Tuesday, December 29, 2009

John O'Regan - Selected for Irish Team

John O'Reagan has been selected to represent Ireland in the World 24hr Challenge and European Championships. This race will take place in Brive, France 13/14th May 2010.

John made his debut 24hr race in October last in London. Ireland will send a team of six and the first 3 home will score on the Irish Team.

John is currently in Kery with his family and I'm sure he is delighted with his selection. John is a very committed athlete and I'm sure he found time over Christmas to get a couple of runs in!

Well done John and best of luck from everyone at the club.

Monday, December 21, 2009

Un-even ages Cross Country Re-Run

Two races from the Uneven ages Cross Country are to be re-run in February, the following information is taken directly from the athletics Ireland website; "The re-run of the two races declared void at the uneven age group championships in Coleraine, boys under 13 and girls under 15, will take place in conjunction with the juvenile ‘B’ cross country championships at Lough Key, Boyle, Co. Roscommon, on Sunday 21st February 2010."

The athletes affected by this re-run are Conal Hayes, Daragh Nolan, Patrick Flanagan and Seán Flanagan (all competing in the boys u13). The re-run of this event will greatly affect their training for the indoor and track&field season's but no doubt the boys will rise to the occasion. Best of luck!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Club Christmas Party



The Club Christmas party was held tonight (Thursday 17th December) a night that was enjoyed by all who attended. The night started off with a basketball tournament followed by a small awards ceremony. Certificates were presented to Patrick Flanagan, Fiacra MacSuibhne, Julie Boyle, Conal Hayes, Sean Flanagan, Niall O’Sullivan and Erica Dixon for representing the club in the various National Championships throughout the past year. Vouchers were also presented to Conal Hayes, Julie Boyle and Niall O’Sullivan for their performances in these Championships. We ended the night with a male vs female sing-off. The males who chose ‘Jingle Bells’ were no match for us girls who chose ‘Santa Clause in Coming to Town’, There's always next year boys...

Training will resume on Thursday 7th January.

Wishing everyone a happy and safe Christmas and New Year!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

All Ireland Race Report - Sunday 22nd November 2009 Kilbeggan Race Course

The even ages All Irelands took place in terrible weather conditions. The course in Kilbeggan was tough and had a number of twists and turns, underfoot conditions were slippy but the Le Cheile athletes did their very best.

First up were Naill O'Sullivan and Conal Hayes, both boys competing in the U12, they were wet through as they were held in the cold and rain by the starter. Finally they got under way and both boys did their very best, unfortuantely on this occasion the Kidlare team were out of the medals. Niall and Conal will be running in Coleraine, Niall on the Leinster and Kildare team U11, with Conal on the U13 Kildare team.

Next to line up was Sean Flanagan and Fiachra McSuibhne, Sean was on the line and rearing to go when Fiachra showed up, thanfully with the help of Pat Hayes Fiachra got to the start, in a very tough race the boys did themselves proud, its hard to get up to the front when the middle is so bunched up, given the twists and turns in this course it made it quite difficult to pass anyone out. Both boys were on the Kildare team and again they were out of the medals, but they put in a good performance. Sean with also be running in Coleraine he is on the Leinster and Kildare U13 team.

The Girls u16 race was fantastic with Ciara Hewson claiming 5th place, Ciara was on the Kildare team. Well done Ciara.

The last juvenille race of the day was U18, Erica Dixon was on the kildare team along with atheletes from Naas, St Coca's and Newbridge, They were frozen to the core by the time they got off as they had endured 3hrs of rain. The girls were rewarded for their efforts with a bronze team medal. Well done.

In the Senior race and U23 you had Mark Kennelly and Alan O'Brien and Paul Robinson to name a few competing for Kildare as well as their respective clubs. Congratulations to you and best wishes to you in the forthcoming European CC, which will be held in Santry.

Many thanks to all the parents who supported the athletes on the day.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Leinster CC 8th November 2009

Results:
Girls U 11 Fina Hayes, Boys U11 Niall O'Sullivan 12th, Kildare Gold County Medal, Boys U13 Le Cheile Team 8th - Sean Flanagan 11th, Conall Hayes 44th, Daragh Nolan 52nd, Patrick Flanagan, Conor Keily, Kildare Team 3rd; Boys U17 - Conor Murphy 17th: Kildare Team 4th Niall O'Sullivan and Sean Flanagan both made Leinster Team for the Nationals:

Race Report;

The second round of the Leinster Cross Country was held in Tullamore, it was a well organised event. The ground was very soft (those of you who were there know exactly what I mean) and it was a bright sunny day. First off for Le Cheile and the only Girl competing was Fina Hayes; Fina had a good run and was feeling ok and was supported by her dad Pat. Fina finished in great style and brought some glamour to the photo's. Well done Fina. Kildare Team finished 6th and won't make it to the nationals time. Niall O'Sullivan was running u11, although he was nervous he got out ok but fell back slightly, however Niall has great speed and when he passed me I let a shout at him to move up and he finished in 12th place overall. He received an indv medal for his efforts and a Gold County Team medal. Well Done!
The U13 Le Cheile team were up next ;Sean got a great start and wasn't far off the leaders during the middle part of the race, he passed me with 250m to go and I gave him a shout hoping that he would push forward and secure a place on the Leinster team; next passed me was Conall he too pushed forward, he was closely followed by Darragh, next passed was Patrick (running out of age) and Conor brought the team home. Well done boys; it was a tough race but you did yourselves proud!
Conor Murphy was the last Le Cheile athlete running; he was moving up an age to run U17 and hoping for a place on the Leinster team, Conor had a great start his best one this season, he held he own with the leaders who wer in a pack of 11, they pushed on a Conor fell slightly adrift with 1k to go the pack broke again and Conor was is 20th position, he gave it his all and finished in a very respectable 17th position, he was the 3rd man home on the Kildare team who finished 4th and will go forward to the Nationals.

Congratulations to all of the athletes who competed in fine style for Le Cheile, many thanks to parents, Fiona, Anne, Paul, Pat, Martin and Colm who were fantastice support to their athletes. The All-Irelands un-even ages will be held in Coleraine University, Derry.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Dublin City Marathon 26th October 2009

Bank Holiday Monday saw a early start for Erica and I as we headed to the 14mile post to support Tony Brennan (Club PRO). Tony was running in his first Marathon. Tony had trained hard for this race, along with many others from the meet and train group. Tony had set himself a high target for this race - 3hrs. He had expected to reach the 14mile post at 10.36 precisly. Erica and I arrived to Kimmage at 9.00am and we waited for the lead group, they passed us just before 10.00am. Tony arrived bang on time - well 10.38 by me but I was about 150m further down from the marker. Tony looked very comfortable and even managed to flash a smile and a wave of his right arm. He was still with the 3hr pacer, Tony was right on track for his target of 3hrs. We waited on Sean O'Sullivan who was expecting to be 15mins behide Tony, Sean went past us in 10.48am so as this stage he was 5mins ahead of schedule. Another athelte that we were hoping to see was Jarleth, who when he passed also managed to give us a wave. I'm not sure what times Sean and Jarleth finished in but I'm delighted to tell you that Tony (legs) finished in a remarkable 2hr:59:50 - Congratulations Tony on your fantastic achievement ; Tony was supported along the route by his wife Noeleen and family.

