The week’s racing started on Wednesday evening with the annual running of the 5k and 10k editions of the Run in the Dark in Dublin’s Docklands. Why the organisers continue to persist with the two distances side by side is anyone’s guess, but the event continues to have more than its fair share of critics and by all accounts continues to be poorly organised. This year the 10k runners ploughed into the back of the 5k walkers around the Eastlink Bridge. In addition, the races were delayed by more than 20 minutes (some accounts indicated that the 5k was some 40 minutes late) because of continuing traffic, whilst the heavens opened on the runners standing in the cold waiting for the races to start. This seems to happen every year too.
Despite the torrential rain and the quirkiness of the 10k course, with its weaving around the quays on both sides of the river, our leading runner actually recorded a PB for both 5k and 10k in the same race. Maurice Kelter held himself back in the race as he was going to run in the Gap of Dunloe marathon at the weekend (of which more below) and could have possibly won the event if he had thrown caution to the wind. Maurice’s PB time was 35:46 for 4th place. In a field of nearly 3,000 runners, he was followed by Adam Flanagan who did not enjoy himself as much, but still did well (6th in 36:26). TJ Bourke was next (33rd in 39:45), followed by Luke Davis (35th in 39:37), Darran Lovely (37th with the same time, coming back from injury), Niall Murphy (83rd in 41:15), Eoin Farrell, back from a long absence (108th in 42:26), Luke Haran (174th in 43:31), Aine Kenny (196th and 14th in 44:08), Michael Fitzsimons (214th in 45:38), Aisling O’Connor (292nd and 27th in 45:00), Aine Crotty (500th and 43rd in 49:12) and Sharon Woods (885th and 110th in 51:01).
We had at least 4 runners in the 2,737-strong 5k. Zlatko Kulic was our first runner home, placing 13th in 18:47, followed by Steven Walker, coming back from injury, who ran 20:42 for 49th. Antonios Gkogkakis was next (21:03 for 65th), followed by Paul F. Kelly (356th in 25:55).
The weekend was chock full of racing, starting with the BHAA Irish Life combined 6k XC race in Santry demesne, celebrating the 40 years of the organisation’s history (it was the entity behind the original Dublin marathon). Ex-Crusaders coach and well-known journalist, Lindie Naughton, has produced a history of the BHAA which was on sale at the event and which was also given as a prize to some of the winners.
The race took place on a cold and crisp Saturday morning in muddy conditions, but, by all accounts, the course is in slightly better shape than it was for the Dublin seniors, much of which it covered. Of the 216 competitors in the race, the club fielded no fewer than 23 runners, more than 10% of the field. In the women’s race, which was won in 24:22 by Ciara Durkan, the Skerries international athlete who has recently been training with the club, our runners did us proud. Adrienne Jordan placed 2nd (and 58th) in 24:47, followed by Alma Hanevy who took 3rd place (and 70th) in 25:49. Rachael Yorke was next (105th and 9th) in 27:19, followed by Aoife O’Connell (nee Quigley) making a welcome return to the racing scene after recently giving birth to her second child (135th and 18th in 29:28). Indeed, Aoife picked up a prize for placing 3rd F35. Aoife was followed by Louise Yorke, another absentee from recent racing, who placed 197th and 38th in 35:49.
The men’s race saw men’s club captain Michael Kiely lead our contingent home in 7th place (21:21), and he was followed by John Mulvihill (18th in 22:19), Brian Hyland (21st in 22:39) and Jason Kehoe with a super run, picking up a few scalps on the last of the 4 laps (23rd in 22:47). Jason finished just ahead of Rob Cross (24th in 22:51) who also finished 1st M45. Rob was just ahead of Michael Wycherley (30th in 23:07), who picked up 2nd M45 place. Frank Hague for once got the better of Joe McDermott, with Frank placing 31st in 23:10 and Joe 32nd in 23:19. Next came Michael O’Conor (34th in 23:29), followed by a flying John Healy who won his M60 age category in a time of 24:14 (for 44th place). Tom Bradley was just behind John (45th in 24:16) and inches ahead of Joe Walsh (46th in 24:17). The remaining runners were led home by Eddie Nugent (56th in 24:41 and 5th M45), followed by Michael Maughan (79th in 26:16), Brendan Glynn (124th in 28:35), Robbie Moore (127th in 28:44), Neil Brown (130th in 28:54) and Gian Piero Allerta (139th in 29:56).
