From Thursday next July 16th to 19th the European Under-23 Championships take place in Lithuania and two athletes from Waterford are on the Irish team. Kelly Proper from Ferrybank AC competes in the Long Jump and 4×100 metres relay and David McCarthy, West Waterford AC goes in the 5000 metres.
McCarthy will be in action on the opening evening (Thursday) of the championships in the final of the 5000 metres and he goes into that final with the fastest time of all the competitors this year of 13 minutes 42.11 seconds. A Turkish athlete has a time of 13.26 and a French athlete has a time of 13.38 last year but the Ballinamult man is capable of running times similar to these.
With the Providence College student having had such a fantastic season in the USA and a fine run over 3000 metres in Belgium recently with a personal best, there’s no reason why he can’t give a very good account of himself, even allowing for the fact that the competition he’s up against will be the stiffest he has faced so far in his career. If he can once again produce a big performance he may have a very big say in the destination of the medals.
Kelly Proper will go in the qualifying round of the Long Jump on the afternoon of Day 3 and she goes into the competition with the 7th longest jump this season of 6.44 metres, the longest being 6.67 metres which is ahead of Kelly’s best ever jump of 6.51 metres outdoors last August and her 6.59 indoors. However, Kelly is such a competitive athlete she is expected to make the final and could make her presence very much felt on the last day of the championships when she also runs on the Irish Relay team. We wish our two very worthy representatives all the best.
Schools International
On Saturday July 18th the Schools International Intermediate Track and Field meeting is on in Antrim and four athletes from Waterford Schools are on the Irish selection, namely: Zoe Scanlon, Ard Scoil na nDeise; Lisa Houlihan and Kate Veale, St Augustine’s College, and Megan Kiely, Ursuline.
All-Ireland Juveniles in Tullamore
On Saturday and Sunday next another two days of the All Ireland Juvenile Championships will be staged and will all Waterford clubs please note that the original programme has been reversed.
On Saturday the inter club and county relays go ahead and on Sunday the individual events. The first events on Saturday at 10am are the Girls u18 4×300 m Relays followed by the Boys 4×400 metres and on Sunday at 10am the girls U14 1500 metres is followed by the boys U14 1500m; also at 10am are the Girls U16 Hammer and Boys U19 Long Jump. Check-in for the early events both days is 9.30am. Full programme is with all clubs and also on the Athletics Ireland website.
On Saturday, July 25th the All-Ireland Juvenile Combined Events are in Tullamore and on Sunday the 26th the (B) juveniles are also in Tullamore. Another fixture on Sunday, July 26th is the Munster Masters in Castleisland, Co Kerry. Starting on July 23rd the European Juniors are in Serbia with Waterford athletes on the Irish team.
Waterford athletes set
records in Tullamore
Last weekend at the All-Ireland Juvenile Championships in Tullamore there were lots of medal winners from Waterford clubs and these included West Waterford, Ferrybank, Tramore, KCK and Waterford AC.
Ferrybank AC’s Ciara Giles Doran in the under-15 Long Jump set a new record of 5.54 metres and she also won the 250m hurdles, again setting a new record of 34.98 beating a very long standing mark.
Also for Ferrybank, Tom Whelan in the U15 Shot Putt produced a record throw of 14. 55 metres, while Cormac McCann won the under-12 60 metres in 8.37 seconds and Cara Kennedy took gold in the u 18 hammer with 42.43 metres.
Tadgh Brennan won the u12 600 metres in 1 minute and 44.38 seconds, while Megan Kiely took golf in the u16 250 metres hurdles in 35.78.
Silver medals went to Megan Kiely, u16 Hurdles; Kitty Walsh, u19 Steeplechase; Sorcha Murphy, u 16 High Jump; April Flynn, u16 250 metres hurdles; Thomas Barr, u18 400 metres hurdles, and a bronze medal was won by Megan Kiely in the u16 High Jump.
For West Waterford there were wins by Lisa Houlihan in the u17 Pole Vault with a new record of 2.85 metres, and her brother Thomas won the u18 Pole Vault, again with a new record of 4.41 metres.
Kate Hickey won the u 15 Discus with a throw of 36.16 metres and Zoe Scanlon took the u17 discus with 36.12 metres. Laurence Houlihan was second in the u16 Pole Vault and Sinead Flynn also had a second in the 600 metres u12.
A bronze medal went to Katie Laffan in the u17 Pole Vault, while for Tramore AC Anna Rogers won the u15 80 metres Hurdles in 12 37 seconds.
KCK’s John Halley was second in the u15 100 metres and Waterford AC’s Siobhan Heylin was 2nd in the Steeplechase u17.
Piltown Road Race
This Friday July 17th there’s a 10 km road race in Piltown at 7.30pm; it’s the third in the Outfiield Sports series promoted by Carrick-on-Suir Road Runners. The location is Kildalton College, and Morris Oil are the sponsors.
Bralitis again in
Glaxo Smithkline 5 miles
On Friday last in Dungarvan the Annual Glaxo Smithkline 5 miles road race, another in the Ger Wyley Sports Summer Series, attracted the biggest entry yet recorded in the series with a total of 312 runners and 70 walkers.
Sandis Bralitis was once again the impressive winner in a time of 24 minutes 59 seconds. His West Waterford clubmate Ravis Zakis was second in 25.28 and Philip Harty was back in top form in third in 25.29.
Angela McCann from Clonmel was the Ladies winner in 30.36. Corina Walsh was second in 31.11 and Keely Tideswell, Clonmel was third in 31.39.
First man over 40: Martin O’Keeffe, Youghal; o45 Noel Curtin, do; o50 Larry Leacy St Joseph’s; o55 Joe Gough, West Waterford; o 60 TJ O’Loughlin, Clonmel; Junior: Ciaran Lane, West Waterford; First Lady o 35 Diane Behan, Waterford; o40 Ann Dunford, West Waterford; o45 Clare Fowler, Waterford; 050 Kathleen Kennedy, Waterford; o55 Hillary Collins, Coolquill; Junior Tara Rhatigan, UCC. First from Glaxo Smithkline were Dzintars Klava and Camille Mulhearne.
The proceeds went to the Helvick branch of the RNLI.