Ultra Marathon

Congratulations to John O'Regan - John finished 4th in a 24hr race that saw him run 220k - This was his first attempt at this distance. Some could say he is mad! You will be happy to hear John is in one piece and delighted with his achievement. John is quick to point out that he couldn't have done it with-out Tony and the support of his family. Well Done!!! For a more detailed account please check out John's web page, you will find a link on this site.

Leinster CC 25th October 2009

Results;
U12 Boys - Niall O'Sullivan 16th, Conall Hayes 24th, Patrick Flanagan, Paul Maguire; Team were 9th over all. Kildare County Team were 4th; Niall and Conall scored on County Team
U14 Boys - Sean Flanagan 21st - Kildare CountyTeam were 3rd ; Sean scored on County Team
U16 Boys - Conor Murphy 13th - just missed out by one place for Leinster Team
U18 Girls - Erica Dixon 18th, Kildare County Team were 1st; Erica scored on County Team

Race Report;
The first round of the Leinster Championships was hosted by Adamstown,iCo. Wexford. This meant an early start for all those competing. We arrived in plenty of time and the course was well laid out. The rain held off and the races got under way at 12.00. First up was U12 Girls and Fina Hayes was running in this race, she headed for the line and had a great position in the middle of the pack. Fina ran 1000m and did well, unfortunately she was out of the medals on this occasion, but was still smiling at the end. Next up were the boys U12 team, they had a good start with Conall getting out early closly followed by Niall (out of age), Patrick and Paul. In a very tough race with 130 other athletes the boys did very well, Niall was first home for the Le Cheile team, followed closely by Conal, Patrick was caught up in the middle of the pack and came in 59th with Paul Maguire bringing the team home. Many thanks to Paul as he is recovering from an injury. Kildare County will decide in the next few days if they will send a team to the All-Irelands - If they do both Naill and Conall with be on the Kildare Team.

Sean Flanagan was competing in the boys U14 which is out of his age goup, Sean was not as nervous as normal and was looking forward to the race. Sean got out in the middle of the pack and was down in about 50th position when he was able to move steadily towards the top twenty. Sean had a great run and was very happy with his 21st placing. Sean was reward with a bronze County Medal and will represent Kildare County in the All-Irelands.

Conor Murphy was competing in the boys U16 3k, not having a club team Conor was hoping that the Kildare Team would qualify for the All-Irelands. Unfortunately on this occasion Kildare County were 6th. Conor had a great race and was very comfortable throughout, he thought he had done enough but he finished 13th, the top 12 make the Leinster team - so Conor just missed out. He was very level-headed afterwards saying "that's the way it goes". Hard Luck Conor!

Erica Dixon was the last Le Cheile athlete to run, again running 3k, Erica got out well but was unable to maintain her position, Erica finished 18th overall. Kildare County finished in First place, Erica received a Gold County medal and will represent Kildare County in the All-Irelands.

My thanks to the Fiona, Martin, Colm and Martina for their support on the day, thank you also to all the athletes who represented Le Cheile on the day. Hope you enjoyed yourselves and I think I got photo's of you all (Tony will attach). Next round un-even ages 8th November.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Round 2 Kildare CC - 11th October 2009

Results:U 10 Girls Team -4th; Kate Harris, Carragh Hayes, Alice Flanagan, Emma Browne,Ailbhne Nolan
U10 Boys Team - 5th; Pearse Nolan, Taghd Nolan, Cian O'Regan, Ciaran Connolly
U12 Girls Team - 6th Chloe Gleeson, Cliona Nic Suibhne, Fina Hayes, Megan Farrell
U12 Boys Team - 2nd Silver Medal; Patrick Flanagan, Conall Hayes; Paul Maguire, Niall O'Sullivan
U14 Boys Team - 2nd Silver Medal; Fiachra McSuibhne; Sean Flanagan, Conor Kiely, Darragh Nolan
U16 Boy - Conor Murphy 5th & Basit Enaife ; U18 Girls - Erica Dixon 4th


Another dry day for Kildare Cross Country Championships -hosted by Crookstown Millview. Le Cheile athletes were in high spirits and it was a day that saw the Dad's out number the Mam's. The U10 girls took to the line and were off in a mad dash,a great race to the finish which saw Carragh come home first in 7th place followed closely by the rest of her team whoe were in 17,22,25 &26th place- debut races for Emma, Alice and Ailbhe -well done girls, you will see from the photo's that there were lots of smiles. First home for the u10 boys was Pearse Nolan, having lead the race for the first 300m Pearse was unlucky to finish in 19th place with the rest of his team in 25,26,34th. Big, big thanks to Taghd who saved the U10 team the morning of the race as an athlete had to pull out. Debut race also for all of these boys - well done. U12 Girls, tough race for the girls and Cliona was first home for the girls, Megan brought her team home and all girls did themselves proud. U12 Boys, the boys tried to get out quickly but it was a big field and some were hampered, first home was Conall - 8th, followed by Niall -9th, Patrick 17th and Naill 19th, it was enough to secure Silver in the team event. U14 Boys were off and in a very quick race Sean was the first home in 5th, Fiachra 7th, Darragh 11th and Conor secured Silver for his seam in 17th - well done to all as most of these boys were out of age. U16 saw Connor Murphy competing against athletes from Naas and Kilcock - Conor had a great run but was out of the medals on this occasion, Basit also had a good run and was glad to finish this 3k race. U18 saw Erica take to the start against teams from Celbridge and Kilcock, however is was Ciara O'Connor who won the race in great style, Erica finish in 4th place, these u18 girls will make up the Kildare junior team competing in the Nationals later this year.

Many thanks to the parents on the day who were a great help, I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Thanks to Paul (Conor Kiely's dad) for all the photos, apologies for my poor ones that show the U18 girls (I forgot where the zoom was). Best of luck to the athletes that are going forward to the Leinster CC which are being held on 25th October in Adamstown, Co. Wexford for the U12-U18 - and U11-19 which will be held on 8th November in Charleville Castle Tullamore.