We had several runners in the Run the Line Trail run in the Dublin Mountains on Saturday morning and the “short course” event of approx. 12k with its elevation gain of some 455m was won by John McAuley in a time of 58:32. In a field of 416 runners, Warren Swords finished in 2nd place in a time of 58:44 and he was followed by Dave Carter (31st in 69:31), Phil Sykes (114th in 82:55) and Olwyn Dunne (131st and 23rd) in 84:50, who also finished in 2nd place in her age category.
Also, on Saturday, we had at least 2 runners in the Tollymore Trail Runs in the Mourne Mountains. Niamh Aspell ran the marathon distance placing 3rd in the women’s race in 3:36, whilst Paul O’Meara took on the 60k with its elevation gain of nearly 1,500m and placed 4th overall in 5:26. The results have yet to be published and, when they are, the report will be updated.
On Sunday, as mentioned above, Maurice Kelter took part in the Gap of Dunloe marathon, treating the challenging but highly scenic race as a training run. In fact, he ran his 2nd fastest marathon in 3:08:26, placing 2nd overall. Further afield, members will be interested to hear that Berlin residents Stephen Moore and Lydia Bigley, the Dublin Front Runner who trained with us, ran in a couple of events there on Saturday. Lydia improved on her 5k PB by over a minute (two weeks after the Dublin marathon) in 21:25, placing 3rd woman home in the Berlin Grunewald Run, whilst Stephen ran the marathon element of the same event, placing 2nd in 2:43:59.
Then, on Sunday, we saw the return of the Women’s Meet and Train league, with many thanks to memebers of the club who were instrumental in its revival. The season will consist of 4 races of about 2 miles in length, the first one having taken place on Sunday in Dunboyne’s Cow Park, which will be the venue for the national Novices in December, so a good opportunity for runners to check it out. As the name suggests, although the course is not particularly hilly, it does enjoy a lot of mud and the ground will have been particularly mucky after the recent heavy rains the region has been experiencing. We had 23 plucky women in the first event which had a field of 138 runners, with 3 placing in the top 10. Maura Mahoney led our contingent home in 3rd place, followed by Sarah Lyons (6th) and Serena Moloney (7th). A few places back came Aine Kenny in 15th, followed by Ciara Lynch (16th) and Fiona Shine (19th). The next group was led across the line by Maria del Carmen Jimenez Campos (26th), followed by Kate Murray (32nd), Darina Scully (36th), Emer Kenny (45th), Olwyn Dunne (48th), Laura O’Malley (49th), Marie Theresa Murphy, making a welcome return (50th), Tanja Narancic (54th) and Anna Shine (58th). Next came Geraldine Clements (64th), followed by newcomer Marta Imaz (75th), Carina Davidson just behind (76th), and Carina was followed by another newcomer, Natalie McEvoy (95th), Mary Dolan (111th), Deirdre Kennedy (115th), Mairead Cashman (123rd) and Maureen McGinley (125th). It looks like we are well-placed as a club going into the next round, with Crusaders A team in first place (48 points), just one point ahead of Sportsworld A.
With one or two exceptions, the parkruns on Saturday morning saw lower numbers than usual, probably because of the cold weather. It did not, however, prevent Sean Tobin, one of Ireland’s premier international track athletes, taking on Malahide and recording one of the fastest ever parkruns in Ireland with a time of 14:19.
We had a couple of first finishers at least. Caroline Crowley took on the Royal Canal run in Kilcock where she placed 5th overall in 19:44, whilst Esther Requena Ferri ran in Fairview once again where she placed 12th overall in 22:03. In the same event, Sarah Lyons picked up 18th spot overall, 3rd female finisher, in 23:02. Elsewhere, there was also a podium finish for Tom Conlon in Sligo where he placed 2nd in 20:03. Kenan Furlong was our leading runner in Poolbeg where he placed 4th in 18:49 and he was followed by John Lohan (18th in 20:38), Mark Swan (23rd in 21:07), David O’Donnell (28th in 21:28), Niall O’Connell, back in his runners (37th in 22:16), Tara Murphy (69th and 7th in 24:25), Sharon Woods (71st and 8th in 24:33), Mari Hansen (73rd and 9th in 24:41), Aine Kenny (74th and 10th in 21:44), Cliodhna O’Reilly (106th and 27th in 28:24), Mairin Shine (113th and 29th in 29:00), Fiona Shine (114th and 30th in 29:04), Anna Shine (115th and 31st in 29:06) and Karla Woods (120th and 35th in 29:24). There was also a 4th place for Barry O’Mahony in Cabinteely where he ran 19:45, whilst Brian McGuckin ran once again in Brickfields further improving his time to 20:58 and 5th place as he returns from injury. Mairead Cashman (74th and 26th in 31:52) and Lisa Shine (75th and 27th in 31:53) ran in Glen River Park in Cork, whilst Paul (76th in 27:27) and Aoife Kelly (118th and 38th in 33:11) ran in Poppintree. Helena O’Keeffe placed 148th and 53rd in 30:40 in Tralee, whilst Darina Scully ran 24:17 for 171st and 19th in Marlay Park. Colm Foley placed 28th in 23:04 in Griffeen Park, whilst Cathal Murphy placed 85th in 27:18 in Kilkenny. Deirdre Kennedy was our lone runner in Malahide where she placed 194th and 38th in 26:43, whilst further afield, Orlaith de Burca ran in Cornwall, where, in a field of 290 she placed 221st and 66th in 31:50. Kris Ryan ran in Paradise Point in Queensland, Australia where she ran 23:00 for 54th and 9th in a field of 232, whilst Andrej Kujikis ran once again in Edinburgh, placing 418th in a field of 546 in a time of 30:30.
