Lally sweeps to double gold at juvenile athletics finals

RISING athletics star Alanna Lally completed a magnificent double at the National Juvenile Track and Field Championships held in Tullamore last weekend.

The talented teenager, a member of Galway City Harriers, proved a class part at U19 level where she claimed the 400m title in 56.64 before also proving too strong for her rivals in the 800m.

Craughwell AC had a strong contingent competing and Sineád Treacy was their top performer with a double silver in the U18 girls’ long jump (5.22m) and 200m (25.21s).

Conor Duggan won bronze in the U18 200m in 22.65. Jamie Fallon ran a strong race in the U18 3000m to take the silver medal in a time of 8.48.12. Michael Hand was placed 3rd in the U14 javelin with a fine throws of 31.73m.

In the triple jump, the club took a pair of medals with Matthew McKernan taking bronze in the U17 Boys event with a leap of 12.19m, while Daniel Callanan-Forde jumped a fine 10.73m to take silver in the U15 grade.

GCH’s Maebh Brannigan took a superb double silver in the U18 800m and 1500m. Sarah McDonnell, also Galway City Harriers AC, came a fine third in the U16 800m, while sprinter Cillin Greene, also of GCH, ran an excellent time of 23.05 in the U17 200m to take silver.

Other GCH athletes in action included Laoise Geraghty, 4th in the U14 800m, Sean Kilmartin who was 4th in the U16 boys 250m hurdles, and also reached the final of the 200m, and Laura Nally 5th in the U15 200m and 800m.

Aaron Brennan finished 5th in the 800m and 6th in the U14 1500m, while Aoife Sheehy finished 8th in the U15 800m and 11th in the 1500m. Laura Ann Costello was 5th in the U18 200m, Róisín Dobey came sixth in the U19 200m while Robert Meagher finished sixth in the U19 200m and seventh in the 400m.

Rory Murray came eighth in the U15 1500m. Elisabeth Maher was 4th in the U19 400m and just missed out on a medal. Kara McCleane showed promise by finishing eighth in the U12 600m.

Veronica Burke of Ballinasloe and District AC had a silver medal winning performance in the U19 Girls 3k walk in 15.27, while Loughrea’s Brendan Lynch narrowly missed out on a medal with a fine leap of 11.68m giving him fourth in the U16 Boys Triple Jump

Meanwhile, Galway City Harriers athlete Emma O’Hara claimed a fine 11th place in the Hammer throw at the World Junior Championships in Oregon, USA last week, competing for Ireland. Her best throw on the day was 56.28 metres, and she threw even longer in qualifying for the final with 57.17m.