Adam Nolan selected for the European u23 Championships
Adam Nolan in action Photo: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
On Saturday evening at the Prefontaine Classic in Oregon, double Olympic champion Beatrice Chebet became the first woman in history to break the 14-minute barrier for 5000m. The Kenyan clocked a new world record of 13:58.06. Just 80 minutes after Chebet's record-breaking run, Chebet’s Kenyan compatriot Olympic gold medallist Faith Kipyegon re-entered the record books by breaking her own world 1500m record with 3:48.68. On this occasion there was no doubt about the authenticity of Kipyegon’s performance as she took 0.36 off the record she set in Paris last year. Unaided by pacers or speed suits or other super-duper technology as was the case with her recent exhibition attempt at the sub minute mile. 20-year-old Dutchman Neils Laros won the Bowerman mile with Ireland’s Sarah Healy finishing 7th in the ladies 1500m. Rhasidat Adeleke finished 4th in the 400m, just not quiet hitting her form yet.
On the same day in Tullamore, where the sun did not shine as brightly nor the pole vault raised quiet to the same hight as that of Mondo Duplantis, our own athletes were testing their own form at the National u20 and u23 championships. For the u23 athletes, this competition was a pre-curser to their departure for the European u23s in two weeks’ time, the final opportunity for some to achieve a qualification standard.
Carlow took home seven medals, not a bad record from a group of just eleven athletes that took part in the championships. There was gold for Arabella Adekoya in the 100m hurdles, with silver medals going to Ruben McCarthy (110m Hurdles), Jennifer Sawyer (400m Hurdles), Lee Prendergast (Pole Vault) and Michaela Subrtova (Triple Jump). Two bronze medals were achieved by Leila Colfer (100m) and Chloe Ryan (Shot).
Athletics Ireland announced their team for the forthcoming European u23 Championships. Based on achieving a pre-defined qualification standard and a number of other criteria, the formal selection was announced on sunday. Included on the list of those selected was Adam Nolan (SLOT). Nolan has qualified in the 110m hurdles.
St Laurence O’Toole took part in the National League last Sunday. Currently lying in second place on the overall table, the club have 196 points. They trail Dundrum South Dublin by 23 points. The final of the League will be held in two weeks’ time on July 2th, where St Laurence O’Toole will be hoping to amass further points.
Adam Nolan has been named on the Irish team that will travel to the European u23 championships in Begen, Norway in ten days’ time. Nolan will compete in the 110m hurdles for which he achieved the qualification standard earlier this year. Thirty-seven athletes including three relay teams are set to travel to Bergen for the Championships which run from the 17th to the 20th July. Nolan achieved the qualification standard at the Athletics Ireland May Open in Tullamore and at last month’s Leinster Track and Field in Carlow. No stranger to European competitions, Nolan previously competed in the European u20 Championships in 2023 in Jerusalem.
Arabella Adekoya took gold in the All-Ireland u23 100m hurdles last weekend in Tullamore. The St Laurence O’Toole athlete finished four tenths of a second clear of Laura Frawley (Nenagh Olympic) in a time of 14.31 seconds. The time was just marginally outside of her personal best of 14.01 seconds which she set in Brussels in May of this year. (She has run 13.92 but with wind speeds over the legal limit). In the same race Michaela Subrtova finished 4th. Adekoya has been in tremendous form this year. At the national indoors she took bronze in the 60m hurdles. Racing over her signature event the 100m hurdles she has been consistently recording low 14 second runs all summer.
The 2024 National Senior 400m Hurdles champion Jennifer Sawyer had to be content with the silver medal last Sunday as she took on Dooneen’s Victoria Amiadamen. The European u23 bound Amiadamen proved her 400m flat speed to be the catalyst for ultimate victory as she took advantage of the final run in to pull away from Sawyer. This was the Carlow athletes first outing over the 400m hurdles this season. She subsequently took part in the National League where she secured a new season’s best of 61.92 just five hundreds of a second off her personal best.
There were further silver medals in the hurdles as Ruben McCarthy took the runner-up position in the u20 100m hurdles. McCarthy was neck to neck with Crusaders Sean Owens for the entire race. A clip on the final hurdle upset McCarthy’s rhythm and he had to settle for the silver medal. Lee Prendergast took silver in the pole vault with a best vault of 3.40m which he secured on his second attempt. There was a further silver medal as Michaela Subrtova leaped 10.74m to finish second in the u23 triple jump.
Leila Colfer earned her bronze medal. Flagged to her right by the in-form Precious Apke-Moses, Colfer knew she was going to have to give it her all to have a chance of a podium placing. Irish sprinting talent is on the rise, spear headed of course by Rhasidat Adeleke who set a multitude of Irish records from 100m to 400m over the past five years. Colfer knew the likes of Angela Cielecka, Fatima Amusan, Katie Doherty and Apke-Moses were all good enough to take a medal. Nervously taking her marks at the starting line, Colfer looked straight to the finish in an effort to psych herself for the race. Then came the gun. Colfer got a good start, getting out of the blocks before some of her opponents. Powering down the track she was within sight of Amusan. As she crossed the line a side ways glance confirmed that she had secured a medal. Bronze.
The final medal went to Chloe Ryan who secured bronze in the u20 shot putt. Ryan was also 4th in the u20 discus. No stranger to podium placings Ryan produced a throw of 11.22m in the fifth round to secure her third place. Third was the same placing she achieved the following day in the National League in both the discus and shot.
After the first stage of the national league last Sunday, St Laurence O’Toole AC are lying second in the overall table with a total of 196 points. This is a strong showing from the Carlow club who are doing very well to compete against the larger Dublin and Cork based clubs whose catchment area is far greater in terms of numbers that St Laurence O’Toole could ever achieve. They trail Dundrum South Dublin by 23 points and are 10 points ahead of Clonliffe with Ratoath AC in fourth. Jennifer Sawyer secured maximum points with her 400m hurdles win. The 4x400m relay team of Cassie O’Byrne, Sofia Grango, Jennifer Sawyer and Emily Lawler proved too strong for Clonliffe Harriers as they cruised home to victory with over seven seconds to spare. There were some strong performances by Sofia Grango in the 200m as she finished second overall in the 200m, adding 13 points to the score board. Also adding 13 points to the score board was Susie Mitchell, who finished 2nd in the hammer. With consistent top three performances in most events, it was no surprise that the club finished the day second from the top. The final of the National League takes place in two weeks’ time, where the Carlow club hope to repeat their solid performance.
All-Ireland u20 and u23
U20 Ladies:
100m: 3 Leila Colfer, Shot: 3 Chloe Ryan, Discus: 4 Chloe Ryan, Javelin: 7 Isabelle McCormack
U20 Mens:
110m Hurdles: 2 Ruben McCarthy, Discus: 5 Darragh Corcoran, Pole Vault: 2 Lee Prendergast
U23 Ladies:
Triple Jump 2 Michaela Subrtova, 100m Hurdles: 1 Arabella Adekoya, 4 Michaela Subrtova, 400m Hurdles: 2 Jennifer Sawyer
U23 Men:
1500m 8th (Heat) Aaron Shorten, Javelin: 5 David Martinec
