Stonkus and Butcher crowned Leinster champions
Barrow Valley boys u10 gold medal winners at the Leinster Championships. Photos: Perri Williams
Carlow hosted this year’s Leinster Relays and Combined Event Championships, with local athletes rising to the occasion in impressive fashion. Across age groups ranging from U9 to U19, Carlow clubs collected 11 sets of medals in what proved to be a highly successful and well-supported weekend of athletics.
With three clubs — St Laurence O’Toole, St Pat’s and Barrow Valley — all strongly represented, there was a real sense of depth and progress within the county. The combined events programme on Sunday in particular produced a number of high-quality performances in a discipline that continues to grow in popularity, helped in no small part by the international success of Ireland’s Kate O’Connor.
Among the standout performers were Oskaras Stonkus (St Pat’s), who delivered a composed and consistent display to win the boys U12 quadrathlon, and Harry Butcher (St Laurence O’Toole), who produced a dominant showing to take the boys U15 pentathlon title.
Oskaras Stonkus (St Pat’s AC) was crowned Leinster U12 quadrathlon champion following an excellent all-round performance at the Carlow venue. Already qualified for the All-Ireland U12 championships in the shot put, he arrived in strong form and quickly set about proving it.
The 60m sprint opened the competition and Stonkus immediately laid down a marker, clocking 8.88 seconds to take victory. He was the only athlete in the field to break the nine-second barrier, giving him an early advantage on the scoreboard.
Momentum remained with the St Pat’s athlete as he moved into the second event, the long jump. Producing a best leap of 4.08m, he once again topped the standings and further extended his lead, establishing himself as the athlete to catch.
The shot put brought sterner competition, particularly from Leinster U12 champion Luke Hanlon of Thomastown. While Hanlon took the top spot in that discipline, Stonkus responded with a solid throw of 7.86m to secure second place and keep his advantage intact heading into the final event.
The outcome ultimately rested on the 600m, a demanding race that tested endurance after a long day of competition. Stonkus finished fifth, but his consistency across all four disciplines proved decisive as he accumulated a winning total of 1039 points to secure the gold medal.
Harry Butcher (St Laurence O’Toole) delivered another standout Carlow performance, claiming gold in the boys U15 pentathlon. Known for his strength in sprinting, hurdling and long jump, he adapted well to the broader demands of the five-event competition.
He began with one of his strongest disciplines, the hurdles, where he comfortably secured maximum points. A strong long jump performance followed, leaving him with a commanding 517-point lead over Sean Farrell (Gowran) at an early stage.
Butcher maintained control through the shot put, recording a best of 11.36m to extend his advantage further, while Farrell slipped down the standings. Although the high jump proved his most challenging event, he limited the damage before finishing strongly in the 800m.
In the final race, Butcher produced an outstanding run to win in 2:30, sealing an emphatic victory with 414 points to spare over Harry Kearney (Naas).
There was further success in the senior category, with Michaela Šubrtová taking gold in the women’s event. Her margin of victory — over 800 points ahead of Celbridge AC’s Vivien Fleischer — underlined the strength of her performance across all disciplines.
Carlow clubs also enjoyed significant success in the Leinster Relay Championships, with the home venue helping to generate strong participation and enthusiastic support.
Barrow Valley AC emerged as one of the standout clubs of the day, securing three sets of medals from their nine competing teams. The results reflected a club that is continuing to rebuild and strengthen its presence at Leinster level.
The highlight was a superb double in the U10 relays. The girls team of Hayley Moloney, Kate McNally, Abigail Nolan, Lilah O’Leary and Connie Wade impressed from the outset, winning their heat in a time of 1:06.28. They carried that form into the final, delivering a smooth and composed performance with excellent baton exchanges to claim gold in 1:05.19, improving their time by more than a second.
The boys were equally impressive. The quartet of Jacob Cummins, Daniel Hickey, Freddie Kelly and Sam Savage progressed through the heats as the fastest qualifiers and produced a confident display in the final to secure gold.
Barrow Valley also demonstrated their strength in depth by fielding a second boys team. Patrick Fleming, Thomas Callaghan, Tadhg Brennan and Sam Wade qualified for the final and performed strongly to finish sixth, an achievement in itself at this level of competition.
Barrow Harriers added to Carlow’s medal tally, with Billy Óg Forde, Oisín Savage, Thomas Ó Cathasaigh and Cale Kent taking bronze in the boys U14 relay. A particularly strong leg from Forde proved crucial in securing a podium finish.
St Pat’s AC had three teams competing and, although they did not reach the podium, there were encouraging performances. Their boys U9 team came very close to qualifying for the final, missing out by just 0.2 seconds, while their girls U12 and U14 teams finished fifth and sixth respectively in their heats.
St Laurence O’Toole AC, as the largest club in the county, fielded an impressive 18 teams across the various relay events and collected eight sets of medals by the end of the day.
The opportunity to compete on home ground allowed for greater participation, particularly at younger age levels, and the club made the most of it with a strong overall showing.
Gold medals were secured in the boys U12, girls U15 and girls U19 categories. Silver medals followed in the boys U15 and girls U18 events, while bronze was claimed by the girls U10, boys U13 and girls U14 teams.
The girls U16 team were unfortunate to miss out on a medal after a fall just metres from the finish line cost them a likely silver, representing one of the few disappointments of an otherwise successful day.
The girls U15 team of Fatima Mohammed Ibrahim, Libby Harris Byrne, Isabella Butler, Nicolette Keogh, Pippa O’Brien and Anna Dillon delivered one of the performances of the championships. Entering the final as the third-fastest qualifiers, they produced a superb run to win gold in 51.11, overtaking both Ratoath and St Abbans.
In the U19 final, Sofia Granjo, Mia Cullen, Hannah Moriarty and Ada Bambrick held their composure in a tightly contested race. With the teams level at the final changeover, Granjo produced a powerful finishing leg to pull clear and secure victory by almost a second.
The boys U12 team also impressed greatly. Oliver McDonald, Thomas Julian, Michael Cassidy, Harry Brown, Ibrahim Mohammed Ibrahim and Sean Cullen combined effectively, with McDonald producing a strong closing leg to push the team to gold ahead of Suncroft.
In other results, Tara AC claimed victory in the girls U14 event, with St Laurence O’Toole taking silver through Isabella Butler, Anna Dillon, Pippa O’Brien and Cara Waddock. In the boys U15 race, Ratoath AC set a new championship record of 48.07, while St Laurence O’Toole secured silver thanks to a determined final leg from Harry Butcher.
Bronze medals were won by the boys U13 team of Lukas Andrulenis, Jack Kenny, Charlie Dillon and Adnan Bouanba Nichistroi; the girls U10 team of Piper O’Neill, Catherine Cassidy, Cara Dunne, Molly Sheerin and Neala Whelan; and the girls U18 team of Mia Cullen, Hannah Moriarty, Ada Bambrick, Holly Byrne and Anna Byrne.
All qualifying teams now look ahead to the All-Ireland Relay Championships next month, where Carlow clubs will hope to build on this strong provincial showing.
