Keogh Qualifies for All-Ireland Schools’ Cross-Country Finals
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- Published: Thursday, 05 March 2020 09:29
Ulster Schools' Cross-Country Athletics photo album
Diarmait Keogh delivered one of his best performances in cross-country last Wednesday (26th Feb) when he finished 8th the under-17 boys race at Ulster Schools’ cross-country finals in Mallusk, Belfast. This performance booked his place in the All-Ireland Schools’ cross-country finals in Santry, Dublin, on Saturday 7th March. After the initial fast start over the opening 500m, Diarmait was always in contention for a top 12 qualifying place. In the first of three laps of the Belfast City Playing Fields, Diarmait moved steadily up through the field and was in the top 12 after 2km. For the remaining 3km, Diarmait continued to make inroads into the top 10. A brilliant sprint finish over the last 200m ensured that Diarmait crossed the line in 8th place. In addition to qualifying for the All-Irelands, Diarmait’s top 12 finish secured an invitation from Athletics Northern Ireland to participate in trials for the Ulster & Northern Ireland Junior Mountain Running Team. If Diarmait is selected from these trials, he will represent Ulster & NI at international competitions later in the year.
Oisin Fogarty finished a very respectable 50th in the under-17 race. This was Oisin’s first experiences of Ulster Schools’ cross-country. With a leg injury forcing Oisin to miss a significant amount of training prior to Christmas, he did very well to finish 12th the Ulster Districts in January. This performance guaranteed Oisin’s place in the Ulster finals. With another year in the under-17 age group, Oisin can look forward to further progress at both Ulster and All-Ireland level.
Athletics training continues every Thursday from 3:20-4:45. Meet in the Gym @ 3:20. All students are welcome to attend.