Termoneeny 10K

Tommy Hughes arrived first 34:22 in Termoneeny as he continued his warm-up for the Walled City Marathon in June. He showed little fatigue from his 6th placed performance at Belfast City Marathon. The Baltic conditions also welcomed Greg McClure home in 26th in 41:25.

Ballyshannon 5K

Martin Cox was in Co. Donegal representing the club in the 5K race; he placed 37th at the event with a great run in 19:55.

Slieve Donard Challenge

On Saturday in Newcastle Co. Down Neil Carty took on the 5.5 mile course and first leg of the Irish Mountain Racing Championships. He finished 6th overall and first in his age group (1:02:52).

Lost Worlds/26extreme Causeway Crossing

A special mention goes to those who took part in the Causeway Crossing on the 4th of May.

An the scenic route, Robert Irvine and Gerard McNamara took on the 50K course and finished 4th (4.31.23) and 20th (5.34.35) respectively.
Helen Weir was around the 25K route in 2.31.03 for 5th female across the line.

Ulster Schools District Championship

A very well done to all the many junior North Belfast Harriers who took part in the many events at the schools championship last Tuesday.

CouchTo5K

Just a reminder that the North Belfast Harriers will be organising another beginners Couch To 5K from the Girls Model track starting Monday 13th. So spread the word to anyone wishing for a gentle introduction to the lovely sport of running.

Parkrun

At Victoria parkrun the Stags had a winner in Ed Cooke who crossed the line in a speedy 17:10. At Falls parkrun Jim Clinton was home and dry in 9th in 23:56. While over at Queen’s we had Mark Shields clocking 20:18 for 12th place and Ciaran Hunter in 43rd with 25:14. At a blustery Waterworks saw Brendan Grew and Simon Reeve take ‘podium’ spots. Gerry Gribbon was 5th with a time of 19:50. Greg McClure followed up with 13th place (21:13) with John Murphy not far along in 17th (21:59). Eamon Sheridan was up next in 37th (23:41) and Sean McShane was 39th (23:47). Mr Piaras McShane was right behind in 40th (23:50) and John O’Hare completed the contingent in 64th (25:47). Further afield we had Gladys Ganiel-O’Neill winning the female race at Marlay in a course record of 17:46. Across the water at Cannon Hill Matt Shields was around the course in 18:45 for 24th place.

Roisin had a tight battle most of the way with North Down’s Julie Balmer. Julie ran 3.00.29 to pull away over the latter stages, while Roisin held on to smash her personal best with a time of 3.01.10. Her previous best was 3.06.19, run in Dublin in October. Roisin has progressed admirably since her first marathon in 2010, when she ran 3:27:45 in London, showing that hard work can lead to big improvements.

For his part, veteran Tommy Hughes continued to defy age, running 2.32.31 to finish as the second local behind St Malacy’s Thomas Frazer (2.2.6.24). Tommy was also first in the V50 category.

The Harriers also took first in the mixed (male and female) category with a squad of Eddie Cooke, Claire Prenter, Conor Curran, Eoin McQuillan and Philip Goss.

Veteran competitor Jack Carberry completed his first marathon at the age of 69, timing 4.31.29.

The next Harrier across the line in the full marathon after Tommy Hughes was Michael Fitzpatrick, who clocked 2.49.03. He was followed by Simon Reeve, who shaved more than five minutes off his personal best to run 2.54.47 – despite having competed in a mountain race on Saturday.

The always consistent veteran Greg McClure was next in 3.08.46, supported by Travis Todd (3.14.06), Kent Swann (3.15.06), Sean McShane (3.42), Paul Williams (3.43), Patrick McShane (3.47), John Burns (3.48), and Jason Reid (4.43).

Nuala Muldoon, despite an injured foot, ran 4.12.53 to complete her second marathon in as many weeks after running London on April 21. Nuala plans to run three marathons in six weeks with her next outing being the Walled City Marathon in Derry.

There was also a good performance from the men’s relay team of John Black, Marc Jennings, Joe Norney, Gerry Gribbon and John McGuigan, placing fourth.

In addition, the Harriers were well represented among the pacers, with Marty Rea pacing 3 hours, Jim Benson and Gareth Grew pacing 3.15, Jim McCormick pacing 3.30, and Stevie Walker pacing 4 hours.

