Fogarty leads the way as Run-Athlone 10k benefits Special Olympics
Mick Fogarty and Sonya McConnon captured the principal honours in the Run-Athlone 10k hosted by Buccaneers RFC over a scenic course in the Garnafailagh and Coosan areas of Athlone recently.
Fogarty finished strongly to capture the men's event in a very good time of 34 minutes, 37 seconds. He had 17 seconds to spare over second placed Mark Carroll, who had set the pace for a goodly portion of this run.
McConnon finished in a highly creditable fifth place overall, less than a minute behind the overall victor.
With in excess of 100 participants in this inaugural Run-Athlone, Special Olympics was another winner on the day as they will be benefit from a share of the profits.
A blustery morning with occasional showers added to the challenge of the day but the good-humoured field - including personalities as diverse as TD Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan and entertainer Joe McCaul - enjoyed the well-organised event.
Indeed, Flanagan finished high up the rankings in 25th place, perhaps a good indicator for him in the lead up to the forthcoming elections! Notably three female runners finished in the top ten; well done to them too.
Yvonne O’Shea, Brian Tallon and Lorna Stuart-Trainor led the organising team for this event. On the day, a small army of volunteers including Buccaneers Senior Captain Alex Hayman and Head Coach Tony Dolan acted as marshalls around the course.
Another sizeable team of stewards at Registration operated efficiently at Dubarry Park, issuing the runners with timer chips and ‘Goodie bags’ as well as very welcome hot tea or coffee and light refreshments before the off. Their voluntary efforts are greatly appreciated by both Buccaneers RFC and Special Olympics.
A huge amount of gratitude is also extended to the various sponsors, who contributed significantly to the success of the staging of the Run-Athlone 10k. The chief sponsors were Direct Medical, Smith’s SuperValu, Shadow, Gala Crescent, Hanley's Cash & Carry and Trizone. Thanks too to the various bodies such as TriAthlone, Order of Malta, Athlone Gardai and Run Ireland for their assistance.
A big thank you also to Derek Nugent, who acted as Race Marshall, and Padraig Nally, who kept the music pumping for the duration of the event, for their assistance with the run, which promises to be an annual event.
Winners - Men
1st: Mick Fogarty 34.37
2nd: Mark Carroll 34.54
3rd: Declan Newman 36.04
Winners - Women
1st: Sonya McConnon 38.29
2nd: Adrianna Melia 39.10
3rd: Veronica Colleran 40.12