Ruth Kelly put in a sprint finish to make up ground to come second, one second behind the evening ladies winner Orla Gormley and about 10 seconds ahead of our own Rachel Morgan who came third. I’m fairly sure Stephanie Bergin ran well on the evening (even if her time is missing from the results atm) and Tara Murphy who cycled to the event ran a steady race. The gents were represented by Stephen Willoughby, Conor Kenny and myself all three of whom could be said to have made it around the course without incident. If i missed anybody please let me know. Full results can be seen on the BHAA website.

The next BHAA event is the 5 Mile Government Services race in Dunboyne on Tuesday May 28th.

No results in yet but today at Leinster Novice Road Race, Gowran our senior women’s team won gold for the club and county and the men’s team took bronze.

Well done All

Dublin Graded

800M
8 138 Dilworth, Orna Sportsworld A.C. 2.45.12

3000M

12 (A) 177 Kilgannon, Phil Sportsworld A.C. 9.01.8H
14 (A) 182 Duffy, Paul Sportsworld A.C. 9.10.9H
4 (B) 180 Murran, Gareth Sportsworld A.C. 9.31.4H
6 (B) 189 Finlay, Gavin Sportsworld A.C. 9.48.3H

Marlay Park Run

4 Gareth MURRAN 17:58 SM30-34 72.17 % M 4 First Timer! 3
12 Jean WILSON 19:09 VW35-39 78.33 % F 1 Sportsworld First Timer! 1
52 Paul CASSIDY 21:51 VM45-49 66.97 % M 51 Sportsworld PB stays at 00:21:04 5
80 Stephen WILLOUGHBY 23:18 VM45-49 62.80 % M 72 Sportsworld PB stays at 00:21:34 6
192 Tony MC GANN 27:19 VM60-64 60.28 % M 134 Sportsworld PB stays at 00:26:40 4
Mary Finn ?

Tallaght 5K

5 Phil Kilgannon Sportsworld M MS 413 16:07
7 Paul Duffy Sportsworld M MS 228 16:15
9 Gareth Murran Sportsworld M MS 419 16:55
78 Lynne Merriman Sportsworld F FS 222 25:53

Limerick Runs

6M

1630 Stephen Willoughby Male 101 M45+ 8 Sportsworld 00:43:23 114 00:43:11 155
3510 Conor Kenny Male 230 M55+ 3 Sportsworld RC 00:46:20 257 00:46:14 368

1/2 Marathon

7601 Kieran Foley Male 19 M45+ 1 Sportsworld 01:23:22 20 01:23:20 20
2892 Will Greensmyth Male 64 MOPEN 24 Sportsworld 01:31:29 69 01:31:27 72
2371 Aideen Downes Female 78 F45+ 7 Sportsworld 01:49:38 470 01:48:40 458
4422 Orna Dilworth Female 20 FOPEN 12 Sportsworld Terenure 01:39:57 207 01:39:38 206
4421 Alan Dignam Male 431 M45+ 55 Sportsworld Terenure 01:50:37 527 01:49:40 514

Marathon

8436 Damian Kelly Male 10 M35+ 3 sportsworld 00:38:07 6 01:22:38 6 01:59:43 6 02:54:21 10 02:54:18 10

Dublin Athletic County Board Graded T&F Meets.

What?

This presents a unique opportunity for club runners young and old with only a passing interest in the sport to test themselves against other club members of their own ability from around Ireland, but predominantly from Dublin clubs.

Who can compete?

Absolutely anyone of any age, race, colour or religion with any interest in athletics can compete.

Is there an entry fee?

The Dublin Athletic County Board has to live on something so yes there is an entry fee. You can pay separately on the night for one night (I think €8) where you get a temporary number. Better still you can register for the series at a reduced rate per evening (I think €45), hereby getting one number which you must bring with you to each subsequent evening.

Are there medals/cash prizes?

With the exception of the Dublin County Championship (Sat June 20th), these are non – competitive events. All you will gain is valuable experience. And a time/distance/height that is universally accepted and comparable to an athlete in Rio de Janeiro, Hong Kong or Denmark. You can’t make such assertions with road or cross country events as the distances are approximate and terrains differ.
However there are ‘Development’ races incorporated into some evenings. These are designed to improve the standard of Irish athletics and there are cash prizes for these.

Who will I be pitted against?

You will be against competitors at your level as each event is ‘graded’. Grades range from grade A to grade D. Yes grade A or development races can contain some of Ireland’s greatest current competitors, but the other grades certainly do not. Grade D typically contains Master (over 40) athletes.
Each grade has an approximate standard allocated to it for each event. For example senior mens 3000m – 9:00.00 is the grade A standard (72s all the way around). If you feel that you are this fit, then this is your race. Otherwise you can go into grade B (which maybe 10 mins or whatever), or the next grade down (which could be 11 mins). This prevents any mismatches.
You’ll know from your sessions or road races what shape you’re in. Provided you are in the correct race based on these guidelines, you won’t be out of your dept. It is important that you’re in the correct race. Too high a grade and you’ll get isolated and be racing against the clock (which you could do in training on your own). Too low a grade and you’ll win too easily, gain nothing from the evening; and this is disrespectful to your fellow competitors in that race. If you’re in the correct grade, you will perform to the best of your current ability.