Big Turnout of Young Harriers at Power NI Super Series

No fewer than 40 young Harriers competed in over 70 running, jumping and throwing events on Thursday night at Mary Peters Track.

First up was the 150 metres which saw great performances from Jacob Hamilton, Luke Kelly, Cain McGrath, Rory Mullan, Patrick Willis, Casey Dawson, Aoife Gorman, Karis Hamilton, Charlotte Willis, Mia McGrath, Erin Harding and Eimear Mullan.

Next up were the older children in the 200m. This event saw the first medal of the night with Caitlin Maguire wining a hard fought bronze with a new PB of 27.94. There were also good performances from the other 12 athletes competing in this event, Damian Marquess, Isaac Jarman, Odhran Catney, Thomas Reid, Joseph Lennon, Eamon Sheridan, Patrick Anderson, Mollie O’Hare, Julia Uprichard, Rebecca Jenkins, Eammanuela Mathioudaki and Katie Black.

Next up were the middle distance events. The 600m was first and saw 12 athletes competing and winning two medals. Fionn Nagle led from gun to tape to take gold in a time of 1.59 and Lauren Cox ran 2.09 to take bronze after a sprint finish. There were also great runs from Jacob Hamilton, Luke Kelly, Rory Mullan, Patrick Willis, Daire Brown, Casey Dawson, Karis Hamilton, Charlotte Willis, Eimear Mullan, and Brianna Catney.

The last event on the track was the 800m. 13 harriers completed the two lap distance with Tony McCambridge winning the fourth medal of the night taking silver in a time of 2.35. Other great performances came from Damian Marquess, Thomas Reid, Brendan McCambridge, Mollie O’Hare, Aine Neilan, Katie O’Hare, Rioghnach Catney, Raoisle Hoy, Ciara Neilan, Maya McCathie and Katie McCambridge.

During the night there were also 21 young harriers competing in the field events. In the high jump there were PB’s from Katie O’Hare and Georgia Drain. Damian Marquess, Isaac Jarmin, Odhran Catney, Thomas Reid, Julia Uprichard, Rebecca Jenkins and Thomasa Kennedy all competed well in the long jump and Jacob Hamilton, Cain McGrath, Rory Mullan, Patrick Willis, Fionn Nagle, Casey Dawson, Aoife Gorman, Karis Hamilton, Charlotte Willis, Mia McGrath, Erin Harding and Eimear Mullan all threw well in the shot putt.

Marty Rea Second in Causeway Crossing 50k

Marty Rea continued to perform well on the ultra running circuit, nabbing second in the Lost Worlds Causeway Crossing 50km on Sunday – despite needing to conserve energy for 3-hour pacing duties in Monday’s Belfast Marathon. Marty clocked 4.07.02 on the tough off-road course to finish behind Scotland’s Andrew Murray (3.55.54).

Neil Carty Third on the Mountains

Neil Carty placed third in the 13.1 mile Annalong Horseshoe Mountain race on Saturday, covering the course – which included 1550m of ascent – in 2.12.37. He was supported by Simon Reeve, who timed 2.29.40 as a warm-up for the Belfast Marathon.

Conor 9^th at Dunboyne 10k

Conor Curran competed in the Dunboyne 10k in Co. Louth on Sunday, coming home in 34.27 on a hilly course on a windy day.

Parkruns – Philip Donnelly Notches 50^th

There were plenty of Harriers out in force at the parkruns, which were highlighted by Philip Donnelly completing his 50^th at Queen’s in 19.32. Ciaran Hunter (25.30) and Ian McCollam (31.55) also took part at Queen’s.

In the Waterworks, the Harriers had the first six men and first two women across the line on a day when 177 participants took part. They were led by Andrew Considine (16.53), Brendan Grew (16.59), John McGuigan (17.43), Laurence Johnston (18.09), Conal McCambridge (18.48) and James Wallace (18.53) among the men and Athanasia Sevastaki (20.57) and Ita McCambridge (22.42) among the women.

John Black also cracked the top ten, finishing ninth in 19.15, while Tony McNulty (11^th in 19.36), Gerry Gribbon (12^th in 19.37), Tony McCambridge (15^th in 20.06) and Greg McClure (16^th in 20.09) all ran well. They were supported by Martin Cox (20.37), Kilian Woods (20.46), John Murphy (22.12), Eamon Sheridan (23.36), Piaras McShane (23.54), Sean McShane (25.14), John O’Hare (25.18), Lauren Cox (26.01) and Aaron McCann (30.59).