Kildare CC Results Round 1 -4th October 2009

Results:
Carragh Hayes 7th - U9; Joshua Dunne U9 - 2nd Silver Medal, Sean Flanagan U13 - 3rd Bronze Medal; Boys u13 Team 1st - Gold Medal, Sean F, Conal H, Darragh N, Patrick F, Conor K. Rachel Dillon U13 -15th; Fiachra McSuibhne U15 - 15th; Conor Murphy U17 - 3rd Bronze Medal; Erica Dixon U19 -3rd Bronze Medal

It was a dry day and the Le Cheile athletes were in great form, for some it was going to be their debut cross county. They warmed up and awaited the first race which was the girls U9, Carrgh Hayes was the clubs only competitor. Carragh got out well and ran a great 500m race. Next up was Joshua Dunne he was running in the U9 500m, Joshua lead from the start, he held his nerve and was just pipped at the post to finish Second. Rachel Dillon was running in the U13, this was her first race being new to the club. Rachel had a very good run and was supported by all her family. The boys U13 had a full team made up of Sean Flanagan, Conor kiely, Darragh nolan, Conal Hayes and Patrick Flanagan (Conal and Patrick running out of age. The boys were very determined as the took to the line and each one of them had great runs, all their efforts paid off as they won this team event Fiachra McSuibhne competed in the u15 and was running out of age, Fiachra had run in the Liz McDonnell run the previous day and this took a little from his performance, however he sprinted to the finish line - cheered on by the other athletes. Conor Murphy ran in the u17 boys and this was a 3k race, Conor had a good run and was happy with his performance. Erica and Aine were due to run in the U19, unfortuantely this race was being run with the intermediate women and time ran out on Aine as she had to leave before the race started as she was playing Basketball. Erica was running out of age, a distance of 3k and there was a big field in this race, Erica put in a good run.

So a great result for the club given the low numbers that were competing. Well done to all.

Well done to all the Le Cheile athletes who also supported the Liz McDonnell run in Castletown Celbridge, young and old!

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Kildare Cross Country Championships Round 1

The first round of the championships will take place on Sunday 4th October 2009 at Eire Og's grounds in Carragh, Co. Kildare (near Mondello race track). They will host the un-even ages u9-u19 (please note even ages U8,10,12 etc can move up one age group). Athletes taking part must let coaches know. Please bring change of clothes and rain jacket along with packed lunch.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Le Cheile Fun Day - Rescheduled (Sat 19th)

The sports day has been rescheduled to take place next Saturday 19th starting at 1pm. The same programme will be run and hopefully this time we will be able to progress and not be rained-off.

We look forward to seeing many of you on Saturday.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Le Cheile Fun Day - Sunday 6th September

Our Annual fun day will take place this Sunday 6th September 2009 at the club grounds, Leixlip Amenities Centre, Leixlip, Co. Kildare. It will start at 1.00pm, entry is €3.00 per child. There will be track races, novelty races and an agility challange.

This is a family day and should be great fun for all.

Note: Training in St Catherine's park will not take place on Sunday 6th September.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Sunday Training

Training will continue on Sunday 23rd at in St Catherine's Park, Leixlip - meet at the Fire Station in Leixlip at 11.00am, finish at 12.15pm. Athletes should bring rain jacket and drink. Please note that training will not take place on day of competition.

Cross Country Kildare Championships

The Kildare Championships will take place on Sunday 4th October 2009 and Sunday 11th October 2009

Friday, July 24, 2009

Liz McDonnell 5k Run

Its summer time, so we must all be in training for the Liz McDonnell 5k run which will be held this year on the 3rd October. The race starts at 3pm and registration will be possible on the day from 1 O'clock. Last year saw nearly 800 runners, joggers and walkers of all ages, complete the 5k course around the beautiful grounds of Castletown House in Celbridge, Co. Kildare.

Entry to the event will be by donation or by sponsorship card. To get a sponsorship card or to find out any more information contact lizmcdonnellrun@eircom.net.

To find out more about the Liz, the run and where the money goes click here or to see a copy of the course map click here.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

All-Ireland 19th July 2009

Erica was competing in the U18 girls javelin, competition started at 10.00am and she was the second girl to throw. With a foot fault to open Erica was feeling very nervous, thankfully she got her second throw in. Something must have been in the air as Erica and all her fellow competitors were not throwing as well as would have been expected. Erica won the competition with a throw of 27.63m - All-Ireland Champion.

Congratulations on your achievement.
5 Miles - Saturday 18th July
Congratulations also go to our master men who competed in the addidas race series on Saturday 18th July; John O'Regan M35 finished 19th in his category with a time of 30.38 and Tony Brennan M40 was hot on his heels in a time of 30.55 and was 20th in his category. Well done to you both and long may the friendly rivalry continue.

All-Ireland 18th July 2009 - Report by Julie Boyle

I false started at the start of the race so I was pretty nervous when we were called to the line the second time. Fourtunately I calmed myself down and got a realy good start.
We were even with Galway when I passed over but as soon as Aileen began running down the back straight it was clear that we were in the lead, which was great. Myself and Aileens pass-over went perfectly and all the other pass overs seemed to go well. Shannyn and Sinead continued to increase the lead throught the rest of the race and I got to watch Sinead running away with the title on the last leg. We finished about 15meters ahead in a time of 52.41, Galway 2nd- 54.31, Kerry 3rd- 55.22. It was everyone on the teams first gold all-ireland medal, Sinead, Aileen and Shannyn had won bronze medals in the past but never a gold medal. So we were all thrilled with the win. The team was (in order of running) Julie Boyle (le Cheile), Aileen Kyne (Newbridge), Shannyn Brogan(Newbridge) and Sinead Lawlor(Celbridge).

Congratulations Julie on your part in Kildare winning the All-Ireland Inter County U17 Title.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Report from All-Ireland Championships

On Saturday 11th July Niamh Kane, Sean Flanagan and Julie Boyle represented Le Cheile at the National Championships. It was both Sean and Niamh's first track & field National Championships.

Julie was racing first – her 80m hurdles were listed for 10.00am. Julie was is the second heat and her reaction time to the gun was fantastic. Julie hit the hurdles well and finished 5th in her heat in a time of 14.23, unfortunately it was not enough to take her through to the final. Despite being disappointed Julie looked at the positives in her race - her reaction time and it was a seasons best. Well done Julie and thanks for hot –footing it back to fundraise in Tesco.

We all got soaked in a heavy rain shower while waiting for the sprints to start. They got under way after 2.40pm. Niamh was in the 2nd heat of the U12 60m sprint and got off to a good start and she hit maximum speed in a very exciting finish. Niamh's time was 8.77, Niamh was cheered on by her mum Lorraine, the Flanagan gang and myself. Naimh was 3rd in her heat and qualified for the final. Niamh was sent to the stand to try keep warm and dry while she waited on her final.

Next up was Sean Flanagan U13 80m sprint, again Sean was in the second heat, he was held in the rain while the starter got sorted, we could see Sean jumping up and down trying to keep warm before being called to get into his start psoition. Sean ran a terrific heat a time of 11.17 and it was a fight for the line in a blanket finish, thankfully Sean was third the 4th guys time was 11.18 so nothing between them. Sean was very wet but happy with his performance.

