National Indoors Championships / Hope & Dream 2026 / Merseyside Tunnel 10k / Milan Marathon
National Indoors Championships
A brilliant performance from Fiachra Mehigan today in the National Indoor Championships in TUS Athlone.
He was competing in 1500m U17 race where he finished 9th in 4:39.17 setting himself a new PB in the process. Fiachra has consistently improved race after race and continues to impress every time he runs
Well done Fiachra, your training has paid off.
Hope & Dream 2026
A lovely bright day but a slight breeze greeted huge numbers to the banks of the Slaney in Enniscorthy. Hard to believe that only a few weeks ago the area was flooded and today hosted one of the biggest participation events in the County. All proceeds go to two worthwhile charities who work tirelessly for others: The Hope Centre & Share a Dream Foundation.
There were 985 in 10k and another 156 in the 10 Mile run this morning and on a day when times are irrelevant Brian Smyth was our man in the 10 mile & Gareth Lloyd, Pauline Kirwan, Samantha Donegan and Bridie McGuire completed the 10k route.
Merseyside Tunnel 10k
Over the other side of the Irish Sea John Dier, Sharron Dier & Helen Burrell were in Liverpool for the Mersey Tunnel 10k run.
A unique experience to run in the tunnel as its usually busy with traffic. An enjoyable event if anyone is ever there when it's on.
Well done to the three of you, nice to see the club colours popping up further afield.
John 55:46
Helen 1:10:58
Sharron 1:20:58
Milan Marathon.
On Sunday morning John Hyland was eagerly heading to the start line of the Milan Marathon to begin his first attempt at the distance. He had put in a dilligent training plan and to say it paid off is an understatement. John completed the run with the clock at 3 hrs 51 minutes, a super time especially for your first. John wrote a few lines about the event below:
There were 15,000 runners here doing the marathon today, with a half marathon option and relay going on as well. The organisation was excellent, with a flat course that mainly went through the city of Milan. There were stations every 5k, with water, electrolyte drinks, and fruit. At one stage in the second half, a food station was handing out burgers, sausages, and cheese. It finishes at the Duomo, which is the third biggest cathedral in the world. A beautiful backdrop.
Congratulations John, now you have a time beat !
Streets of Kilkenny 5k / Kelly’s Resort Hotel 5 & 10 K / Hellevation
Streets of Kilkenny 5k
Thursday night was a damp evening as Paul Harpur was our entrant on the Streets of Kilkenny 5k.
A quick course over 2 loops in the middle of Kilkenny saw Paul finish on 23:15.
Well done to you Paul.
Kelly’s Resort Hotel 5 & 10 K
An Easter Monday tradition as our gang headed to Rosslare this morning. It was a bit breezey to add to the challenge but a good way to burn off the Easter egg calories. Athletes soon warmed up as the events began.
Great running all round by our athletes as good times were recorded but the standout performance is without doubt Noirín Doyles superb run finishing in 11th place and 2nd in the women's race, congratulations.
A huge turnout in both races as 291 finished the 2 lap 10k and 268 finished the 1 lap 5k race. Well done to Wexford Triathlon Club, a well organised event.
Results 5k:
Mick Flaherty 24:34
Paula Gondard 25:04 1st O50
Caseyjane Jordan 25:19
Helen Sinnott 28:27
Ann Thomas 29:33
Helen Burrell 32:15 1st O70
Sharron Dier 38:49
Results 10k:
Noirín Doyle 39:36 2nd Woman
Ryan Ellard 45:03
Dave Midwinter 46:12
Jesse Kielthy 46:27
Pat Gallagher 47:39
Conor Casey 49:28
John Dier 53:54
Jonathan Cody 55:13
Geoff Hoffheinz 56:16
Sarah Bermingham 57:31
Bridie McGuire 1:28:36
Hellevation
Last weekend we all enjoyed the Easter celebrations however club member Donal Grant (& his lovely wife) were busy tackling Hellevation in Co. Tipperary. Huge achievement, well done to you both.
Have a read and maybe have a go next year !
*****
Hellevation Backyard Ultramarathon took place in Grange, Tipperary over a loop of 6.7km or 4.17 miles last weekend. The format for the race is that you have one hour to complete the distance before you have to go again. Every hour on the hour until you either don’t start a loop or you don’t get back within the hour. Last person standing is the winner! The idea behind the loop distance is that you cover 100 miles every 24 hours.
With almost all of the loop on trail, and with 200m of elevation on each loop, it’s a serious test of mental strength.