At City Parkrun in Craigavon, Alan Ritchie led the field home in 17.53. Matt Shields was third in Wallace Park (19.03), Joe Norney ran at Victoria Park (19.09), and Jim Clinton took part in the Falls (27.23).

Run Armagh
There were still a few road races on the calendar and a couple of members made the journey to Armagh for the annual Run Armagh 10k. Conor Curran had his 2nd outing of the season and ran a strong race finishing a comfortable 2nd in 34:13. Mark Shields made a quick recovery from his exploits at London the previous week to finish 20th in 40:31.

parkrun
There was success across several parkruns at the weekend. Ed Cooke took 1st at Victoria Park, Brendan Grew 1st at the waterworks, Peter Savage 1st at Citypark and Athanasia Sevastaki finished 1st lady at the waterworks.

At Queens Philip Donnelly finished 4th just missing out on his parkrun PB in 19:33 and Ciaran Hunter 23rd in 24:48.

At the waterworks a large contingent of harriers took part. Brendan Grew continued his dominance of the event winning in just over 17 minutes. John McGuigan continued his good form of late for a new PB of 17:39 with Simon Reeve and Conal McCambridge battling it out for 6th place just behind him for 17:57 and 17:59 respectively. Nial Geehan just made the top 10 running 18:59 while Tony McNulty (19:13),Joe Norney (19:17), John Murphy(19:49) and Lance Breen (19:51) all made it inside the 20 minute barrier.

Greg McClure(20:37), Athanasia Sevastaki(20:54) and Mark Shields(20:55) all broke the 21 barrier – Athanasia running a new PB in the process.

Young Damian Marquess(21:40) and club secretary Jennifer Bill(21:45) both broke the 22 barrier while under 23 were Patrick McCambridge(22:18), Ita McCambridge(22:38) and Jack Carberry(22:53). Eamon Sheridan just missed out in 23:08. Killian Woods(24:16), young Piaras McShane (24:35) and John O’Hare (24:43) all broke the 25 mark closely followed by John Johnston (25:02), Sean McShane junior(25:21), Jim Clinton (25:41) and Lauren Cox(25:47)

Other harriers taking part included John Marquess(26:08), Mary Ringland(27:09), Brendan McCambridge(27:16), Tony McCambridge(29:16), Tina Haggan(31:44), John Black (36:39), Jason Reid(36:55),John Burns (40:40), Aaron McCann(41:25) and Matt Shields(41:29).

London Marathon

At the sunny course around the capital North Belfast Harriers joined the tens of thousands of runners and it was Breege Connolly and Gladys Ganiel that were the shining performances.

Breege was 3^rd female in the overall race in 2:39:23 and Gladys was 5^th with 2:42:25. Gareth Grew was first male Harrier across the line in a time of 2:57:19 while Gerry Gribbon was 3:14:16. Glenn McKendry was home just under the 3 and a half hour mark in 3:28:50, Stephen Walker was all done in 3:33:09, and Nuala Muldoon was 4:51:29. Also taking part were Greg McClure and Jim Benson. All beat Mo Farah to the finish line.

Titanic 10K

There were also large crowds in Belfast for the successful Titanic 10K. The flat course saw some great runs. The men’s race was won by Stephen Scullion, representing Clonliffe Harriers, in 30:41 and the women’s race was won by Pauline Curley from Tullamore Harriers in 36:27. Of the 23 Harriers taking part, Eamon White was first across the line in 6^th overall (32:47), Conor Curran was next home in 6^th (32:47), Ed Cooke wasn’t far behind in 15^th 33:57, while Andrew Considine was 22^nd (35:14), close behind him was Michael Fitzpatrick in 24^th (25:32). Mark McKinstry was next to arrive in 35^th (36:32) while Laurence Johnston was 40^th (36:51). John McGuigan was 41^st (37:02), 51^st was Peter Morrison (37:34) and 52^nd was Paul Elliott in 37:38. Niall Farquharson was 65^th (38:29), James Wallace 67^th (38:34), Conor McQuillan 70th and PB (38:59),John Black 73rd (39:10), Joe Norney 83rd (39:25), Sean McShane 89^th and PB (39:32), Philip Donnelly was 100^th (39:57), Martin Cox 195^th (42:28), Patrick McShane 234^th (43:41), Ciaran Browne was 284^th (44:40), Jason Reid 499^th (48:37), Mark Ramsey 508^th (48:49), junior Rioghnach Catney was 857^th (55:30) and John Marquess was 874^th (56:47)