At last the finals got under way,Niamh had a terrific race ran a time of 8.63, but had to wait for the result as officials had to look a footage as it was tight at the finish, the girls had to stay in their lane, finally Niamh was award 3rd and a Bronze All-Ireland Medal. Congratulations and well done on your achievement. All-Ireland medals are hard to win.

Next up was Sean, he got off to a flying start and maintained his speed to the end in a race that was very fast and one that a new championship record was set. Unfortunately Sean was out of the medals but he could have not have done any more, he finished in 6th place in a time of 11.10 which was faster than his heat, so well done Sean you kept something in the tank for the final.

On Sunday 12th Sean was back down in Tullamore along with his family, he was competing in the U13 boys long jump, Sean jumped his 3 jumps and made it to the final, Sean had three more jumps and did his best, he was outside of the medals and finish 8th overall with a jump of 4.25m. Well done on your performance Sean, it didn't go your way on the day.

Next round of the All-Irelands are this coming weekend and the club will be represented by Julie Boyle who is on the inter-county relay 4x100 team and Erica Dixon U18 who will compete in the Javelin. Best of luck to you both.

Friday, July 10, 2009

All-Ireland Championships 11 & 12 July 2009

The following Le Cheile Athletes will compete in the All-Ireland Championships this weekend.

Julie Boyle U16 80m Hurdles

Sean Flanagan U13 80m on Sat and U13 Long Jump on Sunday, Sean is 2009 Leinster Long Jump Champion

Niamh Kane u12 60m on Sat, Niamh is 2009 Leinster 60m Champion

Best of luck to you from all the Coaches and your fellow athletes.

Mobile marathon from Galway to Dublin

Our very own John O’Regan is at it again, with another fundraiser for the Jack & Jill foundation, he will lead a team that will run a Mobile Marathon Relay from Galway to Dublin on 7th, 8th, and 9th August 2009.

The target for the event is to collect 10,000 mobile phones along the route and John & his team are asking people of every age to join in by paying an entry fee of 3 old mobile phones at the 10 designated pick up points along the route. The Jack & Jill Mobile Marathon will take the AA Roadwatch route avoiding motorways, passing through Oranmore, Loughrea, Ballinasloe, Athlone, Mullingar, Athboy, Navan, Dunshaughlin, Dunboyne and then finishing at The Spire in Dublin’s O’Connell Street. John who works with Irish Rail is well known for planning “unusual” runs for charity earlier this year he ran the 1576 steps of The Empire State Building in New York. He also ran a Marathon on each of the seven continents, the North Pole Marathon in April 2004 and many more. See www.mycharity.ie/event/mobilemarathon

People can find out more about the Jack & Jill Mobile Marathon and how they can join in by logging onto http://www.jackandjill.ie/ The Jack & Jill Foundation supports 300 families around the country with children who are born with or who develop brain damage and who suffer severe neurological delay and need intensive home nursing care as a result.

Welcoming the new fundraising initiative, Jonathan Irwin, CEO of Jack & Jill said, “We are delighted to see volunteers like John supporting our families who live in every community in Ireland through exciting initiatives like this one. We have huge admiration for John and his crew and we will have drop off points for mobile phones all along the route and we’ll be following the race in a Jack & Jill van. I want to remind people that 250 old mobile phones buys home nursing care for a sick child for one month and it doesn’t matter if people run a few paces or a few kilometres – every little helps and this mobile marathon will go a long way to achieving our 2009 target of collecting 500,000 phones. I want to thank John and his team in advance, to wish them the best of luck and to ask communities along the route to show their support by joining in.”

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Beware with Javelins

Given that we have a number of junior athletes who have started throwing Javelin lately, in case there is any doubt as to how dangerous it can be......as a picture paints a thousand words.



Thursday, June 25, 2009

Kildare 'B' Championships - Newbridge 28th June

The Kildare County 'B' Championships will take place in Newbridge on Sunday next 28th of June at 12.00. Athletes should be there at 11 to facilitate warm-up and registration. All competing athletes must wear club singlet and navy shorts (We have singlets in stock if you need one).


The 'B' Championships are open to any athlete who did not win a medal in the track events in the Kildare County Championships can compete in the track events and any athlete who did not win a county medal in the field events can compete in the field events.


The events for each age category are as follows:




Wednesday, June 24, 2009

National Juvenile Booklet

The recently updated version of the AAI issued National Juvenile Booklet is available to download by clicking here.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Leinster Championships U14-19 20 & 21 June 2009

The Leinster Championships took place over the weekend, six Le Chéile atheltes took part in events over the two days.

Julie Boyle and Erica Dixon were down on day one, Julie competed in the 80m hurdles and 200m sprints. Julie got off to a flying start and was 2nd in the 80m hurdles, we are just waiting on confirmation on the time but hopefully it will be a new pb. Julie was 4th in her 200m heat, just missing out on a place in the final. The girls u17 inter County relay was one of the last events of the day, Julie was on the County team, they ran a stomer, Julie paid tribute to Sinead Lawlor of Celbridge AC who ran the last leg of the relay and took the team home to gold - Leinster County Champions , this young u17 team will go forward to the All-Ireland relays, please note that Julie is curently an U16 athlete. Congratulations Julie on your success and best of luck in the All-Irelands.

Erica Dixon competed in the 3000m on day one, unfortunately Erica in 3rd position suffered an asthma attack and had to withdaw after 5.5 laps.

An early start to day two saw Sean Kelly and Fiachra Mac Suibhne u14 compete in the Shot putt event. There were 13 athletes listed, Sean threw a best of 6.78m in his first Leinster Competition 8th overall, Congratulations Sean. Fiachra in a best throw of 7.11 made it into the final 8 - however the final shot putt had to wait as Fiachra was called to his 800m - straight final. This 800m U14 is a tough event no longer middle distance but a sprint. Fiachra was to the rear of the pack in a very fast 1st 400m 62sec - however he put the boot down when I gave him a shout with 250m to go and overtook 5 athletes to finish in a very respectable 8th position overall.

Fiachra returned to his shot putt final, Fiachra proceeded to have 3 further throws with a best of 7.55m with left him 5th over all - Congratulations Fiachra on your first Leinster competition, unfortunately the first 4 go through to the All-Irelands.

Conor Murphy -U16 athlete was next to take to the track, Conor has been out injured for the last 3 months and despite his coaches advice was determined to run in the 800m as apposed to the 1500m favoured by his coach. Conor as usual was very relaxed prior to his event, he set off well and was in the middle of the pack, the first athlete went through 400m in 58 sec so a fast race - Conor was not put off and tried his best to keep in touch with the lead athlete, Conor finished in 6th position in a very respectable time of 2.23, which equalled his Nenagh indoor performance.

U18 Javelin Leinster Champion
Erica Dixon had a early start on day two of the competition, having put day one behind her, Erica proceeded t0 throw a PB 30.08 in the u18 Javelin competition, Erica will make the top 20 Irish List of all competing athletes at Junior, Senior and International level (see AAI top 20 list). Congratulations on your success and best of luck in the All-Irelands.