What sort of events have they?

On each evening there are typically 3 track events and 3 field ones. Not all of the 19 T&F events are catered for time reasons, there’s only so much that you can get done in 2 hours. So no decathlon! Hurdles or steeplechase events are rarely laid out either. Remember the organisers are amateur people like you or I who work a day job and are giving up their free time (just like BHAA); and while some may come across as being rude and short tempered they’re grand if you comply with them.
For track there is one sprint, middle distance and long distance event each evening, in that order and with 4 grades in each for both sexes. For field there are generally one or two jump/vaults and one or two throwing events per evening.

Where & when?

There are 8 meets in total, typically every 2 wks. The fixtures are listed below. There is also the Dublin County Championship (held on a separate Saturday evening), so 9 meets really. Each meet is held of a Wednesday evening from 19.00 to 21.00 at 2 different venues alternating between Morton Stadium, Santry; and Irishtown Stadium, Ringsend.

Transport?

Morton Stadium is on the way out to the airport, so the 16A, 33s, 746 or any of the Swords or Rush busses (41s) will do from the city centre or southside. Irishtown is a bit trickier to find as it’s hidden off the main Ringsend – Sandymout Rd, but it’s 800m from Ringsend Dublin Bus terminus where the 77, 50 and 56A end (most busses end there); but the 2 and 3 leave you outside.

Why?

Mainly for 2 reasons – experience and personal pride. You can learn more on one evening than you ever would watching the Olympics. Especially if you enter a few events on the one evening, this is advisable. If you try many events you may get to discover your niche. While we are a distance running club mainly for road and cross country events (so are most of Irelands clubs), this may not be everyone’s forte for a number of reasons. For example, Paul Hession joined Athenry AC as a teenager and often wondered why he languished at the back of the field of over 150 at the Connaught Underage Cross Country Championships. Now he is certainly in the top 8 200m runners in Europe; black, white or whatever race. Upon finding an event that you like, you can see if can you improve on it year after year.
No one can ever take a performance away from you and you’ll always have that to be proud of. Some of the events for the Dublin County Championship are poorly attended, so the chances of winning a medal can be quite high.

How will I get on?

Do not get intimidated about the surface or the atmosphere surrounding a track or field event. While we at Sportsworld don’t have the luxury that other clubs have in owning our own track/stadium, we train just as hard and are as good as any other club when it comes to distance running.

How are the running events timed?

There is no human error involved in the timing of track events. As soon as the gun goes off, this is linked by a cable to the timer (so no need to manually start the clock). As soon as your torso crosses the laser beam at the finish line, this is your finish time. Photo finish facilities are also provided.

Training?

You might ask how can we compete against people who train on the track all the time, when we train in a park or on roads. Well that’ll change for the summer. Because instead of cross country practice at Phoenix on a Saturday morning; for the summer’s Saturday mornings we practice on a track. It’s usually 9.30am at Tallaght stadium, we warm up in the park beside it. The idea of these sessions is not about hammering or racing your own club mates. It’s more about staying within yourself, control, and familiarising yourself with the atmosphere, layout and markings of a track.

The message is to get involved. You are good enough!

Since this is an AAI club event you are expected to wear your club singlet.

*************************************
DONORE > A > 23 POINTS
SPORTSWORLD > A > 48 POINTS
CLONLIFFE > B > 59 POINTS
FINGALLIANS > A > 96 POINTS
DUNBOYNE > 102 POINTS
CRUSADERS > 109 POINTS
DONORE > B > 123 POINTS
SPORTSWORLD > B > 125 POINTS
BLACKROCK > A > 126 POINTS
DONORE > C > 165 POINTS
CLONLIFFE > B > 169 POINTS
LUCAN > A > 194 POINTS
BLACKROCK > B > 230 POINTS
FINGALLIANS > B > 251 POINTS
DONORE > D > 292 POINTS
LUCAN > B > 311 POINTS

Seven Sportsworld runners ran at the 2013 Dunboyne 4m on Sunday, and all did the club proud. First Sportsworld person home was Packie Enright, placing in the top 50 overall. Maura was the star of the day being 5th placed woman overall and netting a tidy €75 along with a PB. Not a bad day’s work indeed!

Similarly recording a PB was Anna, who ran under 30 mins for the first time, super stuff; and super driving out to Co. Meath also ha ha! Breda also had a great run, coming fifth in her age category.

The senior men’s race was won by MSB’s John Coughlan in 19:17; while Maria McCambridge was excellent also, winning in 21:07.

Some fine food and drink were provided in the hall afterwards at the presentation, and thanks to Stephen here for handing out leaflets for the Terenure 5m in May. Overall it was a very well stewarded and organised road race that went off without a glitch, and I’m sure the many politicians attending agreed that you can’t beat experience when it comes to organising these events.

