Bronze for Milner as Offaly athletes win medals at National Senior Championships

OFFALY athletes had a productive weekend at the National Senior Track and Field Championships in Morton Stadium, Santry.

Competitors from Tullamore Harriers and Birr Athletics Club were delighted to win medals in the big events. Mark Milner, a Tullamore Harriers athlete on an athletics scholarship in UCD, provided the highlight as he captured bronze in the fiercely competitive mens 800 metres event.

There was joy also for Birr AC's Ebony Hogan, who once again medalled in the senior womens' weight for distance event. Hogan, a regular visitor to the winners' enclosure, took silver with a best throw of 6.82 metres – behind Dooneen AC's Olga Nedvede who threw 7.21m.

The Tullamore Harriers' 4 x 100m relay team did very well to claim bronze medals. Billy Corrigan, Emmanuel Ilori, Dean Power and Dolapo Kush ran a combined time of 42.10 seconds, coming in third behind Tallaght AC and Clonliffe Harriers, who posted 41.81 and 41.93. They were well clear of the fourth placed Le Cheile AC, who ran 47.07.

The mens' 800 metres is one of the glamour events at all big athletics events and Killeigh man, Milner has been making great progress in recent years.

Two of his Tullamore Harriers' colleagues bowed out in the 800m heats. Chinnie Izuchukwu was fifth in heat one in 1.59.69 – an outstanding juvenile athlete, Izuckukwu opted out of the sport for a few years but has returned and is making good progress.

Ballyfore man Aaron Mangan ran in the same heat as Milner and was not far away. Milner finished second in 1.55.20 to claim one of the two automatic qualification spots and Mangan was hot on his heels in fourth in 1.55.70. Unfortunately that wasn't fast enough for a fastest losers spot – he needed to run 1.53 to get one of those two spots.

In the final, the field went out at a blisteringly hot pace, going through 200m in 25 seconds. Milner bided his time, sitting back in 5th place until 600 metres when he accelerated. He got into third place with 150 metres to go and managed to hold on in a time of 1.48.49. Cillian Kirwan of Raheny Shamrocks was fourth in 1.48.60 while Kildare AC's John Fitzsimons was a clear winner in 1.47.13 and the silver medalist, Harry Purcell of Trim got there in 1.48.04.

Milner recently lowered his personal best to 1.47.22 and has targeted races in August to reduce this further as he bids to move from national standard into international class.

Cappincur man, Barry Mooney, also Tullamore Harriers, ran in the 5,000 metres heats and was 10th in 16.31.77.