Donore strikes gold in provincials
DONORE Harriers boasted three gold medallists on the first day of the Leinster Schools Track and Field Championships at Santry last week.
David Slupko was the convincing winner of the Senior Boys 110m Hurdles in a time of 15.08 while Abdel Laadjel (Kishoge CC) also turned in an fine display to win Under 16 Boys One Mile contest.
Louis O'Loughlin holds off James Dunne in the Senior Boys 800m.
The third gold medal came in the final event of the day, the Intermediate Girls Hammer.
Keri Noonan had the hammer in the cage-netting with her first two efforts but threw a safe 39.81m to move her into third before a fourth round throw of 45.22m saw her take the win ahead of runner-up Laura Cunningham of Eureka Kells.
Lara O’Byrne (St. Joseph’s Lucan) made a great start in the Senior Girls 100m Hurdles, but had to settle for a silver medal in a photo-finish with Katie Rose Barry of Loreta Stephen’s Green, both girls clocking 16.51.
Ashling Nyhan also won a silver medal as the third leg runner for the Mount Sackville Junior Girls 4x100m relay team.
The other competing Donore Harriers athletes were: Leonie Power (Loreta Beaufort) fifth in the Inter-Girls 80m Hurdles, Sekeriye Ahmed fifth in the 2000m Senior Boys Steeplechase, Grace Raftery eighth in the Junior Girls 800m, Honor Lynch ninth in Minor Girls 1100m, Oliver Hopkins sixth in the Minor Boys 1100m and Ciara Simm fourth in Senior Girls Hammer.
The club saw more top placings secured on Day Two of the competition with Jack Raftery and Louis O’Loughlin winning their events.
The former was the winner of the Senior Boys 400m in a new PB of 49.32.
Running for Moyle Park College, O’Loughlin had a gun-to-tape win in the Senior Boys 800m, his time of 1.52.43 setting a new championship record, marginally faster than the 1.52.71 registered by Eoin Cummins in 1998.
Lara O’Byrne (St. Joseph’s Lucan) missed out on a bronze medal in the Senior Girls High Jump following a countback. Her failure to clear 1.63m and her second attempt at 1.60m put her level with Maeve Hayes of Loreta Wexford, but Hayes’ first attempt clearance at 1.60m put her on the podium.
Donore athletes Slupko, Raftery and Jake Rooney were in the Castleknock College Senior Boys team that won gold medals in the 4x100m.
Daniel Ecock ran the second leg for the Colaiste Chiaran Leixlip Senior Boys team that took bronze in the Senior Boys 4x400m.
