On Saturday last, Niamh Whelan of Ferrybank AC (pictured) competed in an Indoor meeting in Luxembourg and had a very good result. In the 60 Metres race she won her heat in 7.57 seconds and made it through to the final with the third-fastest time.
In the final she improved her time to 7.50 seconds, just outside her best-ever time and with a great effort finished second overall. The winner’s time was 7.45 seconds. The result is a very positive one for Niamh so early in the season and she can look forward with confidence as the year progresses.
Kate Veale, West Waterford (centre) took gold in the All-Ireland Junior Indoors 3000m Walk last Saturday in Nenagh. On the left is Emma Doherty, North Belfast Harriers (bronze) and Emma Prenderville, Farranfore, Maine Valley AC, silver. Kate also set a new Irish Junior record in the AAI games at the same venue on Sunday with a time of 13.18 for 3000m metres, breaking the old standard set by Ann Loughnane in 2004 of 13.27.
Two All-Ireland Junior titles
On Saturday last a small number of Waterford athletes competed at the All-Ireland Junior Indoor Championships in Nenagh and practically all of them came home with medals.
Two very promising young athletes had victories – namely, Kate Veale, West Waterford, who was a class apart in taking the 3K Walk title in a time of 15 minutes 17.6 seconds, and another regular winner, Nicola Power of Ferrybank AC, won the Long jump with a leap of 5.45 metres.
Other Ferrybank athletes to win medals were Cara Kennedy, who took silver in the Shot Putt, while Thomas Barr and Sorcha Murphy (both in the High Jump) and Megan Kiely all won bronze medals.
AAI Games
On Sunday in Nenagh at the AAI Games Jamie Costin, West Waterford, was back in action and won the 3km walk in 11 minutes 56.29 seconds and his girlfriend Susanne Molikova, also with West Waterford, won the Ladies 3km Walk in 12 minutes 53.48 seconds, with Kate Veale second in 13 minutes 18.20 seconds, which is a new Irish junior record.
There were winners from Ferrybank AC also at the fixture. Christopher Russell had a double, winning the 200 metres in a very good time of 22.35 seconds and the 60 metres in 7.03 seconds.
Nicola Power won the Long Jump with 5.48 metres and Kelly Proper was third in the 60 metres in 7.57. A former Ferrybank athlete, Mairead Murphy, running with UCD, won the hurdles.
Quinn strolls it in Munster Junior
In Carrignavar on Sunday last Shane Quinn, Ferrybank, AC – back in action after being absent from the sport for some time – competed in the Munster Junior Cross Country Championship and made the race an absolute procession with yet another powerful front-running display that left the opposition trailing in his wake. At the finish he had more than a minute to spare over the second athlete home.
First man home in the senior race for Waterford was Ravis Zakis, West Waterford, in 10th place, and in the senior ladies his clubmate Corina Walsh was best in 8th place with the county team 3rd. Many athletes from the county who’d entered failed to show up.
