Race Walkers to the fore at National T&F

Mullingar Harriers notes

The National u/20 and u/23 T&F took place in a warm but windy Tullamore last Saturday and Sunday, where Mullingar had three race walkers in action on the Saturday afternoon, each delivering excellent performances on the National stage.

Aisling Lane contested the u/23 women 3,000m walk, which was combined with the corresponding u/20 women race, so the start line was very crowded. With such a busy start line, Aisling took no chances and went out hard from the gun to take the early lead and stay out of trouble, with only one other u/23 athlete trying to go with her. Showing her class and dominance, Aisling kept the pressure on and as the laps unfolded, the gap to the field increased and it wasn’t long before she began lapping some of the back markers. Continuing to push on, Aisling never looked back and powered to a fine win in a time very close to her own Championship Record that she set last year, which was excellent in the windy conditions.

The u/20 men 5,000m walk went out very fast too, as Seamus Clarke (Moy Valley AC) raced to the front, followed closely by Matthew Newall (Castlegar AC). Showing why both have qualified for the World u/20 T&F in Oregan (USA) in August, they set a fierce early pace, so Mullingar’s John Glennon and Daniel Glennon wisely stuck to their own race plans and didn’t try to stay with the leading pair. Always under the vigilant eyes of the judges, John and Daniel turned in excellent performances to finish third and fourth respectively, John in 21:25.52, which is close to his best time for the distance, and Daniel in 22:24.92, once more well under the qualifying standard for the European u/18 T&F in Rieti (Italy), where he has already been selected to compete in two weeks, and showing great form in his final race in preparation for Rieti [GD].

International Selection for Daniel Glennon

A little over a year since he made his International debut, Daniel Glennon gets to wear the green of Ireland again. Last Wednesday (1 July), Athletics Ireland announced the team to compete at the European u/18 T&F Championships in Rieti (Italy) and selected to compete in the 5,000m race walk is our own Daniel Glennon. This is a big step up from his debut at the SIAB Schools International in Derby (England) in July 2025, but Daniel has made terrific progress in his event and is more than able to meet the challenge. This is a great honour for Daniel, his family and Mullingar Harriers and everyone at the Club wishes him the very best of luck in Italy.

Achill Half Marathon

The Achill Half Marathon took place in very strong winds, with driving rain showers, on a challenging course in Mayo last Saturday morning. There was little respite for the over 830 runners who took part in the race, which takes a circular route across the island encountering several sharp inclines. Eight athletes from Mullingar Harriers made the trip west for the event. First home was Paul O’Reilly in a time of 1:27:00. Tommy Byrne battled through the conditions and recorded a fine time of 1:34:30.

Criona Reid was our first woman home in 1:38:59 to place third in her master category. She was followed by Maura Dervin, rewarded with victory in her master category as she posted a time of 1:42:50. Marie Louise Johnston was close behind and finished in a time of 1:43:40, with Joan Hickson completing the course in 1:45:36, followed by Mark Geoghegan (1:51:22) and Jane Creevy (1:54:40) [MO’S].

Clontarf Half Marathon

A huge field of over 4,000 runners took part in the annual Joe Duffy BMW Clontarf Half Marathon last Saturday morning. While the rain stayed off, the swirling wind coming in off the sea set a challenging backdrop, especially in the areas around the Clontarf Promenade. Two runners from Mullingar Harriers took part. Barry White recorded a time of 1:38:41 and Matt Creagh completed the course in 1:47:10 [MO’S].

Clara 5k

The Healthy Offaly 5k series had its latest race in Clara last Sunday morning. Cloudy and overcast, it was a pleasant morning for the circular 5k route through the town and looping around its outskirts on what was described as a stiff but fair challenge for the 300 runners taking part. Mullingar Harriers had eight athletes participating.

There was a notable 1 and 2 in the women’s race where Sharon O’Dowd pulled away from club colleague Orlaith Flanagan to take the win in 18:56, with Orlaith coming in just 15 seconds back in second place with a time of 18:56. Meanwhile in the men’s race, Mullingar Harriers had 3 athletes in contention for the senior race podium places until the final kilometre, with Mark Darby hanging on bravely but just missing out on first place, though still happy with a second place finish in 16:10. James Keegan placed fourth with a time of 17:04, followed shortly after by Alan Crowley in ninth whose time of 17:12 earned him second place in his master category. Enda Seery was next in 17:51, earning fourth place in his master category.

The team of Mark, James, Alan and Enda just missed out on first team by an agonising 3 places, but second club was a notable performance in a strong competition. Eddie Lynch again dominated his master category, winning in a time of 18:34, and Claire Lennon Gavin finished sixth in her master category in a time of 23:58 [MO’S].

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