Ryan claims five medals at indoor championship

The Munster Juvenile U-14 to U-19 Indoor Track and Field Championships were held at the Nenagh Indoor Arena last Saturday and Sunday and Clare athletes started off in winning style with five gold medals on Saturday.
Harriett Flynn, Shannon, was the winner in the U-19 girls 800m, Amy O’Donoghue, Emerald won the girls U-18 800m, Niamh Markham, Ennis Track, the U-17 800m and Derbhile Ryan won both the shot putt and long jump.
It was a particularly successful weekend for Deirbhile, who hails from Clonlara and competes for Nenagh, as she won three gold, one silver and one bronze.
She won the shot with a personal best (PB) (new weight shot 2.75kgs) of 10.96m. She also took her first ever Munster long jump title, with a PB of 4.81m. Her Nenagh Olympic relay team won the 4x200m relay, again a first for the girls.
Sunday saw her take a bronze medal in the hurdles in a new PB, her first hurdles medal since breaking her arm in a fall over a hurdle three years ago. Later on Sunday she came second in the high jump with a jump of 1.45m, somewhat below her best.
Her next competition is the Munster Indoor Schools Championships where she will be representing Gael Cholaiste Luimnigh. After that it will be the All-Ireland Indoors in Maherafelt in Northern Ireland.
On Sunday, the Clare competitors added six gold medals with Paraic McNamara, Marian setting a new championship best in the boys U-15 long jump with a leap of 5.64m and he also captured bronze in both the high jump and 60m. There was a big win for Laura Egan, Kilmihil, in the U-17 1,500m and for Ian Slobody, Kilmihil, in the U-17 800m.
Seamus McMahon, Shannon, took gold in the boys U-16 1,500m walk, Amy O’Donoghue, Emerald, captured another gold on day two, this time in the U-18 1,500m while Harriett Flynn won her second gold medal in the U-19 1,500m.
In all Clare competitors won 11 gold, 12 silver and nine bronze. The 800m heats were first on the track on day one and in the girls U-17, three Clare athletes made it through to the finals, Laura Egan, Kilmihil; Eimear Hillery, Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare, and Niamh Markham, Ennis Track.
In the final, Laura Egan was always in contention along with Niamh Markham who sprinted clear over the final 50m to take the gold medal with the silver going to Laura Egan.
Niamh Markham also captured bronze in the 200m and Eimear Hillery, Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare, for the second year-in-a-row, winning a silver medal in the 1,500m walk.
In the 1,500m on day two Laura Egan sprinted clear with 200m remaining to record a big win with Ciara Mulcaire Ennis Track in fourth spot.
In the girls U-18 800m the All-Ireland cross country champion Amy O’Donoghue, battled it out with Aishling Darcy Ennis Track to take the gold medal with the Ennis Track girl taking the silver medal.
O’Donoghue led for all of the seven laps to take another gold medal, this time in the 1,500m with Rachel Mulcaire, Ennis Track, taking the silver medal. Claudia Loughnane, Marian, came away with a silver medal in the 1,500m U-18 walk.
In the girls U-19, Harriett Flynn, Shannon, the Munster Sports Star Award winner in 2010, led all the way to win in a time of 2.18:69. On day two, Harriett raced away to another big win in the 1,500m with a time of 5.05:40.
In the U-14 grade, Cliodhna Blake, St John’s won a bronze medal in the high jump with a leap of 1.38m. In the girls U-15 there was double gold for Derbhile Ryan, Clonlara and Nenagh AC, in the shot putt and long jump.
In the 1,000m walk Shannon O’Grady, Shannon AC, captured a bronze medal and another Shannon athlete Molly Lynch, in the U-16 800m worked hard on the final lap to take a bronze medal.
In the boys U-14 800m Mark Fennell, St Mary’s, came through a very tough heat and in the final, with one lap remaining, he made a big effort to snatch the bronze medal.
In the boys U-15 Paraic McNamara, Marian, produced a new championship best with a leap of 5.64m in the long jump while in the high jump he again excelled, taking a leap of 1.55m to take a bronze medal. He also won bronze in the 60m dash.
In the boys U-16, on day one, Micheal Moloney Ennis Track was always in contention in the 1,500m final and he came home a good second place in 4.35:00. In the shot putt Eoin Hanrahan Ennis Track captured the silver medal with a throw of 12.34m.
In the 800m U-16 Stephan Rooney, Ennis Track, came through his heat with a good win with Jacob Loughnane, Marian, also making the final. With 600m complete, he went to the front and was looking good for victory. Rooney took the silver medal with Loughnane having to settle for the fourth spot.
In the U-16 1,500m walk Seamus McMahon, Shannon, won the Munster title in 9.18:40.
Ian Slobody, Kilmihil, competed in the U-17 800m and 1,500m. He won the gold Medal in 2.04:30 in the 800m and he was a very good second in 4.17:97 in the 1,500m.
At U-18 level William Flynn, Shannon, competed in three events and he came away with a double silver medal in the 400m and high jump and a bronze medal in the 800m.
Cormac Lynch, Marian, won a bronze medal in the 60m final with a time of 7:51. Mark Boland Marian, in the boys U-19 200m, won a silver medal in 23:90.