Power NI Super 5

No fewer than 24 young Harriers competed in the first outdoor track and field meeting at Mary Peters Track on Thursday night. First up were the Minis in the 80m. These races saw good performances from Fionn Nagle, Kelvin Kearney, Malachy McGibbon, Niall Kerr, Lucia Gibbon, Aoife Gorman and Erin Harding. Next up were the U13’s in the 100m. These race saw more good performances from Odhran Catney, Thomas Reid, Ellie Bradley with Isaac Jarmin just missing out on a medal in 5th place. The first medals of the night came in the U15 100m with Micheal McGreevey blasting down the track in an impressive 12.71 seconds for gold and Caitlin Maguire claiming bronze in a time of 13.77 seconds. Last up for the sprinters was Rebecca Marquess who just missed out on a medal in 4th place in a time of 13.73 seconds. The first middle distance races of the night saw more medals with Fionn Nagle winning gold by a margin of 8 seconds and Lauren Cox claiming bronze after a hard fought sprint to the line. There were other good performances from Brendan McCambridge and Bryanna Catney. This was followed by good performances in the U13’s & U15’s by Thomas Reid, Damian Marquess, Mollie O’Hare, Katie O’Hare, Rioghnach Catney, Raoisle Hoy and Katie McCambridge. The last race of the night saw Conall McCambridge having a great run to claim silver and Conor McQuillan finish 7th in a time of 4.40. During the night there were also good performances in the field events. In the long jump Kelvin Kearney, Malachy McGibbon, Lucia Gibbon & Brendan Kerr all performed well, Thomas Reid finished 7th in the shop putt and Damian Marquess came joint third in the high jump clearing two heights at his first attempt.

Hill and Dale Series

Race 2 in the series of off road running took place at Tullymore forest park. It witnessed Neil Carty finished 3rd overall in a time of 38:20. He was supported by Alan Ritchie in 32nd (44:51) and Helen Weir in 130th (53:23).

Parkrun

Waterworks saw a very strong turnout by the Harriers after taking the top five places. Conal McCambridge was the men’s winner in 17:32 while Roisin Hughes was the women’s winner with a personal best in 19:34. Simon Reeve was second overall in 18:01 with Lance Breen 3^rd with a swift 18:52. John Murphy completed the top five with a time of 19:35. Just outside the top 10 was Paul Williams in 11^th (20:42). Patrick McShane was 18^th with 21:56, next up was Ita McCambridge who was second woman home (25^th 22:27). Patrick McCambridge was right behind in 26^th overall 22:32, Kilian Woods was 29^th (23:11) , Jack Carberry was 30^th (23:12), Eamon Sheridan (25:36), John O’Hare (25:37), Piaras McShane finished in 53^rd (25:52). John Burns was home in 61^st (26:48), Mary Ringland 64^th (27:11), Martin Cox 76^th (28:08), Sean McShane Jr 77^th (28:08), Tina Haggan 115^th (32:37), Jason Reid warmed up for the Titanic 10K in 135^th (36:56) and Aaron McCann was 141^st (44:07).

At the lovely titled Hilly Fields parkrun in England Greg McClure warmed up for London marathon in 12^th 20:47. Also in England was George Walker who took part in Marple parkrun. He finished 45^th (22:56). Closer to home, Wallace parkrun in Lisburn saw Matt Shields take third place overall in 18:51 and John Patience was 5^th with a time of 19:17. Over at Queens parkrun, we had Philip Donnelly in 16^th (22:15), Gerard McNamara in 20^th (22:54), and Ciaran Hunter 39^th (24:52). Victoria parkrun witnessed Jim Clinton finish in 48^th 24:05.

South Downs Way 50

Marty Rea battled tough conditions, a tough field, and of course an always tough 50 miles to clinch third in 7 hours, 39 minutes at the South Downs Way 50, which follows a mountainous off-road route between Worthing and Eastbourne. Runners also had to contend with wind, snow, hail and generally cold weather.