After completing 13 loops last year I went back to try and better that mark. Stom Dave didn’t help but the first 7-8 loops passed by easily enough. I had a wobble around loops 9-11 with some stomach issues, but I was able to run through it and was feeling better by loop 12.
I had previously considered the race more of a test of your head than your body but starting loop 14 my body was complaining loudly, even though my head was in a good place. Ultimately I had to call it after 16 loops and 108km.
The race was eventually won by Wayne McGuigan, who was also the defending champion, and ran for a further 20 hours to accumulate 37 loops and over 250km!
Intermediate Road Race /European Indoor Masters 2026
Mr Oil Intermediate Road Race
Earlier today Croghan was the destination of the counties athletes as they converged on the North County village of Inch.
A testing loop course awaited everyone as women faced 4km and men 8km of an up and down route.
Three women took to the start line in our club colours as Casey, Ilze and Helen set about pushing themselves on through the 4k.
In the men's race we had two representing with Conor and John giving a good account of themselves showing the younger club men a good example.
Well done to all five on their runs today. County races are always a challenge but a rewarding challenge.
Thanks to host Club Croghan Athletics Club and to Wexford Athletics for another successful County road race
Women's 4km:
Casey Jordan 19:34
Ilze Bedrite 20:10
Helen Sinnott 22:19
Men's 8km:
Conor MacAogain 39:28
John Dier 42:56
European Indoor Masters 2026
Siobhan Doyle headed off to Toruń in Poland to compete in the European Indoor Masters Championships.
She had 2 events in her sights: 60m & 200m.
First up was Sunday and the 60m sprint where Siobhan lined up in SF 2 running a 10.37 seconds in lane 5 for 6th place and a Season Best.
On to Tuesday evening and the 200m where Siobhan lined up in Lane 6 in SF2 where she ran a PB 35.18 seconds.
Well done Siobhan Doyle , great to see the green vest and a great experience. Hope you enjoyed every minute.
Club’s 25th Anniversary: Spraoi Games
The club’s 25th anniversary celebrations continued yesterday evening with this month’s special event being the Spraoi Games held at the track in Rosslare. There was a great turnout on what was a glorious sunny evening. Mick oversaw the throwing events for adults; Pádraig, Liam, Tracey and Ellen put the younger athletes and the teens through their paces - warm-up, drills, hurdles, long jump, javelin/turbo javelin, relays. Coaching coordinator Tadhg Henderson kept a watchful eye on proceedings and ensured the event ran without a hitch. With dusk descending, a big bright moon rising over the sea and weariness setting in, Ellen proved herself the most popular person of the evening as she sent everyone on their way with an Easter egg. Well done to organiser-in-chief, Louise Henderson and to all the coaches who helped out.
Forth Mountain Trail Run /Blue 5k / Rome Marathon /Davy Fortune 5k
Forth Mountain Trail Run
13km of possibly the most scenic event you will run as athletes meander their way over the trails of Forth Mountain and back. Blessed with warm temperatures and blue skies almost 300 stood on the start line awaiting the starters whistle. Welcome refreshments were served afterwards as athletes cooled down and replenished the fuel tanks.
Massive congratulations to Noirín who won the women's race finishing just over 2 minutes ahead of the next woman home. A fantastic results for Noirín well done.
Results :
Noirín Doyle 56:32
Fran Rea 1:06:32
Conor Casey 1:07:41
Gareth Lloyd 1:17:52
Jen Kehoe 1:19:35
Blue 5k Run
Organised by Scoil Mhuire Coolcotts this run serves as the main fundraiser for their Autism Unit which provides important extra services for the students.
Ger Mulhall, Casey Jordan, Dermot & Lisa Foley all ran and Lisa was delighted to finished 4th person and 2nd woman across the finish line, well done to all four of you.
Rome Marathon
Congratulations to Ryan Ellard who yesterday completed the Rome marathon in 4 hrs 17 mins.
A lovey way to see the sights of the historic city of Rome as he added Rome to his list of completed marathons.
Davy Fortune 5k
On St Patrick's Day club captain John Dier was taking part in the Davy Fortune 5k in Enniscorthy while Wexford town was busy with the parade.
He ran the 5k route in 25:33
National Masters & Junior Indoors / Liverpool Half / Streets of Portlaoise
National Masters/Junior Indoors.
In the National Masters Indoors held at the TUS Athlone over the weekend Siobhan Doyle W65 had a fantastic set of results.
