We had 5 athletes competing at the weekend in Athlone at the National seniors. In the womens 1500m final Clare, Niamh and Cliona were up against very hot competition. Cliona was running in a senior National for the first time and that can be a daunting experience but she took it all in her stride and with Niamh and Clare ran very close to their seasons best in what was their last indoor race for 2016. Pierre Murchan qualified on Saturday for his first National senior indoor final of the 1500m. On Sunday he was up against the big guns and after a very tactical first 2 laps where they were practically walking Pierre had nothing to lose by going out the front and shaking them up with a few fast laps. He was reigned in by the older more experienced athletes with 2 laps to go but fought back to finish in a very impressive 4th place. Great race to watch and great courage from a junior athlete.
In the womens hurdles Catherine McManus ran a steady race to get 3rd place and later on in the day she lined up for the 200m final. Catherine had qualifIed for the final on Saturday in a new personal best time and in the final came 3rd and improved her pb to 24.35. Well done to Catherine!
Next weekend Cliona and Pierre return to the muck and hills as they represent their colleges in the Inter-Varsity cross country in Sligo. Best of luck to both of them.
Celtic DCH 