Run in the Dark 10k (2983)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Brian Leahy 1 00:34:43
52 Kate O’Malley 1 00:40:22
Crusaders AC runners
4 Maurice Kelter 00:35:46 (PB)
6 Adam Flanagan 00:36:26
33 TJ Bourke 00:39:45
35 Luke Davis 00:39:37
37 Darran Lovely 00:39:37
83 Niall Murphy 00:41:15
108 Eoin Farrell 00:42:26
174 Luke Haran 00:43:31
196 Aine Kenny 00:44:08 (14)
214 Michael Fitzsimons 00:45:38
292 Aisling O’Connor 00:45:00 (27)
500 Aine Crotty 00:49:12 (43)
885 Sharon Woods 00:51:01 (110)
Full results here: https://www.sportsplits.com/races/run-the-dark-dublin-2019/
Run in the Dark 5k (2737)
Overall place Name Chiptime
1 Emmet Jennings 1 00:15:00
12 Irena Stozek 1 00:18:46
Crusaders AC runners
13 Zlatko Kulic 00:18:47
49 Steven Walker 00:20:42
65 Antonios Gkogkakis 00:21:03
356 Paul F. Kelly 00:25:55
Full results here: https://www.sportsplits.com/races/run-the-dark-dublin-2019/
BHAA Irish Life mixed 6k (216)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Sean Doran 1 00:20:42
50 Ciara Durkan 1 00:24:22
Crusaders AC runners
7 Michael Kiely 00:21:21
18 John Mulvihill 00:22:19
21 Brian Hyland 00:22:39
23 Jason Kehoe 00:22:47
24 Rob Cross 00:22:51
30 Michael Wycherley 00:23:07
31 Frank Hague 00:23:10
32 Joe McDermott 00:23:19
34 Michael O’Conor 00:23:29
44 John Healy 00:24:14
45 Tomas Bradley 00:24:16
46 Joe Walsh 00:24:17
56 Eddie Nugent 00:24:41
58 Adrienne Jordan 00:24:47 (2)
70 Alma Hanevy 00:25:49 (3)
79 Michael Maughan 00:26:16
105 Rachael Yorke 00:27:19 (9)
124 Brendan Glynn 00:28:35
127 Robbie Moore 00:28:44
130 Neil Brown 00:28:54
135 Aoife O’Connell 00:29:28 (18)
139 Gian Piero Allerta 00:29:56
197 Louise Yorke 00:31:49 (38)
Full results here: https://bhaa.ie/race/irish-life-6km-2019/
Run the Line short course (416)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 John McAuley 1 00:58:32
9 Sonya McConnon 1 01:02:46
Crusaders AC runners
1 John McAuley 00:58:32
2 Warren Swords 00:58:44
31 Dave Carter 01:09:31
114 Phil Sykes 01:22:55
131 Olwyn Dunne 01:24:50 (23)
Full results here: https://www.popupraces.ie/race/run-the-line-2019/
Ladies Meet & Train (138)
Overall place Name Guntime
1Lorna Quinn 00:14:15
Crusaders AC runners
3 Maura Mahoney 00:14:41
6 Sarah Lyons 00:14:47
7 Serena Moloney 00:14:48
15 Aine Kenny 00:15:07
16 Ciara Lynch 00:15:08
19 Fiona Shine 00:15:17
26 Maria del Carmen Jimenez Campos 00:15:52
32 Kate Murray 00:16:10
36 Darina Scully 00:16:22
45 Emer Kenny 00:16:51
48 Olwyn Dunne 00:16:54
49 Laura O'Malley 00:16:55
50 Marie Theresa Murphy 00:16:57
54 Tanja Narancic 00:17:06
58 Anna Shine 00:17:10
64 Geraldine Clements 00:17:21
75 Marta Imaz 00:17:42
76 Carina Davidson 0:17:43
95 Natalie McEvoy 00:18:32
111 Mary Dolan 00:19:09
115 Deirdre Kennedy 00:19:35
123 Mairead Cashman 00:20:08
125 Maureen McGinley 00:20:42
Tollymore Trail Ultra ()
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1
Crusaders AC runner
Full results here:
Tollymore Trail Marathon ()
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1
Crusaders AC runner
Full results here:
Malahide Parkrun #367 (377)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Sean Tobin 1 00:14:19