Sperrin Harriers 5 Mile Classic

Cathy McCourt and Eddie Cooke both earned third place finishes at the Sperrin Harriers 5 mile classic. For Cathy, it was a welcome return to competition after a year out due to injury. She timed a credible 31.19. Eddie clocked 27.36, in a race won in 27.14 by Larne’s James Brown. Mark McKinstry was 16th.

Castle Ward Challenge

The Castle Ward challenge followed an off-road route at the Castle Ward estate. Simon Reeve covered the route in 1.27.34 to take third as two more Harriers swept to top ten positions: Gerard McNamara in 7^th (1.33.38) and Lance Breen in 9^th (1.36.31). They were supported by Kilian Woods, who clocked 1.44.57.

Neil Carty at Silent Valley Mountain Race and Hill & Dale

Experienced mountain runner Neil Carty put in a good show at the Silent Valley Mountain race, which is part of the British Mountain Running and Northern Ireland Mountain Running Championships. In an exceptionally competitive field, Neil covered the 16 km course (which featured 1550m of ascent) in 2.06.20. Conditions were also difficult due to snow and boggy ground underfoot. The winner was Borrowdale AC’s Gavin Bland (1.43.00), a former junior and senior British mountain running champion. Neil also placed second in Thursday’s Hill and Dale series race in Castlewellan.

NIRunning Mile

Mark McKinstry represented the Harriers on the track at the NI running mile on Friday at Antrim Forum, notching 5.15.46 to finish eighth. The event was organized by the popular website http://www.nirunning.co.uk/ .

Northern Ireland 5 km Championships – Cathy and Laurence win age categories

The Northern Ireland 5 km road race championships were held on Wednesday at the Bay Road 5 km in Derry/Londonderry. It was Cathy McCourt’s first competitive outing after her long lay-off due to injury and she placed fifth among the women in 19.20, and first among the vets. Laurence Johnston won the men’s V50 category with a good time of 17.44, placing 26th overall.

Parkruns – Gerry Gribben Awarded “50” T-shirt

Saturday was a great day for parkruns throughout Northern Ireland, with a record of more than 800 people taking part in various events.

At the Waterworks, Harriers stalwart Gerry Gribben was awarded his t-shirt for completing 50 parkruns – celebrating by completing the route in 19.37. Lagan Valley’s Davy Wright was also on hand to receive his t-shirt for 100 parkruns.

The Harriers also had the first three runners across the line in Andrew Considine (16:46), Brendan Grew (16.54) and Jim Benson (17.30). Junior ace Conal McCambridge was fifth in 17.43, followed by Sean McShane (11^th in 19.17) and Greg McClure (13^th in 19.48). Martin Cox was next in 21.15, supported by John Murphy (21.27), Ita McCambridge (22.15 – just one second off her personal best), Nuala Muldoon (22.56), Eamon Sheridan (23.40), Piaras McShane (24.30), John O’Hare (24.33), John Robert Johnston (24.40), Lauren Cox (25.28), Brendan McCambridge (26.21), Patrick McCambridge (26.21), John Burns (27.25) Mary Ringland (27.56) and Tina Haggan (30.33).

At Victoria Parkrun, Athanasia Sevastaki had a fine run of 20.50 to finish as the second woman, Helen Weir clocked 21.34 to finish third woman, and Eoin McQuillan was sixth overall in 18.30. Mark Shields ran 20.52.

At Queens Parkrun, Philip Donnelly finished fifth in 20.13, followed by John Lavery (21.00), Kevin Lavery (23.17) and Ciaran Hunter (25.01).

The Harriers had one runner each at the Falls Park (Jim Clinton, 17^th in 25.50) and Wallace Park (John Patience, 6^th in 19.24)

(photo of Cathy McCourt by Declan Roughan)

Alan en route to victory

It was a successful day for the men at the Decathlon half marathon and 10k races with Alan O’Hara having a facile victory in the half marathon and Andrew Considine winning the 10k comfortably.

In the 10k Andrew Considine had a strong race to break 34 minutes for the first time in 33:51 winning by almost 30 seconds from 2nd place. Brendan Grew continued his good form to finish 5th in 34:25 while not far behind John McGuigan smashed his PB for 8th in 36:41.

In the half marathon which started at the same time Alan O’Hara outpaced everyone including the 10k runners running 1:11:38 and winning by over 5 minutes in the process. In 5th Travis Todd ran strongly for a new half marathon PB of 1:20:03 while Kent Swann had his second half marathon PB in as many weeks to finish 13th in 1:24:34. Roisin Hughes finished 3rd woman in 1:27:25 followed by Greg McClure 1:28:47. Paul Williams and Sean McShane had a good battle with Paul running 1:35:46 closely followed by Sean in 1:35:48.