Senior Men
1  John Coghlan Metro/St. Brigid’s A.C. MS 19:17
28  Patrick Enright Sportsworld A.C. MS 23:33

M40
1  Davy Byrne Tallaght A.C. M40 21:05
17  Ronan Murray Sportsworld A.C. M40 25:28:00

M45
1  Mick Traynor Raheny Shamrock A.C. M45 20:57
25  Stephen Willoughby Sportsworld A.C. M45 27:56:00

Senior Women
1  Maria McCambridge FS 21:07
4  Maura Ginty Sportsworld A.C. FS 24:32:00

F40
1  Emilia Dan Dunboyne A.C. F40 24:34:00
11  Anna Delaney Sportsworld A.C. F40 29:12:00

F45
1  Annette Kealy Raheny Shamrock A.C. F45 23:39
5  Breda Browne Sportsworld A.C. F45 28:54:00
8  Catherine Gilmore Sportsworld A.C. F45 30:24:00

Six members made the journey to Cork to compete in the Ballycotton 10. This race started in 1978 and it showed with faultless organisation and unique atmosphere.

All members had strong runs in cool crisp conditions, but the stand-out performance came from Paul Duffy. With a goal of running faster than Emily’s legendary Ballycotton 56:00mins, Paul demonstrated his strength on the road by finishing a credible 13^th and set new PBs across 5 miles, 10k and of course 10 miles.

The Meath Spring 5k and Half Marathon was also run over the weekend and Sportsworld had eight members competing across the two distances. Some club members were using this race to gauge fitness for upcoming marathons whilst others were using them to test speed following the strength building winter. Well done to all runners.

Results below.

Meath Spring 5k

Meath Spring HM

Ballycotton 10

Well done to our two senior teams taking part at Charleville Estate today for the Woodie’s DIY Inter Club cross country championships. Tullamore Harriers put on a great event with a firm but challenging course. Standout performances on the day came from Mary Finn and Phil Killganon who both finished off their cross country season in style with very strong races. Our ladies packed well to finish 5th whilst our men finished 8th in the team events.

32 155 Finn, Mary Sportsworld A.C. 32.48
36 157 Ginty, Maura Sportsworld A.C. 33.07
37 154 Higgins, Caitriona Sportsworld A.C. 33.11
38 158 Darcy, Lucy Sportsworld A.C. 33.22
24 319 Kilgannon, Phil Sportsworld A.C. 41.20
61 317 Duffy, Paul Sportsworld A.C. 44.24
63 321 Cunnane, Eanna Sportsworld A.C. 44.38
79 322 Kelly, Damien Sportsworld A.C. 47.02
89 323 Murran, Gareth Sportsworld A.C. (IND) 48.39
90 318 Cunningham, Michael Sportsworld A.C. 48.50

It was a great day for running with solid support for those taking part.

Well done to all four women running, and particularly to Anna for making the huge step up from Meet & Train to this very competitive level. Results are below:

Place     Name                                    Club/County                                      County                                 Time

1              Curley, Pauline V2           Tullamore Harriers A.C. ‘A’           Offaly 35              15.13

7              White, Helen     V3           Sportsworld A.C. ‘A’                        Dublin 35             16.08

18           Darcy, Lucy         V2           Sportsworld A.C. ‘A’                        Meath 35             16.42

21           Morgan, Rachel V2          Sportsworld A.C. ‘A’                        Dublin 35             16.57

55           Delaney, Anna V2           Sportsworld A.C. ‘A’                                                        19.10

Next to toe the line were our Intermediate women, who were present at almost full strength and comprised mainly of the team that competed in Lanzarote last November. The girls packed well over the 5k mud bath to take home team silver, behind National Novice champions Donore Harriers. Well done girls and keep up the good work.

Place     Name                                                    Club/County      County                 Time

1              O’Sullivan, Maria                              Dublin                   Dublin   19.01

15           Ginty, Maura                                     Sportsworld A.C.              20.39

16           Kelly, Ruth                                          Sportsworld A.C.              20.46

18           Higgins, Caitriona                             Sportsworld A.C.              20.47

19           O’Connell, Erin                                  Sportsworld A.C.              20.54

The final race of the day was the Intermediate men’s race, which was held over 8k seeing 100 men going to war. Whilst we finished twelfth out of fourteen teams, a number of positives can be drawn from it, and this is a race that our team should aimed for in future years.

Place     Name                                    Club/County                      County                                 Time

1              Johnston, Chris                                 Letterkenny A.C.              Donegal               26.42

48           Cunnane, Eanna               Sportsworld A.C.                                              29.37

52           Finley, Gavin                      Sportsworld A.C.                                              29.44

54           Duffy, Paul                          Sportsworld A.C.              Dublin                   29.55

70           Enright, Packie                 Sportsworld A.C.                                              31.34

74           Cunningham, Michael    Sportsworld A.C.                                              31.47

80           Kelly, Damien                    Sportsworld A.C.                                              32.31

81           Toman, Shane                   Sportsworld A.C.                                              32.37

84           Curran, Kevin                     Sportsworld A.C.                                              32.56

93           Brady, James                     Sportsworld A.C.                                              33.27