Ultra runner Ed McGroarty set for Anglo Celtic Plate 100k

Ultra runner Ed McGroarty from Raphoe has been selected for the Irish team that will compete at the Anglo Celtic Plate 100k in April.

The Lifford-Strabane AC man is one of an eleven-strong team confirmed by Athletics Ireland.

The event takes place in Perth, Scotland on April 3.

The Anglo Celtic Plate 100k Home International plays an important role in developing athletes at distances beyond the Marathon and to prepare athletes for future opportunities at European and World Championships. 

In October, McGroarty became the new Irish 24 hour Champion when winning the Belfast 24-Hour International in Victoria Park.

In doing so, he smashed the Irish record when he clocked up a massive total of 256.57Km / 159.42 Miles in 24 hours.

McGroarty ran 155 laps non-stop, which was the equivalent of over 6 marathons.

Last July he broke the world record for running from Mizen Head to Malin Head. The run took him three days, two hours and 53 minutes – breaking the previous record of 3:3:47, set by Eoin Keith in May 2017.

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The Finn Valley AC man finished 10th at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

In February, 2020, Ed set a new Irish record at a 24 hour endurance race in Finland, the Espoo 24 Hour, when he completed 249.761km.

“You don’t train your body for the sleep, you just get out and do the run,” McGroarty said in an interview last year.

“You learn to experience them. I’m a 24 hour runner and I always say that the best way to train for a 24 hour race is to do a 24 hour race.

“It’s a mental challenge more than a physical challenge. People say ‘I don’t know how you run for so long’, but if you can’t comprehend that then you won’t be able to do it.”