Ironman 70.3 Valencia
Marion Galvin was in Valencia and while there....she can tell you herself as she was there ....
My first experience tackling an Ironman 70.3 took place in Valencia on April 27, 2025, and it was nothing short of unforgettable. The race began with a 1.9km swim in the bustling harbour alongside over 2,000 other swimmers, an intense yet exhilarating start to the day. My training journey had kicked off on Christmas Day at the Wexford Parkrun, evolving into a demanding weekly routine of three runs, three swims, and two cycles, with Fridays reserved for much-needed rest. My runs varied between sprints and longer weekend sessions of 12km, 14km, and 16km. Some long runs were preceded by a 2km swim to build endurance, while other days combined runs with 90km cycles to simulate the physical demands of race day—but never all three disciplines together. Two weeks before the big day, I completed a Sprint triathlon (750m swim, 40km cycle, 5km run) to fine-tune my transitions, followed by the Wexford half marathon the next day to prepare my legs to be somewhat fatigued, as they would be during the race itself.
Race day brought both triumphs and challenges. While my swim and cycle went smoothly—helped by my coach’s advice to stay in zone 3 to avoid dehydration in the hot weather—the half marathon presented an unexpected hurdle. An old knee injury flared up, likely aggravated by walking around 20km during the two days prior to the race, a mistake I realised too late since my training had prepared me to run, not walk. Despite the pain, the energy from the crowd kept my spirits high. Supporters lined the streets, and although being called "animal" by every spectator might sound offensive in English, in Spanish it came across as enthusiastic encouragement—a funny reminder of how language shapes experience. Reflecting back, it was a tough but incredible journey that tested not just my body, but also my resilience and adaptability.
Mr Oil County Throws Night.
A wonderful night of throwing competition took place on Friday as the clubs throwers turned up at DMP grounds ready to compete.
Our crew of Fiachra Mehigan, Josh Nolan, Alex Lonergan, Lorcan Carroll , Orla Dolan, Meabh McCormack, Samantha Donegan, Liam Carroll and Tracey Nolan all represented the club across discus, shot putt and hammer competition. Great to see Samantha back competing again.
Two members made the podium :
Josh Nolan U17 took gold at discus and bronze in hammer.
Fiachra Mehigan U16 took bronze in hammer.
Well done to all who competed with pride in our colours. Thanks to everyone who volunteered and helped the event run so smoothly.
Leinster Masters Road Race
Gowran in County Kilkenny was the scenic venue for the hosting of this year's Leinster Masters Road Race
Representing us were Catherine O'Connor, Tony Harpur and Martin Kelly.
Catherine claimed the F60 gold in an absolute fantastic time of 15:08, a great run from one of our club coaches.
Tony put in a superb effort which saw him finish in 24:02 for 7th place in m45.
Martin's his huge effort of 26:25 was rewarded with M70 gold.
Huge congratulations to all three, super running.
South Leinster Schools T & F
Fiachra Mehigan and Rory Henderson both wore their school colours this week while competing in Carlow.
Rory wearing Meanscoil colours took on the high jump. A tough event well done Rory.
Fiachra was in CBS colours and finished 4th in a competitive 1500m and also took on the high jump. His 4th qualifies him for Leinster, well done to you Fiachra.
Tinryland Half Marathon
What a debut for this event on the running calender. It's sure to be a sellout every year. Even the weather contributed to a super event. Lots of support as the route passes through the village multiple times.
Eamonn Foley was our sole representative in this one running 1 hour 51 min.
Nice work Eamonn.
Great Limerick 6 mile road race.
The warmest of a Bank Holiday Sunday awaited Janette & Peter Mulvany in Limerick. They had a great day running the 6 Mile distance with Janette running 1hr 8 min and Peter running 1 hrs 3 min.
As Janette said 'We were roasted'
Congratulations guys and enjoy the refreshments afterwards.
