Irish Champion

Le Cheile athlete and coach John O'Regan was crowned Irish Champion after winning the Energia Belfast 24 hour race last Saturday 23rd July. John set a new track record running a staggering 132 miles during the 24 hour period. Congratulations from all at Le Cheile on this tremenduous achievement, as always you do Le Cheile proud.

Read more about this in the BBC website Sports section.

Conall Claims All Ireland Silver

Conor Murphy, Sean Flanagan and Conall Hayes were all in action at the Juvenile All Ireland Track & Field Championships in Tullamore on 10th July, 2011. Sean and Conor finshed out of the medals on this occasion but did Le Cheile proud in qualifying out of Leinster.

Huge congratulations go to Conall who ran the race of his life to finish second and claim All Ireland Silver in the boys under 14 800m final. This was an incredible achievement for Conall and for Le Cheile.

Click here to view full results from All Ireland Championships

Competition Dates:

Round 4 of the Kildare Track & Field League will take place in Newbridge Athletic Club on Sunday 3rd July 2011 - warm up is 11.15am.
Juv All-Ireland Championships: Day 1 Sat 9th July, Day 2 Sun 10th July, Day 3 Sat 23rd July, Day 4 Sun 24th July; conall Hayes, Sean Flanagan & Conor Murphy will be in action over these days; timetables are available on http://www.athleticsireland.ie/
National Track & Field League:Round 2 Sunday 17th July 2011 Kildare Men & Women are in action in Morton Stadium Santry - feel free to come along and support, Le Cheile athletes in action are Conor, Basit and Erica
European Youth Olympics: Trabzon, Turkey:24-29th July
Senior Track & Field All-Ireland Championships:See Irelands Senior athletes, including Le Cheiles David McCarthy, compete in Morton Stadium on 6th & 7th August 2011, timetable available http://www.athleticsireland.ie/
"B" Championships and Senior Kildare Track & Field : Sunday 4th September 2011 - hosted by Le Chéile AC.

B Championships All-Irelands 6.02.11

The conditions in Alsaa were appalling but it didn't deter the youngest of competitors namely Carragh Hayes. Carragh was first up for Le Cheile, Carragh had a great start and was out of the pen at a fast pace, Cheered on by her dad Pat, she finish with a smile. Well done. Next up was Fina Hayes, Fina was running out of her age in this race and put in a great run in very difficult conditions, Well done Fina. Kildare County took silver in the Girls U13 and Fina was the 6th Girl home on the Kildare team and earned a silver medal. Congratulations. Next up were the boys U13, we had a team; Conall Hayes, Patrick Flanagan, Thomas Connolly and Liam Murphy, they were all fantastic and Conall positioned himself well over the first 2/3 of the race and went into the outer field in 4th place, however with 1k to go Conall and Liam were in the top 20 and they both finished in fine style moving to 14th and 15th place respectively, followed by Patrick and Thomas. Thomas' grand father made it just in time to see his grandson's race. The boys finished in the team event in 5th place, and Conall and Liam were scorers on the County Kildare Team who took gold, Well done boys. Next upto run were Sean Flanagan, Conor Kiely ad Darrah Nolan, just short of having a team, the boys headed into a very strong head wind and fought their way til the end, Sean finish 15th with Darragh 25th followed closely by Conor. The boys were all cheered on by their very proud dad's who were at this stage knee deep in muck. The last athlete competing was Conor Murphy,Conor's race was run in conjunction with the Celtic U20 and U17 race which saw athletes representing Ireland, Ulster, Scotland and Wales go head to head. Conor held his own and in fact took a few international vests. Conor's race was the best out of his two previous All-Ireland races and saw him finish in 2nd place behind Eire Og's Michael Healion. Covered from head to toe in muck Conor was delighted with the result as was his coach. Conor was supported as always by his dad and all the other members of Le Cheile AC. Many thanks to all the parents for withstanding the dreadful conditions and thanks to Liam's dad who took photo's on the day. I'll try to get them uploaded to our site. Congratulations again to everyone who represented Le Cheile.

Thanks to Willie Murphy for photos he took on the day. Photos can be viewed here.

AAI Games 22/01/11 Nenagh

Congratulations to David McCarthy who won the 1000m race in a time of 2.29:31 in Nenagh last weekend. A great start to his season. continued success to David,best wishes from everyone.