For a complete set of results from the event - click here.

Le Cheile have the following athletes competing in the Juvenille u12 -U19 All Irelands which will take place over 11/12 & 18th July 2009;
Niamh Kane U12 80m sprint (Leinster Champion)
Sean Flanagan U13 80m sprint(2nd), Long Jump (Leinster Champion) & 600m

Julie Boyle U16 80m Hurdles (2nd) & inter County Kildare 4 x 100m (Leinster Champions)
Erica Dixon U18 Javelin (Leinster Champion)

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Senior 'Meet & Train' Sessions

Due to an increasing number of requests from interested runners, we have decided to host a weekly Meet & Train session. This session is designed to offer participants the opportunity to put some structure on their training and to offer coaching to help achieve running or fitness goals.

Whether you are a complete beginner, or a regular runner who is looking for a group of people to train with, these sessions will be of benefit.

The first session will take place on Wednesday 24th of June at 20:00hrs on the Le Chéile AC running track behind the Leixlip Amenities Centre. All that is required is an interest in running, a pair of runners and a drink! Come along and meet others who share your interest in running.

For further information send an eMail to info@lecheileac.com

Monday, June 15, 2009

National League round 1 Sunday 14th May - Cork

Two Le Chéile athletes competed as part of the Kildare Team in the National League. This is a team event and Kildare are in division 1. Athletes from Kildare Town, Celbridge AC, St Cocas AC, Newbridge AC and Le Chéile AC battled against 5 other teams in their division.
With wins in the 100m Sinead Lawlor, Niamh Fields 200m, 2nd in the Javelin Erica Dixon(Le Chéile), Niamh Field 100m, Fiona Hill L.jump, Rachel Smyth 800m, 3rd Fiona Hill 400m, girls 4 x100 relay. 4th High Jump Aine O'Connor(Le Chéile) new PB 1.45, Niamh O'Brien 1500m girls 4 x400m relay. Elaine Beirne ran two great legs in the 4x100m and 4 x400m relay and Pauline Kelly competed in s.putt and discus.


This Kildare team is a very young team and they fought hard for their points, the support that they gave to each other was fantastic and they were very happy with their performances. I was delighted to be asked to be team manager and they made my job very easy, so thank you to all the girls I hope you all had a well deserved lie in today. Kildare Team -89points.

Congratlations and best wishes for round two which will take place in Tullamore on 5th July.

U12 & 13 Leinster Championships

Six Le Chéile athletes competed in the Leinster Championships held on Sat 13th June. Being the Leinsters it was a tough event, but Catehrine Jones, Niamh Kane (u12) Conal Hayes, Patrick Flanagan (u12) Conor Kiely and Sean Flanagan (u13) were up for the Challenge.

Niamh Kane and Sean Flanagan came away Leinster Champions! Niamh, who was competing in her first Leinster Championships, won her u12 60m sprint in a time of 8.92. She also competed in the long jump. Seán came 1st in the u13 long jump with a best jump of 4.38metres, 2nd in the 80m and 4th in the 600m. Both athletes have qualified for the All-Ireland Championships in July.

Conal Hayes came 4th in the u12 600m final just missing out in the medals; Catherine Jones competed 60m,600m and in the u12 long jump along side Niamh. Conor Kiely was our second competitor in the u13 boy’s long jump, he also competed in the high jump and 80m. Patrick Flanagan just missed out on a place in the U12 60m final, he also competed in 600m.

Well done to everyone in what was a very long day for the parents and athletes; A hugh thanks to Anne Kiely who looked after the athletes on the day and provided this report.

Click here for a full list of the competitions results.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Kildare League - Round 3

The following are the events for each age category:



Please note that warm-up and registration will take place from 6:30 at the Celbridge AC track. Entry is €2 payable on the night. If you dont have a club vest please wear a plain white t-shirt.

Monday, June 8, 2009

All-Ireland Schools

Erica Dixon competed in the All Ireland Schools which were held on 30/05/09 in Tullamore. Erica was competing in the Inter girls Javelin, Erica's best throw was 29m.50 which saw her ranked 5th overall,. Erica was delighted with this as it is a new PB, congratulations and well done. It was a fantastic day of athletics which saw a number of records broken on track and saw a couple of athletes achieve their junior international times.

Friday, May 29, 2009

Seniors Saturday Track Sessions Resume

The time has come to give up the saturday lie-in and get back into the Saturday morning speed session.

A light session will be held tomorrow morning (to help ease back into it :)) at 11am at the track. I look forward to seeing an enthusiastic and energetic return from all!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Leixlip Community Games - Athletics

We have been informed by the organisers that the postponed
Community Games for Athletics in Lexilip will now take place on Wednesday 3rd June.

The venue remains the same at the Le Chéile AC running track behind the Amentities Centre. The events will start at 6:00.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Intel 10k Saturday 22nd May 2009

On Saturday at 11.00am Tony Brennan stepped up to the mark in the BHAA 10k run hosted by Intel. On home ground Tony set off at a comfortable pace, Sean O'Sullivan was just seconds behind him. Tony was supported by Lisa, John and Aisling O'Regan, John's task on the day was to take photo's. Some runners even stopped to allow John capture the moment. Tony looked comfortable throughout the race and should have kicked for home(next time) Tony finished in just over 39mins - happy days!!! ahead of Sean who finished in just over 41mins, it's all in the vest Sean!...

Congratulations to Tony; next race Tuesday 26/05/09

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Leinster Schools Track & Field

Julie Boyle and Erica Dixon were competing in the Leinster Schools last week.

Julie competed in sprint hurdles, unfortunately it was not her day she was suffering from cramp in her calf and did not make it through to the All-Irelands Schools. Julie is a terrific athlete and I'm sure her school is very proud of her as we are.

Erica competed on saturday in very wet and windy conditions, not ideally suited to Javelin. Erica was disappointed with her throws but securred 2nd place and will represent St Wolstans in the All-Irelands on 30th May in Tullamore. Best of luck.

Kildare Championships Round 2 17/05/09

The second round of the championships took place in Naas Athletic Club grounds, in damp conditions 11 athletes showed up to represent Le Cheile. Many thanks to the parents of these athletes who assisted on the day with particular thanks to Mr Kiely (Conor's Dad for taking photos which will be posted). The results are as follows;

U12 Boys: Patrick Flanagan 2nd 80m and 3rd 600m
U12 Girls: Niamh Kane 2nd Long Jump and 1st 80m
U13 Boys: Sean Flanagan 1st 200m and 1st Long Jump
U14 Boys: Sean Kelly 3rd Shot Putt
U15 Girls: Roisin Flanagan 2nd High Jump
U17 Girls: Julie Boyle 3rd 200m
U18 Girls: Julie boyle 3rd Long Jump

Other athletes who completed on the day were Emily Gallagher, Emily just missed out on a place in the final of her 80m as did Alice Flanagan. Catherine Jones made her final and was just outside the medals, next time Catherine!. Conor Kiely competed in the Boys U13 High Jump, Long jump and the 200m, I believe he was very relieved that he was not down to compete in the walk! Well done to all the athletes and many congratulations on your achievements.