Stephen Murphy Memorial 5k
Conor MacAogain was out running in the sun earlier in the Stephen Murphy Memorial 5k run. A nice pace saw him record 24:57 for the event. Good work Conor
Mr Oil Juvenile County T & F
Events got off to a timely start on Sunday for Day 2 of the juvenile County Championships in the Sports Hub, Enniscorthy. Starting out warm in the sun, a cool breeze gathered pace to keep everyone fresh as the morning progressed, with cloud taking precedence for the afternoon as fleeting glimpses of sunny breaks teased those attending with brief moments of heat.
A strong turnout from the club saw twelve athletes in attendance, with last year's introduction of a separate evening for under 8s to under 11s making this an even more impressive showing for Menapians.
Starting with under 12s we had Benny Lonergan and Conor Donovan who both competed strongly in high jump and turbo javelin, while Benny ran the 100m sprint as well.
Under 13 Fionn Murphy gave his all with great performances in the 100m sprint, long jump and shot put.
Our under 14 girls trio of Amy Conde, Abbie Donovan and Estee Lonergan put in solid performances in high jump and javelin with Estee taking a well deserved gold in the javelin.
Rory Henderson and Fiachra Mehigan did the club proud in Under 16s, with Fiachra collecting bronze in long jump and silver in the 1500m middle distance race, and Rory claiming silver in javelin. Both also participated in 100m sprint and shot put while Rory did the long jump too.
In under 17s we had a collection of medals - Josh Nolan claimed bronze in 100m sprint, silver in high jump and gold in javelin, while Maeve McCormack won silver for javelin, gold for high jump and also bronze in 100m. Also in under 17 Orla Dolan competed in high jump, 100m sprint and javelin, and Alex Lonergan ran 100m sprint and 1500m middle distance.
Lucas Paige-Redmond (under 19) brought home three golds in each of his three events - 100m sprint, high jump and javelin.
Well done to all members and hope to see you all back for more competition next Sunday, and the younger athletes on Friday evening.
Thanks to club coaches and officials for helping out on the day - Ellen Cullimore, Tracey Nolan, Louise Henderson, Padraig Kelly, Siobhan Doyle, Catherine O'Connor, Ilze Bedrite & Tadhg Henderson. Thanks as well to the parents for getting the athletes to the start line.
Prague Marathon
Congratulations to Ryan Ellard who ran the Prague Marathon on Sunday morning. He ran a terrific time of 3:40:15 smashing his PB for a marathon. Well done Ryan, enjoy the down time in Prague
Taghmon 5k
The Taghmon Handball club hosted their annual 5k fundraising event on Bank Holiday Monday. Blessed with a bright sunny morning and a deceiving cool breeze. Almost 100 signed up to run or walk the route which used quite back roads for half then onto the main road into the village finishing up the hill towards the handball alley. We had eight members taking part and Niall on the timer at the finish line. Tony had a great run after his Leinster outing on Saturday and finished 4th today.
Tony Harpur 19:27
John Dier 24:31
Paula Gondard 26:55
Darren O'Grady 27:46
Helen Burrell 30:56
Siobhan Doyle 31:25
Sharron Dier 39:34
Bridie McGuire 40:42
parkrun
A beautiful morning saw a lot of members out running early in the day at various parkruns.
Congratulations to Sharron who completed her 250th parkrun on Saturday, a super milestone to hit.
Anthony Dowd, Dave Midwinter, Gareth Lloyd, John Dier, Dermot Foley, Brian Smyth, Fiachra Mehigan, Rob Mehigan, Hazel Doyle, Sarah Bermingham, Darren O'Grady, Ann Thomas, Ollie Stack, Helen Burrell, Mary Cronin, Michael Murphy, Gráinne Hayes, Sinead Ryan, Sharron Dier and Bridie McGuire all completed the Wexford Racecourse Parkrun. Shout to Anthony who was first to complete the event.
Tadhg & Louise Henderson took a spin to JFK for the New Ross parkrun.
Enda O'Sullivan was at the Knockancree Cloughjordan parkrun.