RESULTS
Girls U-14
800m: 4. Cliodhna Blake, St John’s (2.47:20).
High jump: 3. Cliodhna Blake, St John’s (1.38m).
U-15
Long jump: 1. Derbhile Ryan, Nenagh (4.76m).
Shot putt: 1. Derbhile Ryan, Nenagh (10.96m).
1000m walk: 3. Shannon O’Grady, Shannon (6.55:9).
U-16
800m: 3. Molly Lynch, Shannon.
1,500m: 4. Siobhan Nestor, Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare (5.30:12); 5. Molly Lynch, Shannon (5.32:55).
U-17
200m: 1. Niamh Markham, Ennis Track (27:51).
800m: 1. Niamh Markham, Ennis Track (2.22:21); 2. Laura Egan, Kilmihil (2.26:47); 4. Eimear Hillery, Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare (2.34:63).
1,500m walk: 2. Eimear Hillery, Kilmurry Ibrickane/North Clare (8.45:32).
1,500m: 1. Laura Egan, Kilmihil (5.10:68); 4. Ciara Mulcaire, Ennis Track.
U-18
800m: 1. Amy O’Donoghue, Emerald (2.16:06); 2. Aishling Darcy, Ennis Track (2.25:56).
1,500m walk: 2. Claudia Loughnane, Marian (7:34).
1,500m: 1. Amy O’Donoghue, Emerald (4.40:06); 2. Rachel
Mulcaire, Ennis Track (5.52:70).
U-19
800m: 1. Harriet Flynn, Shannon (2.18:69).
1,500m: 1. Harriet Flynn, Shannon (5.05:40).

Boys
U-14
800m: 3. Mark Fennell, St Mary’s (2.31:10).
U-15
Long jump: 1. Paraic McNamara, Marian (5.64m).
60m: 3. Paraic McNamara, Marian (8:05).
High jump: 3. Paraic McNamara, Marian (1.55m).
800m: 4. Kevin Mulcaire, Ennis Track (2.25:60).
U-16
800m: 2. Stephan Rooney, Marian (2.21:21); 4. Jacob Loughnane, Marian (2.22.10).
1,500m: 2. Michael Moloney, Ennis Track (4.35:00).
1,500m walk: 1. Seamus McMahon, Shannon (9.18:40).
Shot putt: 2. Eoin Hanrahan, Ennis Track (12.34m).
U-17
800m: 1. Ian Slobody, Kilmihil (2.04:30); 5. Jack Carrigg, Shannon (2.14:9).
1,500m: 2. Ian Slobody, Kilmihil (4.17:97).
U-18
60m: 3. Cormac Lynch, Marian (7:51).
400m: 2. William Flynn, Shannon.
800m: 3. William Flynn, Shannon (2.06:60); 6. Conor Rooney, Ennis Track (2.12:80secs).
High jump: 2. William Flynn, Shannon (1.55m).
4 x 100m relay: 5. Shannon = (1.42:60).
U-19
60m: 5. Mark Boland, Marian (7:51).
200m: 2. Mark Boland, Marian (23:90secs).

Team bronze for Ennis Track at National Cross Country Championships

The Athletics Association of Ireland National Inter-Clubs Cross Country Championships were held in Santry Demense, Dublin on Saturday on an excellent course.
Liam Markham, Ennis Track, running in the junior mens 8,000m, finished fourth and helped Ennis Track to take bronze medals.
Sean Hehir from O’Callaghan’s Mills, running with Rathfarnham AC competed in the senior mens 12,000m and finished eighth while Orla O’Mahoney, Ennis, and Raheny Shamrocks, Dublin, finished twelfth in the senior ladies 8,000m.
In the junior men’s race a big field of athletes went to the start with Ennis Track being led out by Liam Markham. On the first lap he set out his stall along with the hot favourite Shane Quinn, Ferrybank; Kevin Dooney, Raheny and Liam Brady, Tullamore Harriers. With a lap complete these four had moved to the front.
Darragh Lynch, Ennis Track, was in the top 20, Darragh Chesser, Ennis Track, running his first cross country race was in the top 30 along with Aidan Kearney and Kevin Chesser.
Shane Quinn stamped his authority in the third lap and moved away from the rest of the field to cruise through the final two laps and win comfortably.
Kevin Dooney captured the silver medal ahead of Liam Brady with Liam Markham running a very solid race to finish fourth with Darragh Lynch coming from 15th spot to finish eighth followed home by Darragh Chesser, 20th; Aidan Kearney, 26th and Kevin Chesser 32nd.
The inter-club title went to Dundrum, on 47 points from Mullingar Harriers on 55 points and Ennis Track on 58 points.
Ava Hutchinson, Dundrum South Dublin, was a clear winner of the senior ladies where there was a fine performance from Orla O’Mahoney, Raheny Shamrocks and Clare who finished in 12th  spot with another Clare athlete, Ciara Hassett Quin and Rathfarnham AC in 31st position.
In the men’s senior race Joe Sweeney, Dundrum, made all the running with Garry Thornton, Galway City Harriers, and Sean Hehir, Rathfarnham and Clare the only athletes to put him under pressure for the first three laps.
Sweeney won easily in 38:42 from his clubmate Brendan O’Neill and Mick Clohessy, Raheny. Hehir finished in eighth place.