Report by Tom Laffan
\nThe UnEven age and Intermediate Cross Country championships took place in Carrigadrohid, West Cork on October 13th 2013. The championships which were hosted by West Muskery AC was very well organised providing a fair but challenging cross country course for all athletes. This was the same course we had for this years West Cork Championships so our club athletes knew exactly what to expect of the course. The weather conditions were ideal making for perfect running conditions. We had a large number of juvenile athletes competing today and all represented their club very well today.
\nThe day started with the U9 competitions which is the youngest age group that are eligible to compete so for most this was their first championship event. At 8 years of age this can be a daunting challenge for many but full credit to both U9 teams as they produced great performances. The Girls U9 were the first off and the team of Ciara White, Kate O\u2019Connor, Aisling O\u2019Connor, Erika Crowley and Aoibheann Cotter won 2nd county team prize with Ciara White also winning an individual medal by taking 3rd place. The boys U9 team of Eoghan Cassidy, Ciaran Hoey, John Munday, Hugh O\u2019Mahony, Cian Walsh, David O\u2019Donoghue, Joseph Buttimer, Conor Payne, Luke O\u2019Sullivan and Eoin Guinane were next up and they also impressed by winning 1st team prize. Eoghan Cassidy lead the team by also winning an individual and finishing in 4th place overall.
\nWe had equally large numbers in the U11 age group with 11 competing in the Girls U11 team and 7 in the Boys U11. They were the first age groups to tackle the challenging outer loop course and both teams worked hard and were well rewarded by winning 1st team place in both races. The Girls U11 team of Jane Buckley, Ellen Murphy, Nicola McKeon, Nicola Tuthill, Deirdre Brown, Clare Flynn, Lilly Munday, Orla O\u2019Sullivan, Amy O\u2019Donoghue, Katie Murphy and Lucy McCarthy all helped the team to win gold with Jane finishing in 6th place and earning herself an individual medal. The Gold winning Boys U11 team of Keelan Crowley, Mark Collins, Henry Obialor, Callum McCourt, Ruairi Harringtion, Max Hallahan and Cathal Brady were lead home by Keelan Crowley who also won an individual medal by finishing in a strong 3rd place. The Girls U13 were well represented by Michelle O\u2019Donovan, Stacey Komolafe, Tola Ni Suilleabhain, Olivia Tuthill and Niamh Sugrue and all ran very well
\nbut finished outside the medal placings. Darragh Keane was our sole competitor in the Boys U13 race and he ran a very strong race to finish in 10th place. The Girls U15 of Laura Nicholson, Aoibh Cassidy, Niamh Munday, Caoimhe Ni Suilleabhain and Niamh Callanan were our last team of the day to compete and they built on the clubs success for the day by also winning 1st club team place. This was a great team effort for the girls. Laura Nicholson and Niamh Callanan also won individual medals by finishing in 3rd and 6th place respectively. Naoise O\u2019Fhaitheartargh competed out of age in the Boy U15 race and ran a great race to win himself an individual 6th place medal.
\nPatrick Hurley and David Laffan competed in the Boys U17 race and both lads had strong individual races and should be very happy with the improvement they are showing since the season started. Fiona Everard competed out of age in the Girls U17 race and finished in a very close 2nd place after setting the pace for the entire race. This was an excellent out of age performance a well deserved silver medal. Thomas McCarthy competed in the Boys U19 race where he ran a competitive 6000m race from the start to the finish and earning himself a well deserved 3rd place.
\nAll our competitors should be very happy with their performances today. The coaches of the up and coming younger age groups should also be very happy with their team\u2019s performances as it\u2019s a clear recognition of the encouragement and effort you put in at each of your coaching sessions.
\nThanks to all who helped and supported the athletes today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Report by Tom Laffan The UnEven age and Intermediate Cross Country championships took place in Carrigadrohid, West Cork on October 13th 2013. The championships which were hosted by West Muskery AC was very well organised providing a fair but challenging cross country course for all athletes. This was the same course we had for this …<\/p>\n