Marathon mania as athletes go for 10 in 10

Sixmilebridge will be gripped in marathon mania next week when the village becomes home to an elite group of athletes, who plan to run 10 marathons in just 10 days in a ground-breaking event.
To the uninitiated, long-distance running can be perceived as putting the body through a lot of hardship but for those caught up in the sport, marathon running can become an obsession.
It is that obsession that has driven athletes, some from the UK, Austria, Italy and South Africa, to register their participation in the Sixmilebridge event, the first of its kind in Ireland, which has already generated significant local and international interest.
Athletes will run their first marathon on the same 13.1 mile loop on Thursday, July 4, concluding their marathon mission on Saturday, July 13. The race times are 5pm weekdays and 2pm on the Saturday and Sunday.
Although 35 athletes will run each day, there is a hardcore of 20 athletes, who plan to run all 10. Among them is Roger Briggs, chairman of UK Marathon Club, a legend in marathon running and a veteran of more than some 800 marathons and two Clare athletes, Tom Enright from Sixmilebridge and Quin man Pat O’Keeffe.
An army man, Pat recently completed his 100th marathon at the Limerick City Marathon. He was presented with a gold 100 medal at the conclusion of the Limerick race by the Marathon Club of Ireland.  In fact, the bridge marathon route will pass the doorstep of Pat’s family home at Rossroe.
Tom, from Ashview Drive in Sixmilebridge, has already run 65 marathons and is also one of the organisers. He is thrilled with the response the event has generated.
“It’s a ground-breaking event as far as marathon running in Ireland is concerned. Guys have run multiple marathons but there has never been an event in this country where there is an organised event of 10 marathons in 10 straight days.
“To the best of my knowledge, there is only one other place, that’s in the UK, where you have a similar number of marathons on successive days. From that perspective, it is a unique event for Irish marathon running. It’s a unique event for Sixmilebridge,” he explained.
But how did the Sixmilebridge event captivate such interest, both at home and abroad?
“Through word of mouth, through the marathon community in Ireland and through Facebook,” he believes.
“The event has sold out. Our target was to get 35 people to run each day and we’ve done that.
“Some people will only run the one marathon but there are 20 running all 10. We are very happy with the response,” he says.
“All of the guys involved will have done lot of training and it will be down to bad luck if they don’t complete the 10. It is not an event they’d sign up to and take chances. They have all prepared well and I know that, having spoken with them.
“They are all experienced runners, committed to completing each of the 10 marathons. They are the sort of guys who leave nothing to chance. They will arrive well prepared, he acknowledged.
Some individuals, according to Tom, will run close to three hours each day while others will be at the other end of the spectrum, taking about five hours. What is Tom’s target?
“Fingers crossed, everything will go well for me. I’ll be gutted if I don’t run the 10 but I’m not thinking that way. I’m thinking positively and if I could run the 10 in around four hours each, I’d take that,” he enthuses.
Tom is hoping the inaugural event will achieve a number of objectives, such as raising funds for the local BMOH (Bridge Milers Olympic Harriers) Athletic Club and raising awareness of running within the club and community.
Furthermore, a sizeable donation will be made to the Kilmurry School Building Fund while many of the runners taking part are fundraising for a charity of their own individual choice.
“There is an awful lot of good coming out of this event. The families of 20 runners involved in the 10-day challenge are coming to holiday to Sixmilebridge, which will generate business locally. We’d ask people to be conscious of that and be receptive towards them.
“The club is very appreciative of the support it has received from local people over the last few years. We are not looking for anything in return in this event other than they pass any encouragement they can to the athletes and to be mindful of the fact that there will be people running on the roads.
“I’d ask that they’d be mindful that these guys will be on their feet for 10 marathons and any support and encouragement they can give them would be great.
“We are absolutely delighted that we will have so many role models for running in our community during the event. It is also an occasion for the community to show its support.
“We are very appreciative of the local GAA club for use of their facilities. From day one, the GAA community has been very co-operative and supportive of us. This is a big occasion for the community and I’ve no doubt they will rise to the challenge,” he said.
For the marathon, runners will start from Woodview Heights and travel via Ballysheen, Feenagh, Ardmaclancy, Kilmurry, Rossroe, Rathmore, Ralahine, Deerpark, Hurler’s Cross, Soirse and back to the finishing line at Cappa Lodge, via Feenagh once more.