Niall Murphy, Mark Hanrahan and Oisin Spillane.
A very busy weekend has just gone with several athletics competitions being held all around the country.
By Victor Fleming O’Loughlin
In Ennis, the Matt O’Connor memorial open sports day was hosted by the Marian Athletics club. Athletes as young as the age of eight competed in sprint, distance and relay events while senior competitions included the weight for distance. Ennis Track’s Rachel Akers made an appearance at the event fresh from triple Gold at European Masters and took top place in the women’s senior weight for distance. A full set of results can be found on the Marian Athletics Club facebook page.
In the National IUAA track and field championships in Belfast, Ennis Track took home three medals. Oisin Spillane won gold in the steeplechase, while Mark Hanrahan won silver in the men’s 5000m and Niall Murphy took the bronze in the men’s 1500m race. Leanne Healy of Marian Athletics Club took home in the javelin with a throw of 41.37m.
In TUS Athlone the National Juvenile Indoor Championships were held with hundreds of juvenile athletes travelling from all over Ireland to take part in the event. The event saw huge success for Clare athletes travelling up for the three day event. Starting with the U13s 600m race, Ennis Track AC’s Ailbhe O’Neill won first place. Eoin Keane would go on to bring home Ennis Track AC’s second gold medal of the day in the boys U13 long jump. In the U16s 1500m race, Ennis Track AC’s Sophie Maher took top prize with Fergus AC’s Emma Haugh taking the place prize. Gemma Galvin of Ennis Track AC would go on to bring home not one but two gold medals for the townies in the U18s 1500m race and the U18s 800m race. While Ms. Galvin would win gold in the U18s category for the 800m race, the gold for the U16s category went to Faye Mannion, also of Ennis Track AC. Aisling Kelly of Ennis Track AC would go on to win silver in the U15s category.
On 14 April 2024, The Great Ennis 10K, sponsored by Zimmer Biomet, will take place at 11:00 am in Lee’s Road, Ennis. A 5K option is also available. A children’s 2K event will also be happening on the same day at 09:30 am in Lee’s Road, Ennis.
