Sister act: Castlefin sisters claim European medals

Finn Valley AC sisters Catriona Devine and Sinead McConnell were celebrating medals at the European Masters Championships in Braga.

Devine won a superb silver in the W45 1500m with McConnell taking a brilliant bronze in the W50 5k race walk and leading Ireland to a team bronze.

Devine nosed in ahead of Spaniard Maria Jose De Toro Saiz to get her medal. The Castefin woman crossed the lined in 4:55.72 with German Miriam Paurat winning in 4:55.89.

“I’m over the moon,” a delighted Devine beamed.

“I’m just so excited. I trained so hard. I’m overwhelmed. This is everything.”

Devine has been one of Finn Valley AC’s most trusted lieutenants over the years. A member of the dominant women’s senior cross country squad of the 1990s, this was her first European medal.

Ciara Kearns wins European Masters gold, bronze for Sinead McConnell

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She said: “I put a lot of stuff into athletics and this is the icing on the cake.”

Her capture of the silver followed another display of guts and courage from her sister Sinead, who landed an impressive bronze medal in her 5k race walk.

Pushed all the way by Frenchwoman Catherine Florentin, McConnell reached deep into the well to ground out a determined finish.

Crossing the line in 27 minutes and 30 seconds, she was 16 seconds in front of Florentin by the end.

The French are a dominant force at this category with Boban Valérie and Violaine Bray taking the top two spots on the podium,

Having won bronze in the 3k race walk on Monday, with a 16:05.81 performance, McConnell didn’t rest on her laurels and took her place on the podium again. It was the same 1-2-3 as in the 3k event with McConnell again making sure of her nugget.

McConnell will return from Portugal with three medals as the Irishwomen also scooped team bronze in the 5k race walk. The Finn Valley woman was joined by Maggie O’Connor and Anne Gormley to collect team bronze.

McConnell said: “I have had so many hurdles to cross to get here. It’s been the best experience of my life.”

At the 2018 World Masters in Málaga, Spain, McConnell won two bronze medals, in the 5k walk and 10k walk, having won team silver over 5k at the 2018 European Championships in Madrid.

Noreen Bonner wins silver, leads Ireland to team gold in Braga

Finn Valley AC woman takes silver in cross country while Kay Byrne just misses a medal

Mark Connolly was inched out of the medals in the M60 1600m. Connolly finished in 5:15.69, pipped to bronze by Germany’s Gernot Wildschutte.

Noreen Bonner had bagged individual silver and team gold in the cross country race last Sunday. The Finn Valley woman finished fifth in the W65 1500m, coming home in 6:35.22.

In the M40 1500m, Tir Chonaill AC’s Martin Cunningham was fifth in 4:09.49, the Carrick man making his first appearance at these Championships.

In the 200m sprint on Friday evening, Kathryn McDevitt of Letterkenny AC was second in her semi-final, but was edged out to a spot in the final. McDevitt, following a lifetime best in the 60m sprint, will go in the 4x200m relay on Sunday as part of the Irish team.

Martin O’Donnell (Olympian YAC) was third in his 200m heat, although his time of 25.83 seconds missed out on qualification.

Last Monday, Finn Valley AC's Ciara Kearns won gold in the W35 long jump and it's a significant medal haul that will return to Donegal.