The Leinster Championships are next, please note that athletes wishing to compete in these championships must let me know as soon as possible. Details of all events are on www.athleticsleinster.com

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Kildare Track & Field Day 2 - Naas

The following are the events that will take place for each category. Events will start at 12pm sharp and warm-up will take place from 11am. The venue for this event is Naas AC track.


The track is located in the Sports round on the Caragh Road (R409)

Kildare Championships Round 1 - Results

Celbridge Athletic Club were hosts to the first round of the championships, 28 Le Chéile athletes competed and they were cheered on by their parents and coaches. A big thank you to Rob Harris and Anne Kiely for taking photos on the day.

Girls U9 events we had Carrah Hayes and Lauren Boyle both girls put in great performances with Carrah making the 80m final.

Boys U9
- Josh Dunne and Cian O'Regan, both boys had great 10m and made it through to the final, Josh was 4th in the final with Cian just behind him.


Girls U10
- Kate Harris, Kate had a great 100m heat and was 4th in her final.


Girls U11
- Fiana Hayes, Roisin Forde and Emily Gallagher competed in 200m,Ljump and ball throw. Well done girls.

Boys U11
- Niall O'Sullivan, Niall
won his 80m heat and was 4th in a very competitive final with nothing between the top finishers, however he ran a fantastic 600m where he claimed Gold.

Boys U12 - Patrick Flanagan, Conall Hayes and Paul MaGuire, these boys had very solid performances in the 200m heats and all boys made it through to the final, much to his disappointment Conall had to dash off and was unable to compete in his final , which resulted in Patrick being 4th, with Paul finishing hot on his heels.

Girls U12 - Niamh Kane, Niamh was 6th in a very fast 80m final and also competed in the SPutt.

Girls U13 - Aoife McMahon made her championships debut - well done Aoife.

Boys U13 - Sean Flanagan and Conor Kiely, Conor had a good 600m and finish 6th he also ran in the 100m. Sean had a terrific 100m heat and an even better final where he won Gold, Sean then ran in the 600m another great race and was second- Silver

Boys U14 - Louis Hartnett, Tadhg Forde and Sean Kelly, Tadhg and Sean made theirchampionship debut, both boys put in great performances and enjoyed their experience. Louis had a great day he was 2nd in the Long Jump and was 3rd in the 600m, so Silver and bronze for Louis.

Girls U15 - saw Roisin Flanagan compete in the 100m, it was a very fast race and Roisin was unlucky missing out on a medal by a whisker (next round Roisin) - 4th

Boys U15 - Conor kelly and Ciaran Fagan both competed in Shot Putt, these lads had a great competition and took silver and bronze respectively.

Girls U17 - Saw Julie competing out of age in the sprints, Julie picked up a Bronze medal, Julie won silver in the girls U18 high jump.

Girls U18 - Erica Dixon, Erica won Gold in the high jump, Erica also competed out of age in the U19 800m and was 3rd.

Girls U19 - Aine O'Connor, Aine in a great race won Gold in the 100m and Aine also won Gold in 1500m.

The relays are always last and after a long day the U12 boys stepped upto the mark, the team was made up of Naill O'Sullivan, Patrick Flanagan, Paul McGuire and Luke Hartnett(thanks for saving the day). Patrick got off to a flying start and passed to Luke who gave it his best shot passing to Paul, Paul dug deep and passed to Niall in a very tight finish the boys were pushed out of the medals into 4th - the boys were cheered on by their parents and all the other Le Chéile athletes.

Next to take up their position were the Inter Girls relay team (2x1x1x4) Julie Boyle, Erica Dixon, Lisa Dixon and Aine O'Connor, there was fierce competition from St Cocas and Celbridge, St Cocas won the event, Le Chéile in second (very respectable, thanks for redeeming me and making me look good) with Celbridge 3rd.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Good Luck John!

John O'Regan will compete in the 'North Face 100', his second 100k ultra marathon, this Saturday (16th May). John has travelled to the Blue Mountains in Australia for this event. The North Face 100 is the pinnacle of trail runs in Australia. A challenging, spectacular course through some of Australia's most iconic landscape of the Blue Mountains. 100km was never meant to be easy and this course will certainly test everyone. But it will bring great rewards, phenomenal views, and the best tracks in the Blue Mountains. For more information click here.

Best of luck to John!

Monday, May 11, 2009

Leixlip 5k Road Race - Results


The results of the 2009 Leixlip 5k Road Race are available by clicking here.

Our friends in RacePix365.com have been kind enough to host and tag all the photos from the race. Thanks again to Rob Harris our photographer for once more capturing the essence of the event. Well done Rob!

Click here and enter you bib number to see pictures we may have taken of you during the race.

Provisional date for Leixlip 5k 2010 is 8th May. Its never to early to plan for the next Leixlip 5k!

5k Road Race a huge success

It was the first time we ran the race in May, the first time that we offered online booking and a brand new 5k course. It is was with much trepidation that we watched the strong winds and driving rain set the scene for what should have been a washout of a race. There was a real chance that many on their way to Leixlip would have turned their cars and headed home, not being mad enough to brave such elements. But it was not to be. From 9:30 when the first runners arrived to register, through the storm at 10:00 right up to 10:50 serious runners, joggers and walkers kept coming. The competitors came, it was now up to us to give them a well organised event.

Over 160 runners and walkers gathered outside the Leixlip Amenities centre and the mix of serious club runners and novice first-timers created an electric mix of excitement and expectation. The field headed off at a very fast pace out the Maynooth road in what was now completely dry conditions. Many were surprised as they turned the corner to see the size of the hill that greeted them. There was a bunch of about 10 runners that took the charge up the hill, but the lead pack which included the eventual first three men home, took full advantage of the long decline through the 1km mark to break away. The race followed a flat course for the next 2.5km until the turn at the traffic lights on station road. From here there is a gradual climb up to the 4km mark at Louisa Bridge, which although gradual certainly presented a challenge for those trying to match the pace of the lead runners.

The last 800m of the course took the runners into the grounds of the Amenities Centre along the side of the football pitches to the ultimate finish on the Le Chéile 400m grass track. There was a very exciting finish with Eoghan McGinley and Dwane Farrelly battling it our over the last 500m. Eoghan let the pair onto the track ahead by a few meters and Dwane put up a brave fight to catch up but failed to catch McGinley. The race was ultimately won by a small 2 second margin by Eoghan McGinley (Cramford AC) in a very respectable time, given the windy conditions, of 16:05. It was truly a race to the finish with Dwane Farrelly (Tinryland AC) begin beaten into second place (16:07) and Peter Mooney a few meters behind finishing in 16:13.


