Clonliffe Harriers will host the National Inter-Counties and Juvenile Even Ages Cross Country Championships at Santry Demesne thanks to the assistance and co-operation of Fingal County Council and Morton Stadium.
The National Inter-Counties is also a trial to assist the selectors in the selecting of teams for the European Cross Country on December 8th in Belgrade. The Senior Men’s race will feature a number of Clonliffe athletes who will be pushing for places on the international team, including Steven Scullion who finished a battling 2nd behind John Travers at the Dublin Cross Country in Raheny a couple of weeks back. Other Clonliffe senior athletes competing in the Men’s 10,000M race includes on the Dublin team Colm Rooney, who pulled out of the Dublins with an ankle injury just before half way and Edgars Sumkiss. Jamie Rossiter will compete in the U/23 category and will look for another strong race after his fine run in St. Anne’s and undoubtedly will be in contention for a place on the U/23 international team. Another Clonliffe athlete in fine form competing on Sunday is Brian MacMahon who will complete in the red singlet of his native Cork. James Kevan also makes the trip back to Santry.
In the Senior Women’s race Sara McCormack goes for Clonliffe, again looking for a place on the international team, Sarah was a member of the victorious Irish Senior Women’s team that won the Europeans in Budapest last December. Sarah will be joined on the start line by Clonliffe team mate Eleanor Alexander. Emer O’Brien will run for her native Sligo, Emer is another athlete who had a fine run in the Dublin’s in St. Anne’s.
Young Aaron Hanlon is in the happy position of having been pre-selected for the European Junior team as a result of his outstanding 2nd place in the recent Lotto Cross Country race in Antwerp. Aaron competes on Sunday for County Louth. Also competing on Sunday will be Eoin Taggart and in the U/18 section of the junior race a crop of young up and coming Clonliffe athletes including Cathal Doyle, Brian Flanagan, Josh Stubbs, Niall Norman and Ross Kearney.
The Clonliffe Junior Women will also be represented on Sunday with both Roisin Leahy and Laura Brennan competing on the Dublin Junior Women’s team and in the U/18 race Hope Saunders will also compete in the Dublin colours.
Sunday will also see a number of the up and coming Clonliffe athletes running in the Juvenile Championships with the Boy’s U/16’s in particular having a strong team and looking like they will be well in he hunt for honours with a team of Sean Carrick, Adam O’Brien, Shane Merrigan, Joseph Hession, Alex Gibbons and Kevin McKenna.
The Clonliffe U/14 team will also compete with a team of Daniel Craig, Joey Hutchinson, Harry Pierce, David Tuite, Stephen Cashin and Sean.
Young Killian Forrester will run on the Dublin U/12 Boy’s Inter-county team.
The Clonliffe girls are also well represented with a good Girl’s U/12 team of Abbey Sheehy, Ella Bergin, Eva Hession, Ella Browne, Yasmin Eustace and Amy Hodson.
Alannah Cooley will run on the Dublin Girl’s U/16 team.
Note to All Clonliffe stewards: please report to the Clubhouse for a briefing meeting at 10.00 a.m. on the morning. Clonliffe members available who have not as yet signed up are particularly welcome as we could do with some additional help with stewarding of the course.
The timetable for Sunday is:
11.30 a.m. Girl’s U/12 2,000M
11.43 a.m. Boy’s U/12 2,000M
11.55 a.m. Girl’s U/14 3,000M
12.10 p.m. Boy’s U/14 3,000M
12.25 p.m. Girl’s U/16 4,000M
12.43 p.m. Boy’s U/16 4,000M
1.00 p.m. Junior Women & Girl’s U/18 (Combined) 4,000M
1.20 p.m. Junior Men & Boy’s U/18 (Combined) 6,000M
1.45 p.m. Senior Women 8,000M
2.25 p.m. Senior Men 10,000M
Best of luck to all our athletes on Sunday. Please come along and lend your support.
For parking plan and course map click: course-map-parking1