In the 60m she won gold in 10.34 also setting a new PB and in the 200m she won gold in 36.11
National champion twice in one day, huge congratulations Siobhan.
Tony Harpur M50 was competing over 400m and 800m putting in the hard work with a 1:05.49 for 400m finished 5th and running 2:29.17 for 7th place.
The Irish Indoor U20 and U23 Championships took place last Saturday at the TUS Arena and in the long jump u20 Lucas Page-Redmond with a 5.72m best jump finished 13th.
Well done all three athletes and thanks to our officials and coaches for their time and hard work.
Liverpool Half Marathon.
Sunday morning saw 3 club members line up amongst a record 15,000 people outside Evertons Hill Dickinson stadium awaiting the starters gun.
A cool breeze saw an eagerness to get going and a bright sky added to the pre race buzz. The course takes in two of Liverpools parks and weaves its way through the historic city. Towards the end the weather turned for the worse with wind and rain changing the mood as finishers streamed over the finish line overlooked by the Liver Building
Brian, John and Ollie had followed individual plans and were meticulous even the night before as they set about their own personal targets with John and Ollie both hitting PB times for a Half Marathon, well done men. An highly recommended event.
Results:
Brian Smyth 1:36.00
John Hyland 1:39.07
Ollie Stack 1:59.57
Streets of Portlaoise 5k
The Streets of Portlaoise 5k took place on St Patrick's Day and our own Catherine O'Connor lined up with 1200 athletes ready to tackle the route.
A huge event through the streets of the town saw Catherine finished in 24:25
Another excellent run from Catherine, well done.
Track & Field Live / Great Gorey Run
Athletics Ireland Track & Field Live 2026
Well done to our Women in Sport co-ordinator Siobhan Doyle who was in Dublin NIA running on Wednesday last.
Siobhan was running the 200m which she powered through in 36.20 for a seasons best, another great result for her.
Great Gorey Run 2026
On Sunday 5 of our athletes ran the 10 mile and 2 more ran the 5k course in Gorey. This race is becoming more popular each year.
Everyones training plans have paid off as they all ran well with a PB thrown in there as well, fair play Ollie.
Also good work from Casey running her first 10 Mile race.
10 Mile results :
Tony Harpur 1:08:35
Paul Harpur 1:25:30
Jesse Kielthy 128:08
Ollie Stack 1:29:05
Casey Jordan 1:34:21
5k results:
John Dier 24:49
Gráinne Hayes 31:31
Dublin night run / County Novice Road Race / Forth Mountain IMRA
Dublin night run
Ryan Ellard ran in the Dublin night run on Wednesday. A huge event in the city streets covering a 5 Mile course on a lovely evening for a race.
Ryan finished in 34:33 and in his words 'best run I've done in a while'
Well done Ryan.
Mr Oil County Novice Road Race
For the first day in what felt like forever there was no rain and the sun came out to welcome all the clubs from the County to Rathgarogue as United Striders AC were the kind hosts. The route is a test but a fair test as the women ran first over 1 and a half laps and followed immediately by the men who ran a little over 2 laps of the loop.
Huge thanks to Striders for their organisation and hospitality on the day and well done to the County Board on another successful County Race aided by our very own Siobhan Doyle.
Ten of our clubs women pulled on their black and red vests and joined the other clubs all decked out in club colours as they set off at midday. A mix of our newer members joined our more experienced as they all set off on the 4k race. With each member putting in fantastic performances we must single out Noirín Doyle who only joined this year and ran superbly to finish 4th place only 5 seconds off a bronze medal.
A smaller number of our clubs men lined up as only four were available to run for a variety of reasons. As soon as the women's race was complete the men's race began with again a mix of experienced and newbies competing over 6k. Each pushed themselves on to run their best on the day and smiled after recovering at the finish line.
A word of thanks to our supporters today, its fantastic when running to have that support out on the course and a massive well done to each of our athletes who raced today.
Thanks to Oliver Stack Photography and Wexford Athletics for the photos
Club results :
Women's race
Noirín Doyle 16:33
Chelsea Koolhoff 19:56
Ilze Bedrite 20:00
Paula Gondard 20:42
Casey Jordan 21:08
Manon Girou 21:59
Louise Henderson 22:31
Helen Sinnott 22:45
Ann Thomas 23:30
Sam Donegan 26:16
Men's race
Pat Gallagher 27:17
Conor MacAogain 28:33
John Dier 31:28
Michael Murphy 38:18
Forth Mountain IMRA
Helen Wallace & Fran Rea both ran the IMRA Fourth Mountain trail race last Sunday morning with the sun shining . The course had a bit of everything and both really had a great time. Helen ended upvery wet at one point when the puddle was over her knee but all was OK in the end.