12 Iseult O’Donnell 1 00:17:25
Crusaders AC runner
194 Deirdre Kennedy 00:26:43 (38)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/malahide...
Griffeen Parkrun #336 (141)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Richard Bruce 1 00:18:55
33 Agnieszka Prycinska 1 00:23:46
Crusaders AC runner
28 Colm Foley 00:23:04
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/griffeen...
Kilkenny Parkrun #262 (190)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 James Kelly 1 00:17:47
11 Lucinda Gahan 1 00:20:45
Crusaders AC runner
85 Cathal Murphy 00:27:18
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/kilkenny...
Marlay Parkrun #328 (562)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 unknown 1 00:15:19
13 Catherina McKiernan 1 00:18:23
Crusaders AC runner
171 Darina Scully 00:24:17 (19)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/marlay/r...
Poolbeg Parkrun #117 (150)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 John Higgins 1 00:17:05
31 Fiona Claffey 1 00:21:44
Crusaders AC runners
4 Kenan Furlong 00:18:49
18 John Lohan 00:20:38
23 Mark Swan 00:21:07
28 David O’Donnell 00:21:28
37 Niall O’Connell 00:22:16
69 Tara Murphy 00:24:25 (7)
71 Sharon Woods 00:24:33 (8)
73 Mari Hansen 00:24:41 (9)
74 Aine Kenny 00:21:44 (10)
106 Cliodhna O’Reilly 00:28:24 (27)
113 Mairin Shine 00:29:00 (29)
114 Fiona Shine 00:29:04 (30)
115 Anna Shine 00:29:06 (31)
120 Karla Woods 00:29:24 (35)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/poolbeg/...
Sligo Parkrun #248 (104)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Ryan Owen 1 00:17:25
11 Ann McNamara 1 00:21:43
Crusaders AC runner
2 Tom Conlon 00:20:03
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/sligo/re...
Poppintree Parkrun #261 (155)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Callum Simpson 1 00:16:28
24 Mairead Doherty 1 00:21:32
Crusaders AC runners
76 Paul F. Kelly 00:27:27
118 Aoife Kelly 00:33:11 (38)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/poppintree/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=261
Tralee Parkrun #254 (269)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 James Daley 1 00:17:37
22 Sheila King 1 00:22:04
Crusaders AC runner
148 Helena O’Keeffe 00:30:40 (53)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/tralee/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=254
Brickfields Parkrun #96 (80)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Wesley Harrison 1 00:18:10
3 Niamh Clifford 1 00:19:30
Crusaders AC runner
5 Brian McGuckin 00:20:58
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/brickfields/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=96
Glen River Parkrun #52 (94)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 John Longan 1 00:18:24
14 Siobhan Holland 1 00:22:48
Crusaders AC runners
74 Mairead Cashman 00:31:52 (26)
75 Lisa Shine 00:31:53 (27)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/glenrive...
Royal Canal Kilcock Parkrun #32 (133)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Conor Devaney 1 00:18:34
5 Caroline Crowley 1 00:19:44
Crusaders AC runner
5 Caroline Crowley 00:19:44 (1)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/royalcan...
Cabinteely Parkrun #240 (144)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Shane Warner 1 00:19:01
17 Joanne Ryan 1 00:22:15
Crusaders AC runner
4 Barry O’Mahony 1 00:19:45
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/cabinteely/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=240
Fairview Parkrun #120 (120)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Nicholas Twomey 1 00:18:19
12 Esther Requena Ferri 1 00:22:03
Crusaders AC runners
12 Esther Requena Ferri 00:22:03 (1)
18 Sarah Lyons 00:23:02 (3)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/fairview/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=120