Connemarathon ultra

Robert Irvine made his ultra debut

In the connemarathon ultra Robert Irvine had been playing his cards close to his chest and debuted very successfully at the 39.3 mile distance to finish 25th and first M50 in 5:29:54.

Paris Marathon

In the Paris marathon Adam Boyd made the journey and had a strong run for 2:49:54.

parkrun

The usual large contingent of harriers took part across various parkrun events. At the waterworks Conor Curran had his second victory in succession winning in 16:56. Next up young Niall Geehan ran a new PB of 18:35 for 5th, Lance Breen 6th, just missing out on his PB in 18:39. Gerry Gribbon finished 7th in 18:55,  Tony McNulty 10th in 19:20, Mark Shields ran a new waterworks PB of 19:46 for 12th. Just outside 20 Greg McClure warmed up for the half marathon running 20:28 while just behind Athanasia Sevastaki ran a new PB of 21:04 for 2nd lady. Sean McShane warmed up for the half marathon running 22:30, Kilian Woods ran 22:52, Jack Carberry 23:07, junior Eamon Sheridan 24:12, John O’Hare 24:41, junior Rioghnach Catney 25:24, junior Lauren Cox 26:05, junior Piaras McShane 26:16, Martin Cox 27:59, junior Bryanna Catney 32:34, Nuala Muldoon 39:43 and junior Aaron McCann 44:53.

Travis en route to his PB

Over at Victoria park Joe Norney finished 8th in 19:07,at Queens Ciaran Hunter finished 27th in 26:09 and at wallace park Matt Shields and John Patience took 8th and 9th place respectively in 18:57 and 19:28. At Portrush Thomas McKinstry finished 59th in 32:39 while further afield Jim Clinton finished 164th in 24:22 and in London at Walthamstow parkrun stalwart John Murphy  had his first parkrun victory in 19:55.

Whitehead 5 Mile

Great results all round for North Belfast Harriers today in the 5 mile road race at Whitehead.

Gladys Ganiel was the winner in the female race with a time of 27:40 while Claire Conor 2^nd with 29:37. In the male race Ed Cooke was second (26:55) behind Keith Shiels from Foyle Valley. Brendan Grew joined them on the podium in 3^rd (26:57).  Other fantastic run on the day came from Mark McKinstry  in 6th (28.57), Stephen Walker 8^th (29:14), Roisin Hughes 27^th (31:56), Greg McClure 40^th (33:48), Nuala Muldoon 58th (37:05).

Queens 5K

On Wednesday a large contingent took part in the Queen’s Sport 5K along the river Lagan. Amongst the prizes were Claire Conor who won the female event. The men’s team took 3^rd place and Jim Newberry was first in his age category.

The men’s race was won by former Harrier Stephen Scullion in 14:27 followed by Eddie McGinley and Andrew Agnew from Annadale Striders.

Of the 17 Harriers that took park Connor Magill was the fastest finishing 16^th in 16:02. Ed Cooke wasn’t far behind with 16:33 good enough for 24^th overall; six seconds later was Brendan Grew in 29^th. Eoin McQuillian trimmed his personal best in 31^st (16:45) and Conal McCambridge also had a great run for 43^rd (17:14). Next up was Laurence Johnston in 59^th (17:48), then Kent Swann 64^th (18:03) ahead of Gerard McNamara in 65^th (18:06) and female winner Claire Conor , 74^th overall, 18:17.  Next home was Niall Geehan in 81^st (18:28), John Black 90^th (18:47), Jim Newberry was also under 19 minutes (18:28) and 90^th to claim fist in the M60 category. Phlip Donnelly was 100^th 19:06, Mark Shields 104^th 19:11, Grey McClure 129^th (19:48), Paul Williams 153^rd (20:40), and Jason Reid 206^th (23:01).

Achill Island 10k

At the 26 extreme organised race Helen Weir took on the mixed terrain event and come home in 19^th place in a time of 44:56.

Ballygalget 10k

Well done to Nuala Muldoon on finishing 24th in the Co. Down road race with 52:07.