The ladies race was won by Caitriona Jennings (WSAF Rathfarnham) in a personal best setting time of 17:23. Jean Wilson (Sportsworld) took second place with a time of 18:47 and Kathleen Horgan (Sportsworld) came home in third with a time of 19:26.

We have received excellent feedback from club runners and first time racers alike but its probably best summed up by the comment :

“It was great to see the road race well managed and set up… this one ticked lots of the boxes for me. Dressing rooms with showers, a race that started on time, Guards involved keeping the traffic at bay and great stewarding along the course ensuring that we weren't run over by Leixlip's citizens. I'm acutely aware that you and your team of organisers are volunteers and as such are putting on the show for free, so thanks a million for that.”

Thanks to all who supported the event and also those who helped make it such a success and of course our wonderful hosts in the Leixlip Amenities Centre. Here’s to a bigger and better event next year.

(Likely to be the 8th of May - so get it in the diaries now)

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

West Leinster Schools 28/04/09

Connor Garry, Julie Boyle and Erica Dixon competed in the West Leinster Schools competition held in Santry. Connor was outside the medals in his shot putt, but he was happy with his performance. Julie competed in the short hurdles and won her race with ease. Julie is a student at Colaiste Chiarain. Erica was throwing Javelin and won her event, Erica is a student in St Wolstans. Well done and best wishes for the Leinster Schools.

Kildare Track & Field Day 1 - Celbridge

This year's county Track & Field championships start with Day 1 in Celbridge AC on the 10th May at 12:00. The following are the events that will be held on Day 1.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Leixlip 5k Road Race - Suitable for All

9th May 2009 (11am), Leixlip, Co Kildare

Enter online here - Runners €10 - Walkers €5

Now in its 8 year of running, the Leixlip 5k road race has been given a make-over with an improved and faster route. The race will now start outside the Leixlip Amenities Centre and finish with a lap of the grass 400m running track behind the centre. This event is truly a race for all abilities as evidenced by last year’s results where Eric Keogh (Donore Harriers) won the men’s race and his mother brought home the field a little while later. The race which starts at 11am is an AAI approved, certified 5k route and is being hosted by Le Chéile Athletic Club.

This is an ideal event whether you are looking to get a new PB for your 5k or if you are new to running and want to compete in your competitive first race in a friendly environment. There will also be a large number of participants who will use this run as part of their preparation for the Flora Dublin Women’s mini marathon. This year there is also a ‘walkers’ category for those interested in a more leisurely effort to complete the five kilometre course. Walkers will set off 15 minutes before the runners which may provide some inspiration for those new to running to catch up and pass them on the course. (Click here to see the course route)

Registration
Online registration is available on runireland.com (€10 for runners and €5 for walkers) until Wednesday 6th May. Registration will also be possible on the morning of the race with an entry fee of €12 for runners and €6 for walkers.

Getting to Leixlip
Leixlip is easily accessible by road, only 13 miles from the centre of Dublin just off the N4, and also by train (Maynooth/Longford line – Leixlip Louise Bridge station is 300m from the start line - Click here for timetable) and by Bus (Route 66 – Maynooth, which stops directly outside the Amenities Centre at the start line. Click here for timetable)

For More Information
Goto www.lecheileac.com or contact Tony Brennan on 086 7855905.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Kildare League - Round 1

Round 1 of the Kildare league will take place this Saturday in Kilcock at 3pm. Warm-up and registration will take place from 2pm. Entry is €2 per athlete payable on the day.

The following are the events for each age category:


The age category is determined by the athlete's age next birthday, based on the age they will be during this calendar year. For example: If an athlete turns 8 at any time this year, they will compete Under 9 for all competitions during 2009.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to everyone. Hope you all have a nice relaxing Easter Break (and don't eat too much chocolate :D)

Just a reminder that there will be no training tonight (9th), Sunday (12th) and Tuesday (14th). Training
resumes as normal next Thursday (16th) from 6.45-8.15pm.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Excellent finish for O'Regan in Celtic 100k

In what can be described as one of the most gruelling events in road racing, the 100k challenge presents competitors with an opportunity to run nearly 2 and a half marathons in one race. The Celtic 100k race was held on Saturday 28th of March in Salthill, Galway and featured a truly international field with athletes competing from Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, Germany and Poland. Incorporated into the event was the Anglo Celtic Plate, a home countries international between Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales. Le Chéíle AC’s John O’Regan took part in this event and despite competing for the first time at this distance, put in an exceptional performance.



The winner of the race Jez Bragg (England) who completed the course in a time of 6:58:00 and the first Irish man home was 6th place Thomas Maguire (7:30:56). The winner of the women’s race was Ireland’s Helena Crossan finishing in a time of 8:11:04. Leixlip man John O’Regan finished in 16th place overall with a time of 8:36:42 – Imagine running non-stop for longer than is most people’s working day!



The team event was won by England with Ireland achieving 3rd place in the Celtic Cup, and the Ireland women’s team coming in third place overall after England and Scotland.



Although not selected on the Irish team for this event (he did not have prior experience in this type of event) he managed to finish as the 3rd placed Irish man. I expect that John will certainly feature in Ireland's team selection in future ultra distance events.



Not content with resting on his laurels, O'Regan will today be putting on his runners and forgetting about the aches and pains to prepare for his next events. He will take part in this year's London marathon (26th April) as an official pacer. The job of a pacer is to being a group of people through the marathon course at a predefined, consistent pace. A bit like the pied piper, John will lead athletes at a consistent 8 minute mile pace, to complete the marathon in under 3hours 20 minutes.

The London marathon will be a training run for O'Regan's preparation for the North Face 100k run. This will be his second 100k ultra marathon and takes place in Australia's Blue Mountains on the 16th of May. This race, described by the organisers as "challenging, spectacular course through some of Australia's most iconic landscape" will present more of a challenge than the Celtic 100k, but John will have learned a lot and will be well prepared.

Well done John!


(Picture shows John with Celtic 100k race director Richard Donovan)

Thursday, March 26, 2009

John O'Regan Competes in Celtic 100k

John O'Regan will compete in the Celtic 100km this Saturday- 29th March (Is he mad?) The race is 50 laps of a 2km course in Salthill, Galway. This race is an IUA labeled race and Ireland's first official world ranking ultra-race. The 2009 Celtic 100k also decides the individual titles of the UK 100km Championships and the 100km Championships of Ireland.

For more information on the race visit: http://www.celtic100k.com/
Good Luck John!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Mens Inter & Master Road Race 15/03/09

Congratulations to Tony Brennan who ran in the Inter & Masters Road Race held in Naas. Tony finished in 4th position overall, 1st in his Masters category and 3rd as an Intermediate. ~One race two Medals, well done.

Tony and John will compete on Sunday next 22nd March in the Kildare 10k road race, not sure who will win that one! best of luck to you both.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Happy St. Patrick's Day!


