Gillespie goes close to Championship best as Donegal shines again at National Juveniles

Joseph Gillespie was just 0.04m outside the Championship record on his way to winning the under-19 triple jump on another successful weekend for Donegal athletes at the Irish Life Health Juvenile Championships in Tullamore.

Finn Valley AC man Gillespie won two golds and a bronze.

Gillespie took the triple jump with a superb 13.81m attempt, arriving on his sixth go. Gillespie was within touching distance of Brendan Lynch’s Championship best of 13.84m, set five years ago.

Gillespie landed the gold in the long jump when jumping a best of 6.53m on Sunday and there was a high jump bronze thanks to a 1.80m effort. It was certainly a consistent weekend with performances to offer encouragement for he and his coach, Paul Wilkinson.

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Finn Valley’s Mark Wilkinson, coached by dad Paul, was the under-14 high jump gold medalist when jumping over at 1.58m.

There was a golden double for the Gallen sisters from Lifford-Strabane AC.

In the under-19 hammer, Adrienne Gallen reached out to 50.02m to win gold with Caoimhe Gallen taking the under-16 hammer with a 52.07m throw.

Adrienne followed up with bronze in the under-19 discus when throwing 32.69m while Caoimhe was fourth in the under-16 girls discus with a best of 27.80m.

Adrienne Gallen on top of the podium

Tir Chonaill AC’s rising star Lucy McGlynn won the under-19 400m hurdles. McGlynn, who was the senior 400m hurdles bronze medalist, crossed the line in 1:02.34. McGlynn added silver in the 400m when clocking 56.02 seconds.

Cranford AC duo Oisin Kelly and Caolan McFadden added 1500m golds to the 800m crowns secured last weekend.

Kelly took the spoils in the under-19 1500m in 4:03.39 with McFadden going 4:15.28 to bag gold in the under-16 1500m.

Finn Valley AC’s Hannah Murray recorded two excellent PBs to earn silver in the 200m and 400m.

In the under-18 200m, Murray finished in 25.81 seconds having won her heat in 25.83 seconds.  Murray silvered in the 400m on Saturday, a personal best of 57.45 seconds.

Olympian YAC’s Sophie Parlour was third in that 200m, finishing in 26.09 seconds while her club mate Aoife McGeehin was the under-14 discus silver medalist, throwing out to 26.12m.

Tir Chonaill AC’s Ethan Dewhirst, brother of European Youth 400m hurdles silver medalist Fintan, won silver in the under-16 250m hurdles. Dewhirst finished in 33.34 seconds.

Jamie Kennedy of Tir Chonaill earned a first individual national medal with silver in the under-16 triple jump with a best effort of 11.91m.

Tir Chonaill AC pair Alex Anderson and Alannah Anderson were silver and bronze medalists in the under-18 shot (13.19m) and under-15 shot (10.53m) respectively.

Finn Valley AC’s Dean Leeper bagged silver in the under-16 javelin with a 50.13m throw - a new PB - while Blaine Lynch, also of Finn Valley AC, fired out to 54.51m for silver in the under-17 javelin.

Letterkenny AC’s Rohan McMenamin was third in the under-15 1500m final in 4:21.59. Erin Friel of Letterkenny AC left with two medals, winning silver in the under-15 100m in 12.89 seconds and bronze in the 200m with a 26.09-seconds run.

Cormac O’Donnell of Lifford-Strabane AC took silver in the boys under-19 hammer, his 52.15m throw beaten only by the final throw of the day by Fr Murphy AC’s Coil Omuiri, who bested that with a 53.44m throw.

There were silvers, too, for Lifford-Strabane AC’s Muireann McBride in the under-16 hammer (43.00m) and Elsa Moore in the under-18 3000m (10:09).

Finn Valley AC’s Amy Timoney was fourth in the under-16 250m hurdles while Una Richardson of Rosses AC was fourth in the under-15 long jump with Finn Valley AC’s Katie Louise McMonagle fifth.