Parkrun

Waterworks

North Belfast Harriers put on a great show of strength at this weeks parkrun. 16 Harriers took part and provided 8 of the top 11 positions.

Conor Curran duked it out with Brendan Grew for the top position with Conor finishing in 16:55 and Brendan 17:01. Conal McCambridge also ran well in 3^rd (17:57) and Gerry Gribbon 4^th (18:51). Niall Geehan scored a PB on his second parkrun outing in 6^th place (19:09). John Murphy was home and dry in 8^th (19:34), Tony McNulty was 9^th (19:59) and Mannix McAlister 11^th (20:15). Paul Williams ran well for 16^th (20:55) as did Martin Cox in 24^th (21:48) and Ita McCambridge 26^th/ 2^nd female (22:59). Jack Carberry was across the finish line in 40^th (23:51) while John O’Hare was 49^th (24:58), Eamon Sheridan was 65^th with 26:10, Tina Hagan was 92^nd (30:55) and Mary Ringland 93^rd (30:56).

At other parkruns this weekend we had Jim Clinton at Ecos finishing 24^th (22:45). At Queen’s Marty Rea grabbed first and a PB with 18:03 while Ciaran Hunter was home in 56^th (33:46).

Across the water in Marple stockport parkrun George Walker was 62^{nd (}24:14). At Richmond Park Matt Shields finished 11st (19:07). While Derek Donaghy was 12^th at Walsall Arboretum parkrun (19:47).

Omagh Half Marathon

At the second installment of the Pure Running Half Marathon series there was some serious running done.

Stephen Scullion of Clonliffe Harriers bagged his second win of the week and second course record in 1:04:46. He was accompanied on the podium by club mate Sergui Ciobanu (1:05:11) and Polish runner Radoslaw Dudyscz (1:06:51).

Gareth Grew was the first stag across the finishing line in 15^th overall in 1:16:41. He was followed by Jim Benson in 18^th (1:17:42). Next home was Kent Swann in 78^th (1:25:59), John Black 94^th (1:27:07), Gerard McNamara 100^th (1:27:07) and Gregg McClure was also under the 90 minute mark in 121^st (1:28:52). Brothers Sean & Patrick McShane completed the Harriers group in 286^th & 287^th in 1:37:09. Breaking his personal best again was Mark Ramsey in 853^rd in a time of 1:54:28.

But the Wicklow Way Ultra Marathon (51km) went ahead, with the Harriers’ Marty Rea braving the tough conditions to finish fifth in 4:58:08. The course, which traversed the Wicklow Mountains, featured an overall climb of nearly 2000 metres and was mucky and snowy.

Two Harriers were in action at the relatively snow-free City Parkrun in Craigavon, where Paul Blaney (16.54) and Alan Ritchie (18.21) claimed the top two positions.

Let’s hope that the roads, trails and parks thaw out in the coming days!

(image – inspecting the course before calling off the Waterworks Parkrun)

Jimmys 10k

Alan with 4th prize.

Jimmys 10k took place in Downpatrick on St. Patricks day with the overnight snowfall having made way for cold dry conditions perfect for racing. In the mens race Alan O’Hara and Eamon White battled it out towards the front early on. Alan pushed on to make it up to 2nd but was unfortunately  outdone in a sprint finish ending up 4th in 31:43 with Eamon finishing 6th in 33:03. Ed Cooke was next up for 10th in 34:38.

Eoin McQuillan and Travis Todd were battling it out further back with Eoin pulling away at 9k for 28th in 36:07 closely followed by Travis, finishing 30th, in 36:25. Peter Savage was just behind in 36:36.

Next up were the runners trying to break the 40 mark. Aaran Ruttledge broke it comfortably in 39:45 with John Murphy breaking it in 39:55. Mark Shields and Greg McClure finished just shy of the 40 mark having a good battle in the process for40:37 and 40:41 respectively.Martin Cox showed he’s beginning to shake his injury of running 45:10.

Gladys picking up her prize

In the girls race Gladys Ganiel O’Neill led from the off winning comfortably in 35:20. Claire Connor was next up for 2nd continuing her good form for 38:08. Atahanasia Sevastaki made up the winning team of 3 running well to finish in 44:02 followed by Thelma McCullough in 51:53.

Altamuskin 5 mile

At Altamuskin 5 mile Breege Connolly had a comfortable victory running 29:23 to win by over two and a half minutes.

