Athenry AC's under-age athletes had further outstanding success at the second weekend of the All-Ireland Indoor Championships this past weekend, the highlight of which was an incredible gold medal in the U16 boys 4 x 200 metre relay. Conor Caulfield had the honour of anchoring the team across the finish line in a superb win for a great squad of teenage sprinters. Conor Kindregan ran a storming opening leg, Kevin Madden took the baton on the second leg, Cathal Kelly maintained momentum on the third leg while Conor Caulfield brought the team home. The team shaved an astonishing 6 seconds off their early season performances.

A striking aspect of the Athenry performances has been a marked improvement as the season progresses. Great credit goes to the coaches and mentors of the juvenile section for bringing the athletes in to peak condition at the right time. Special mention goes to Dermot McNamara, Sean Kindregan, Myles Murphy and Martin Hynes. The club has introduced several innovations this season, including the introduction of 2 weekly indoor sessions and the recruitment of a greater number of coaches, all of which have had a positive impact on the athlete’s performance and enjoyment of the sport.

Katelyn Duane was another of Athenry’s star performers and was unlucky not to claim gold in the U16 Girls 200m. Her time of 25.79 was just 3/100ths of a second off the gold medal performance. This was a fantastic result for Katelyn after her 4th place in the 60m three weeks ago. Katelyn clocked 26.99 in the Galway Championships, 26.65 at the Regional Championships and 25.79 this past weekend.

All of this was to add to the success of Claire Rockall who had taken Gold bak in March in the U18 Girls 1,500m with a superb time of 4:53:77.

Conor Caulfield not only led his team to the gold medal but also picked up an individual silver in the U16 Boys 200m with a time of 24.24. This was an improvement of almost half a second on his regional time.

Emma Grady was another of our star performers with a silver medal in the U12 Girls Shot Putt. Emma threw 7.65m and was narrowly short of the gold medal.

Strong performances for Athenry also came from Hannah Kindregan who finished 8th in the U14 Girls Shot Putt with 8.60m, the U13 Girls 4x100m team claimed 4th place shaving an incredible six seconds off their county championship performance, while the U17 girls 4x200m had a strong run in the heats.

For a report on the 1st weekend of these championships click here

  • http://www.athenryac.com/all_ireland_gold_for_claire_rockall

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    Congrats to all our athletes and coaches for the richly rewarded efforts put in throughout the indoor season. Here’s looking forward to an equally rewarding outdoor season.

    U.12 Girl's Shot Putt

    2 Emma Grady Athenry A.C. 7.65

    U.13 Girl's 4 X 100 m

    4 Athenry A.C. 58.16

    U.14 Girl's Shot Putt

    8 Hannah Kindregan Athenry A.C. 8.60

    U.16 Boy's 200 m

    2 Conor Caulfield Athenry A.C. 24.24

    U.16 Boy's 4 X 200 m

    1 Athenry A.C. 1.40.86

    U.17 Girl's 200 m

    2 Katelyn Duane Athenry A.C. 25.79

    U.17 Girl's 4 X 200 m

    Athenry A.C.

    Thanks to Der O'Donovan for use of photograph above.