70th Cork City Sports: A Spectacular Night of Racing
One word: finally
It was a moment of elation for the entire Cork athletics community just a few
weeks ago to hear the news that the resurfacing of the MTU track was finally
complete. It really was a rather unfortunate scenario that we found ourselves
in over the last couple of months with not a single 400 metre track in Cork, a
situation that I can only hope will never be repeated. Many athletes were
forced to trek to Castleisland, Newcastle West, Clonmel and further afield in
a desperate attempt to keep their preparations on schedule for the busy
summer season of racing ahead. It is little wonder then, why there was such
excitement in the build-up to this year’s Cork City Sports, as we were not only
welcoming an array of world-class athletes, but also welcoming the return of
track racing to Cork.
The return of the MTU Track at long last
Down to business…almost
With the Leaving Cert exams in the rear-view mirror, it was finally time for me
to make my own return to the track, but not before a well-deserved holiday
with my family, if I may say so myself. We had a spectacular time in both the
United States and Canada, and I managed to fit in a number of workouts, with
my brother kindly jumping in at times to help me out.
Running off the burgers with some 400 metre reps.
We began our journey back home last Wednesday, finally arriving home in the
late afternoon the following day. I have become fairly accustomed to red-eye
flights heading eastbound across the Atlantic Ocean, but this one seemed to
hit me particularly hard, and I was jetlagged for several days afterwards…first
world problems I know.
EI136 to Dublin (I must remind myself that this is a running blog and not a plane-spotting one, with aviation being another huge interest of mine.)
Tuesday: Raceday
A mere five days later it was raceday. The nerves really began to set in a
couple of hours before the race. Adding to these nerves was the fact that this
was going to be my first 3000m race in over 3 years, so I really didn’t know
what to expect. But with some good training sessions behind me, I was
confident of a strong performance.
Running out onto the bouncy new track, we were greeted by the buzzing
atmosphere of the supporters gathered. The enthusiasm amongst the
spectators never ceases to amaze me at the Cork City Sports.
Before long, the gun was off, and I was battling for position in the first lap
amongst the 24 other athletes in the race. The race started at a relatively slow
pace, with nobody wishing to take the race on from the front, and it certainly
wasn’t going to be me! Unfortunately, I found myself slightly further down the
field than I needed to be, so I had to make some slight adjustments in pace to
link on to the leading pack. Things really began to heat up over the last
kilometer, and ultimately, I didn’t have the change of gear required to push on
in the latter stages, with fatigue from travelling over the previous week playing
a large part in this. In the end, I finished in 9th position, with a time of 8:54.
Try to find me!
After reflecting on the race myself, I know that I can run a lot better, and I
hope to run somewhere in the 8:30s in a race very soon.
International Focus
After my own event, I was able to immerse myself in the other races taking
place. There were some superb performances by many international athletes,
with 6 of the Paris 2024 Irish Olympians competing. As ever, Sarah Lavin was
very impressive over the 100 metre hurdles, while Phil Healy received a
roaring reception from the crowd as she came out onto the track for the 100
metres. Although we didn’t witness the first ever sub-10 second 100 metre
performance on Irish soil as some were expecting prior to the event, we were
treated to an amazing men’s mile race to close out the night, with 12 men
running under 4 minutes for the mile. All in all, it was a very enjoyable event
with all eyes now focused on the Paris Olympics which will be underway in
just a few weeks’ time!
Crowds gathered at the 70th edition of the Cork City Sports