Tullamore Harriers Report (March 3)

National Senior Indoor Championships Abbottstown

At the National Senior Indoor Championships held in Abbotstown at the weekend there was a packed house on the Sunday to see some of Ireland’s best athletic prospects.

Nadine Donegan continued her good form at the weekend as she qualified for the final of the 1500m. In the final of the 1500m it was clear from the gun that the tactics employed by the pack weren’t going to suit Nadine with the first 200m jogged in 45s. Things only picked up slightly in the following laps and when the attacks finally came Nadine got stuck in and tried to hang on to the lead pack. Nadines efforts saw her finishing 7th.

In the Men’s 800m, Mark Milner found himself in a heat with Mark English on Saturday. With only the winner and the four fastest qualifying for the final Mark Milner had to push the pace from the gun to give himself every opportunity of making the final. This he did with ease and looked comfortable running 1.53. In the final on Sunday afternoon Mark sat in as Zak Curran set a blistering early pace. Mark made his move with a lap to go and was up to fourth place and closed up on third.

In turn, then he was passed by a couple of athletes as they made their push for the finish line. In the final straight Mark pushed all the way to the line and found himself in fifth place as he crossed it in 1.52. Not a bad return for a nineteen-year-old.

Katelyn Farrelly and Aaron Keane made there debut in the senior ranks today competing with the best in Irish senior athletics. Katelyn in the women’s long jump started with three consistent jumps to make it to the last 8. In her next 3 jumps her best of 544cm placed her 8th coming into her final jump and nailed a perfect jump which no doubt would have moved her up 3-4 places but then got the dreaded red flag for a slight foul on the board. Happy with a good finish Katelyn will use the positives for her U18 national championships in four weeks time.

Aaron Keane, in one of the toughest tasks of the day, the men’s 400 where the six fastest times from all seven heats qualifying
for the final on Sunday, Aaron ran a solid race in his heat to finish second with 50:65 and  12th overall. A great run by Aaron considering his leaving cert is not far around the corner and constant studying is his priority at the moment. No doubt the experience of different surroundings of a higher class field and there confidence to compete against Ireland’s top athletes will assist both Katelyn and Aaron in there future athletic endeavours.

Patrick Heffernan our senior sprint hurdler gave an encouraging performance in both his heat and final in the 60m Hurdles. Comfortably taken second place in his heat Patrick ensured a good lane for the final. Finishing 7th overall in the final with 8:80secs Patrick will feel this one slipped a little from him after an explosive start and level with the leaders he heavily clashed the first hurdle to take away from rhythm and tempo and it was a hard battle from there to the finish line. Well done Patrick, keep up the great work.

Mangan in Action

At the weekend the Fort Hays State men's track and field team travelled to Pittsburg, Kansas to take part in the MIAA Indoor Championships.

Aaron Mangan as part of the team posted the fasted time in preliminary round of the 800m run, crossing the line in 1:53.60 to advance to the final. In the final, Aaron finished fourth and ran 1.54 in a tactical race.

Fixtures

Sun March 1 Sean Lowry 5k – Birr AC
Sun March 15 Offaly 5k Road Race Series Round 1 – Tullamore Harriers AC
Sun March 22 Offaly 5k Road Race Series Round 2 – Naomh Ciaran AC, Castlejordan

A list of AAI-licensed fixtures is available on www.athleticsireland.ie 

Tullamore Harriers Couch to 5K 2020

Well guys and girls you are over half way through the Tullamore Harriers Couch to 5k programme. Well done to you all for your efforts each week and while you may not feel the improvement yet, you really are making progress. So dig deep now, take it week by week and before you know it you will be crossing the line AFTER you complete the 5k. For those who may have missed a week or a few sessions, now is the time to get back and finish it through. See you there Monday and Wednesday evenings at 6.30pm.

Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon

The 2020 Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon is still open for registration. As always, it is on the last Saturday in August - so next year it will be August 29. Don't make the mistake like so many last year who (despite our warning!) didn't get in before sell out. Register here:
www.register.primoevents.com

Training

Training for adults every Tuesday and Thursday at 6.30pm and Sunday at 8.00am except on race days.  New members always welcome. Please contact Leslie Buckley 087-6130971 or Anna Hyland Guilfoyle 086-8248928 or any club member. Full details regarding Juvenile training on tullamore.com