Helen finished 3rd in the women's race in 1:29:42 and Fran finished 22nd in the mens race in 1:25:25
Wexford Science Café hosts successful talk on drugs in sport
Wexford Science Café hosted a well attended talk last week at Wexford Library on the subject of performance enhancing drugs in sport. Chaired by Prof. Brian Trench, science communications writer and academic and convenor of WSC's monthly talks, the discussion was anchored by two guest contributors, SETU lecturer Bruce Wardrop and Clean Sport lead Dr Elizabeth Egan.
With the talk lasting just over an hour, this event was never going to have time to take a deep dive into the hows, the whys and wherefores of performance enhancing drugs in sport. It did, however, succeed in giving an up-to-date snapshot of what is an ever-evolving situation. Bruce and Elizabeth spoke of doping in its many guises, how drugs may improve performance, the risks to health of taking drugs, ways to avoid detection by the testers, technical exemptions and their occasional misuse, penalties for those caught doping, athlete education and so on. Throughout the evening, there was a lively and entertaining discussion as the pair fielded questions from the floor.
Bruce is course leader of the BSc in Sport and Exercise Science at SETU. He formerly served as lead sports physiologist with Paralympics Ireland. He is currently completing a PhD investigating the cellular mechanisms of angiogenesis in trained vs untrained individuals. A naturally vivacious communicator, Bruce hosts a popular podcast on behalf the Irish Sport and Exercise Science Association.
Elizabeth Egan, originally from Bree, has a background in exercise physiology, having completed a PhD looking at bone mineral density in female athletes, and now works as a life coach with high performance sportspeople. She is a UK Anti-doping Clean Sport educator, and the Clean Sport lead at University of East London. An active athlete herself, Elizabeth runs the resource website www.trackathletes.ie with international athlete Louise Shanahan.
The talk was supported by Menapians Athletics Club.
Leinster Indoor Juveniles /Tony MacGowan 10k / Enniscorthy 10k / Couch to 5k / Sharon Martin 2nd in National Adventure Race Series
Leinster Indoor Juvenile Championships
A fantastic Pb for Fiachra Mehigan in the 1500m 4:43.03 on Saturday.
He ran a really good even paced race for 7th place in the U17 competition
Then on Sunday he was competing in 800m and claimed an Indoor PB of 2:19.34
Fiachra's dedication and hard work reaping rewards for him, keep up the good work.
Tony MacGowan 10k.
Helen Burrell was running in County Leitrim over the weekend in the Tony MacGowan 10k. Helen had a great run of 1:11:00 and was the first woman in her age category on the day. Congratulations Helen.
Enniscorthy 10k
Sun, rain, cold and wind at different stages of todays 10k kept athletes guessing as to what to wear. The race started cool and bright but changed to windy and rain adding to the challenge of running 10k.
A healthy number of club members took the short drive up to Enniscorthy to support Slaney Olympic Athletic Club with their annual 10k event.
As always a well organised event from start to finish. Well done to all who ran and thanks to our supporters who stood in the rain to cheer everybody on.
Results:
Brian Smyth 41:22
John Hyland 43:03 (PB)
Pat Gallagher 47:05
Paul Harpur 48:46
Micheál Kinsella 51:08
John Dier 51:57
Ollie Stack 52:11
Jesse Kielthy 53:33
Chelsea Koolhoff 53:53
Casey Jordan 55:32
Sarah Bermingham 59:08
Bridie McGuire 1:29:01
Couch to 5k
Bag loads of determination from our Couch to 5k group earlier as they did not let bad weather dampen their spirits and edged closer to that target of 5k
Well done folks, almost there
Sharon Martin 2nd overall - National Adventure Race Series (Women’s Sport Category)
What a season for Sharon Martin! A huge congratulations to Sharon, who has delivered an incredible year in the National Adventure Race Series (Women’s Sport Category) — finishing 2nd overall after a string of outstanding performances!
Sharon’s season was marked by consistent top‑level racing across many adventure race events.
From tough climbs to fast bike sections and gritty trail running, Sharon showed determination, resilience, and race‑day intelligence — the hallmarks of a true multisport athlete.
Massive well done, Sharon — an incredible achievement and a season to be proud of!