Barcelona marathon

The McShane brothers at Barcelona

The McShane brothers made the journey to Barcelona starting and finishing together with both running 3:37:53.

Dune half marathon

In the inaugural Newry to Dundalk half marathon Adam Boyd showed he is preparing well for the Paris marathon finishing 2nd in 1:16:51, Simon Reeve finished 15th in 1:26:23  while Jim Clinton had a good first half marathon of the year  finishing in 1:46:58. A

parkrun

At the parkrun the usual contingent of harriers took part across the events. At citypark Gerard McNamara made the journey running a parkrun PB of 18:22 and finishing up in 2nd place.In Victoria Drew Crawford finished 105th in 31:11 while over at the falls century man Jim Clinton finished 22nd in 25:40.

At Queens champion Philip Donnelly finished 3rd in 19:48,  Kevin Lavery 18th in 22:49 and Ciaran Hunter 37th in 26:39.

Matt Shields finished 4th in the 3rd Wallace Park event in 19:22 closely followed by Eoin McQuillan who was 8th in 20:22.

Over at the waterworks the usual large contingent of harriers took part. John McGuigan finished 6th in 18:48, Lance Breen 8th in 19:02, Tony McNulty 12th in 19:51, Mark Shields 13th in 19:52, John Murphy 14th in 20:03, Roisin Hughes 19th in 20:35, Greg McClure 27th in 21:30, Athanasia Seavastaki 28th in 21:33(running a new PB in the process), Paul Williams 30th in 21:47, Kilian Woods 36th in 22:47, Jack Carberry 44th in 23:41 and John O’Hare 66th in 26:18.

Addiction NI 10K
The charity race for Addiction NI charity in the Ormeau Park showed the depth of the runners in North Belfast. We had
two of the podium positions. Brendan Grew was the overall winner in 34:33 and Mark McKinstry was home and dry in 3rd 36:59. Kent Swann also had a great run for 6th place 38:07 just ahead of John McGuigan in 7th (38:53). Other great runs included Mark Shields in 15th (41:25) and Greg McClure 23rd (42:46),

The Aviva Irish Schools’ Cross Country Championships took
place in the University of Ulster, Jordanstown this weekend.
In the wet and windy conditions Conal McCambridge was representing Edmund Rice school. He finished 37th and another local school, St Malachy’s, claimed the team prize.

The NI mountain running season kicked off on Co. Armagh on Saturday at Slieve Gullion. The 6.9km race was won by Stephen Cunningham (37:23) from Mourne Runners. Neil Carty narrowly missing out in the scrap for 3rd place, finishing 5th 39:09.

Parkrun
The growing popularity of parkrun was demonstrated this week by Harriers attending 7 different events including another new event; this time in Dublin.
Matt Shields was in Marlay Park to witness a massive 370 finishers in the first running of the parkrun. Matt finished 20th in 18:54.

148 participants completed the Waterworks. The first male to finish was Tony Carter (Tyne Bridge Harriers) in a time of 16:17. The first lady completing the course was Anna Scott (Willowfield Harriers) in a time of 22:20.
The first Harrier across the line was Brendan Grew in 2nd place (16:59). He was followed by Gerry Gribbon in 10th (19:07) and Sean McShane also just outside the top 10 in 12th with 19:16.
Tony McNulty and Tony McCambridge finished close together on 20th (20:29) and 22nd (20:35) respectively.
Paul Williams was home in 32nd (21:54) and Mannix McAlister was 38th (22:43). Rioghnach Catney got her personal best of 23:26 for 44th place. After that we had John O’Hare in 67th (25:27), Kilian Woods in 69th (25:32), Piaras McShane 70th (25:35), Thomas McKinstry 70th (32:21), Iam McCollam 132nd (36:49), Aaron McCann 144th (43:32)

Closer to home at Victoria, Drew Crawford was at his local parkrun finishing 113th in 32:30.

At Ecos parkrun in Ballymena junior Connor McQuillan narrowly missed out on a PB to finish second with 17:58.

In the Falls parkrun Harriers had two runners representin’ John Murphy grabbed 2nd place with a time of 20:02 and Jim Clinton followed up with 27th place 29:14.

Over at Queens John Lavery was the 9th out of 37 runners in at time of 22:09.

Wallace parkrun in Lisburn saw 71 runners and Greg McClure was amongst them in 9th running around in 20:52