doyle, Mark Campion and Denis Brolan raced to 1.09.56 in their event.  In the Master Ladies 400mts Ber Spillane finished third in a new pb of 68.71 while Katie Bergin and Aisling O’Dwyer finished first and third in the Junior Ladies 200mts in 27.04 and 28.57 respectively.  Jack Hickey and Sean Burke took part in the Junior Mens 200mts to finish second and third in 24.14 and 25.30.  In the Senior Ladies Mile Sharon Cantwell finished fourth in 6.15.98 while in the Men’s “B” Mile Dylan McLoughlin finished 7^th in 4.52.50 and Nathan Bowe 10^th in 5.09.29.  Lorraine Healy and Louise Fogarty were participants in the Ladies 800mts and finished fourth and fifth in 2.28.87 and 2.31.37.  In the field events Leona Maher had a pb in the Long Jump with a leap of 4.62mts while Ned Dwyer finished second in the Men’s Weight for Distance throwing 5.28mts with Naomi Morrissey third in the Ladies equivalent with a throw of 4.67mts.  The club also had senior ladies and men relay teams with the team of Jessie Newman, Katie Bergin, Rachel Butler and Aisling O’Dwyer claiming victory in 53.04 while the team of Louise Hickey, Ber Spillane, Aoife O’Dwyer and Leona Maher finished third in 55.46.  The mens team also claimed victory in 49.00 with a combination of Sean Burke, Dylan McLoughlin, Nathan Bowe and Jack Hickey.  Once again well done to all our athletes.  You did the club proud and kept the green and gold singlets to the fore. 

For the third week in a row our athletes will again be travelling to Tullamore for more National Track & Field Championships.  This time we have Sarah McGinley taking part in the Girls U/12 Shot Putt and Katie Bergin, Rachel Butler, Jessie Newman, Aisling O’Dwyer and Emma Gleeson competing in the Girls U/18 relay championship.  We wish all the athletes the very best of luck. 

Congratulations to this week’s winner Michael Moriarty and Rosie Cleere.  Many thanks to everyone being part of the club lotto.  Fundraising is not easy, but the club really appreciates all your support. 

Wednesday July 10 saw the second running of an open track and field competition by Moyne Athletic Club and in much the same vein as last year’s “70^th Anniversary Games” the 2019 edition launched as the “Summer Games” proved to be a tremendous success and was a hit with athletes and spectators alike.

Club athletes, Tipperary athletes and athletes from Dublin, Kildare, Down, Kerry, Cork, London, Limerick, Galway and Clare made it a truly remarkable night of athletics.  Whilst the records for the two main events, ladies 800mts and mens mile were not broken, there was three other meet records set while some individual athletes set new pb’s for their own events.  What more could be expected from a “meet” that is still in its infancy, though by the reaction of the athletes themselves, this is one event that is getting the “thumbs up” and don’t be surprised to see several more seasoned track and field athletes participating next year.

With over 60 athletes participating, from juvenile to master, there was some great competition on show for the spectators who really got behind the athletes and drove them on, particularly down the home straight.  From the moment the games began to the last race everything went according to plan so hat’s off to everyone involved. Continue reading →

The very best of luck to all our club athletes who are taking part in the club’s summer games on Wednesday evening.  Over two hours of athletics in our second ever track and field competition should keep the spectators enthralled.  Upwards of 60 athletes have confirmed their attendance and some great competition will be on offer.  No promotion like this exists within the County so we are encouraging everyone who has an interest in athletics to try to come along to this spectator free event.  Two world record holders, Geraldine Finnegan, North East Runners and Shane Healy, Metro St. Brigid’s have confirmed their attendance and with an expected attack on the 4-minute mile from the likes of Kevin Kelly, St. Cocoa’s, Dara Fitzgibbon, Donore and Rory Chesser, Ennis Track who will all be pushed hard by more top class entries we are guaranteed some fantastic racing.  Iseult O’Donnell, Raheny Shamrocks and Annette Quaid, Leevale are the headline athletes in the Ladies 800mts while the men’s 400mts is proving to be a huge attraction with two heats already confirmed.  Certainly, a night not to be missed.

Well done to Sarah McGinley on representing the club at Day 1 of the All Ireland Track & Field Championships in Tullamore last weekend.  Sarah competed in the U/12 Shot and recorded a throw of 6.06mts to finish 15^th overall. 

This coming weekend sees the continuation of these championships and again it is great to see the club represented with Katie Bergin (100mts, 200mts), Jack Hickey (100mts, 200ms, 400mts), Dylan McLoughlin (1,500) and Sean Burke (200, 400) all donning the green and gold singlet in what is sure to be such a competitive weekend of athletics.  The best of luck to all. 

We had 3 athletes competing for the club in the Junior Track and Field championships in Tullamore on Saturday.  Dylan McLaughlin ran in the Junior Men’s 1,500mts where he finished 11th in the final in 4:27.58. In the Junior Women’s 200mts, Katie Bergin finished 4th in Heat 1 in 27.16, just missing out on the Final by 300’s of a second.  Sean Burke also competed in the Junior Mens 200m where he finished 5th in his heat in 25.37. Well done to these athletes who represented the club proudly at a national level which is a wonderful achievement.

The club had several athletes competing in the Dundrum 10k and Cahir Half Marathon.  Success came to Louise & Angela Fogarty in the Relay event in Dundrum, Nathan Bowe the winner of the Junior 5k in Dundrum and Sharon Cantwell a winner in the Mixed Relay at the Cahir Half Marathon.  Other athletes to post good times were Patrick Bowe, Brian Carroll, Sharon Kiely, Eileen Hackett, Pauline O’Connell, Frances Long and Patricia Ryan.  Well done to everyone. 

Well done to Ella McGinley who was confirmed as winning a bronze medal in the Girls U/9 Turbo Javelin with a throw of 7.80mts at the recent Munster Juvenile “B” Track & Field Competition.