All Ireland 16th January 2011

The postponed All-Irelanbd championships took place in Tullamore on 16th Jan, representing Le Cheile and Klildare were U11 Carragh Hayes, U13 Conall Hayes and U17 Conor Murphy: U11 - Carragh Hayes was on the Kildare team and it was her first National Championships, she represented her County and her Club at the highest level and finished 120 - well done Carragh
Conall Hayes was competing in his second National championship of the Cross County season, he also was on the Kildare team and got off to a flying start and continue to take on the leaders well into the 3rd quater of the race, Conall ended up finishing in 97 place. Conor Murphy having finished 11th in the Leinsters was on the pronvicial team so the pressure was on. Conor had a good start but his hamstring was very tight after about 1000m so he did well to finish in 47th place overall. Conor needless to say was unhappy with his performance, but he will put this behind him and look ahead to the indoor season.

Conall on the other hand was happy that he took on the leaders and was in 2nd place for the first 1500m, so well done to him. Conall sister Carragh enjoyed her first All Ireland championship, i'm sure it willbe the first of many.

Thanks to Pat Hayes who was the Coach on the day.

National League- Kildare Athletics

Congratulations to Erica Dixon who competed on the Kildare Team in the final of the National League. Kildare Athletics finished in 2nd Place earning them a Silver Senior Medal. Erica competed alongside Rose Anne Galligan and Claire Brady both international athletes, along with fellow clubs athletes, Sinead (Celbridge) Naimh ( St Cocas) Rachel (St Cocas) Pauline (Kildare) Corla (Naas) Evelyn (Newbridge) Sophie (Newbridge) Fiona (Newbridge) Chloe (St Cocas).

Well done to all the girls, they were beaten by Galway by a mere 2 points, this is a very young team with great future.

Erica - Le Chéile Golden Girl

Congratulations to Erica Dixon who won Gold in Javelin event at All Ireland Track & Field competition last weekend. Erica threw an impressive 31.9m to win gold medal and also achieved a personal best This result is even more impressive when you consider that Erica has been extremely busy studying for and completing her Leaving Certificate and as such has not been able to dedicate her normal time to the training programme.

All Ireland Indoor Race Report 27/04/10

This weekend saw Conor Murphy in action, Conor was competing in the U17 1500m. It was scheduled over the two days, heats on Saturday with the final on Sunday. I had hoped that it would be a straight final as Nenagh is not a great venue and its tough on athletes and parents driving up and down both days.

Anyway Conor's race was list for 3pm and we arrived in plenty of time, Conor did his own thing and I watched the sprints as there were a number of Kildare Athletes in action.

Conor knew his race plan, he was to stay focused and work hard throughout the race. He went into the call room, the race wasn't going to be a straight final there would be two heats, first 3 from each heat and the 2 fastest would qualify for the final. Conor was drawn in the first heat, so was the current Leinster champion. Race started and they were bunched together, with the lead changing a number of times over the first 5 laps, the pace was nice and steady with 36seconds - 37:84 the time over the first 4 laps, lap 5 saw the pace drop to 38:84, lap six saw a quicken of pace and when they turned the bend into the final lap the first 3 athletes stepped up a gear. Conor was in 3rd place but on the shoulder of the guy in second, it was neck and neck coming into the home straight, final lap 32:72, Conor qualified in 3rd place for the final. Job Done and a new PB.

We watched the 2nd heat with great interest, one athlete took an early lead and stayed out in front for the 7.5 laps, he finished way ahead of his competitors. All athletes in 2nd heat appeared to be slower than Conor's heat save the winner of the heat, the exact times were not up when we were leaving. Conor was supported on the day by his dad and sister.

Unfortunately I was unable to travel down on Sunday to see Conor in the final, but he had lots of support from his mum, dad and sister. I don't know exactly how the race went but the lad who won the 2nd heat (i'll have to look up his name) won the All-Ireland title, followed by the 1,2,3 from Conor's heat, so Conor finished in 4th position, which is the toughest place to finish, but Conor took another 3seconds of his time from the previous day. Conor did say that his quads were on fire on lap 5, he's very happy with his performance and he's looking forward to the track season.

Well done and onwards and upwards! Photo to follow!

Re-Run of U13/15 Cross Country Championships 21/02/2010 & B CC Championships

The Re-run of the u13/15 All-Ireland Championships took place yesterday in Lough Key. Le Cheile had two atheltes competing on the boys U13 Kildare Team . Conall Hayes and Darragh Nolan. They were accompained by their parents and I've been told that it was a very well organised event. The boys were out of the medals in the "A" race but Conall picked up a gold Team medal when the Kildare won the U13 "B" race.

Also in action was Conor Murphy U17, Conor went out from the start and was in 2nd place with a lap to go, he was beaten in a sprint for the line and had to be content with 4th Place. This is out of age for Conor, unfortunately Conor was let down by his fellow Kildare Team as enough of them did not turn up to score. Congratulations on your individual medal.

Next competition will be the Indoors on 27/28th February 2010 in Nenagh. Athletes in action are, Conor Murphy, Julie Boyle and Basit Enafie.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.