I hope that everyone is enjoying their St. Patrick's day and holiday from school and work. As that is probably enough fun for one day, we decided that to include another fun event like athletics training, would probably be too much. So there will be no training tonight!

See you all again on Thursday evening.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Fixtures - Kildare County Board

The following are the fixtures confirmed from the last Kildare County Board meeting for Kildare, Leinster and All Ireland events. Where venues are not listed, they will be confirmed closer to the date.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

No place in the final for David McCarthy

In what appeared to be a very difficult race for David, his efforts in the semi-final of the 800m European Indoor Championship delivered a time of 1.53.53 which was not enough to progress to the final. Despite the result in the semi-final, David should be suitable proud of his achievement and his contribution to the success of the Ireland team at these championships.

Overall it has been a successful Championship for the Irish team, which saw two Bronze medals, 5 finalists, 4 personal bests, 2 seasonal bests and an Irish Record.
In a quote from Team Manager, Patsy McGonagale he said, "From start until finish it has been a great performance from everyone involved. Every athlete out there gave their best and on certain occasions we may have even come back with more medals if you look at how close Róisín and the relay team were. All in all this has been a great success and we can all look positively towards the Worlds in August now".

All of us in Le Chéile look forward to following David's progress as he prepares for qualification for the World Championships as part of the Ireland team.

Well done again David!

Outdoor training re-commences - Thursday 12th

We will be resuming outdoor training for all on next Thursday (12th). Times for training session will be as per Tuesday (19:45 - 20:15). For those of you who have not been training outdoors yet this year, dont forget to put on plenty of layers and bring a light rain jacket - it can still be very cold until we get further into spring.

Friday, March 6, 2009

David McCarthy Qualifies for Semi Final

An excellent race from David in his 800m heat, recording a time of 1.49.59, led to a semi-final place as the fastest runner-up. The semi-final of the 800m European Indoor Championship will be held on Saturday (7th) at 16:30. The race will be broadcast live during the BBC coverage of the event and we'll all be their with David in spirit.

Monday, March 2, 2009

David McCarthy qualifies for Europeans

Congratulations to Le Chéile athlete David McCarthy who earned his place on the Ireland team for the European Indoor Championships. David was selected to join the team based on a very impressive win at the Celtic Cup Indoor International event held at the start of February in Cardiff. He produced a personal best in the 800m event to finish in 1:49.12.

David will join the team of 20 of Ireland's best athletes to compete in the championships which will be held between the 6th to 8th of March in Turin.

We wish David the very best in Turin and will all be closely following his progress.

Click here to see results from David's previous performances.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Dates Set for Kildare Track & Field Championships

The county board has set the dates for round 1 and 2 of the County Track & Field Championships. Dates are as follows:

Round 1 - Sunday 10th May
Round 2 - Sunday 17th May

Venues have not been confirmed.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Le Chéile represented in Masters All Ireland Team

Its been a few years since Kildare was represented at the Masters All Ireland Cross Country championships. Last Sunday saw a hardy ('old') group of seven don the brilliant white county vests and with the pride of the county in their hearts set off on the 7km course in Tymon Park (Dublin). It was a fantastic day for running with the sun shining and only a light breeze to contend with, with generally good conditions under foot.



The team was led home by Larry and followed not too far behind by John, but more importantly all finished with bodies intact (which is important at our ages!!) and smiles on faces. Our team came in 10th position which leaves lots of room for improvement, but its a great start having a masters team represent the county again.

The team consisted of Larry Kelly (St Cocas), John O'Regan (Le Chéile), John Canning (Newbridge), Tony Brennan (Le Chéile), Gerry Halton (Naas), Brendan Delaney (Naas) and Sean Sweeney

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Training - Tonight thursday

Due to the condition of the track after all the snow and the forecast conditions, all training will take place in the hall this evening.

Please dont forget to bring along 2 euro to cover cost of hall.

O'Regan storms the Empire State Building


John O'Regan, Le Chéile coach and athlete, added another unusual event to his long list of achievements.
On Tuesday (3rd Feb), John joined 249 other runners to complete the race to the top of the Empire State Building in New York.

This event involves athletes starting at the ground floor of the building and climbing the 86 floors (1576 steps, 320m in elevation) to the observation deck. John completed the race in just under 15 minutes, which anyone who has visited the building will appreciate is a fraction of the time required to queue to take the lift.

Well done John, another fine example of how fitness can be applied to the most unusual and challenging endeavours.
If you are interested in seeing a video of this gruelling event click here.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Training Cancelled Tonight...

Due to snow-covered track and the likely continuation of the severe weather, training is cancelled tonight (Tuesday 3rd Feb).

Normal training will resume on Thursday evening.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Annual Registration - Saturday 24th

The annual registration takes place this Saturday in the amenities centre between 11 and 1. We will appreciate if you can print out the application form (Click here) and bring it along with the appropriate registration fee on Saturday morning.

You can view the letter from Michael (O'Connor) (Click here) which outlines what was discussed at the AGM regarding the setting of fees for 2009.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Club AGM on tonight (Mon)

Just a quick reminder that the club Annual General Meeting will be held in St. Mary's GAA club, Green Lane, Leixlip this evening at 8pm. All members (16 and over) are entitled to attend and those under 16 can be represented by a parent of guardian.

We look forward to seeing many of you attending the meeting and having a say in the future of the club.

For those of you unable to attend, we will circulate minutes of the meeting in due course.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

All Ireland 'B' Championships - Lough Key

The following athletes have been entered for the B Championships,

Girls U11
Catherine Jones,
Cliona Nic Shuibhne,
Ciara Brennan,
Fina Hayes,
Chloe Gleeson,
Niamh Kane,
Caoimhe Murphy,
Emma Cahill

Boys U11
Patrick Flanagan,
Conall Hayes,
Oisin Casey,
Tim Garland

Boys U13
Sean Flanagan,
Louis Hartnett,
Alex Howell,
Darragh Nolan,
Conor Kiely,
Fiachra Mac Suibhne,
Shane Roche,
Patrick O’Connor

Boys U15
Connor Murphy

The distances are the same as they have run at Kildare, Leinster and All-Ireland.

Boys & Girls U11 800m,
Girls U13 1000m,
Boys U13 1200m,
Boys U15 2000m

First race is at 12.00noon, so athletes should be there at 11.00 for warm up.

You can click here for directions.

Welcome to 2009!!

A very warm welcome to 2009 to all our athletes, parents and friends. We start the year with a very strong membership and lots of interest from new members. I and the other members of the coaching team and committee look forward to building on this success throughout the year.

On next Monday evening (19th Jan - 8pm) the AGM of the club will be held in St. Mary's GAA club in Leixlip. This is a very important event for the club and we hope to see as many families as possible represented - it is your chance to have a say in the running of our club. We are, as always, looking for more parents and friends to be involved in helping out with the running of the club as the increasing membership leads to increased workload!

I look forward to seeing many of you next week.