Tyrone runners at the sharp end of Seeley Cup races

TWO Tyrone runners were at the sharp end of the action during last Saturday’s Podium 4Sport Seeley Cup 10K race, which doubled up as the Northern Ireland 10K Championships.

Strabane’s Ann-Marie McGlynn claimed the women’s title in style, breaking her own course record in the process by 11 seconds in a time of 33 minutes and 32 seconds to defeat Sligo’s Aoife Kilgallon, who took five and a half minutes off her own PB, and her Letterkenny AC team-mate Nakita Burke, who sealed bronze in 34 minutes and 20 seconds..

And Omagh’s Matthew Neill, representing Strive Racing Club, sealed a superb second overall in the men’s race just behind winner, Eoin Everard of Kilkenny Harriers, and ahead of bronze medalist, Eskander Turki of Annadale Striders.

McGlynn, who agonisingly missed out on a place in the Olympic marathon last summer by just four seconds, was using the event as a training run in case she gets a late call to represent Ireland at the European Cross Country Championships this coming weekend.

“I was happy enough. It was the NI National Championships so the aim was to come away with the win, so I did that and I held the course record, which I set in 2019, so I took another wee bit off that yesterday (Saturday),” she beamed.

“Three weeks ago I had the National Cross Country Championships and came away with sixth and I got named as first reserve on the Irish tram for the European’s which is next weekend, so I kind of have to hold my form in case I get called up and I still could get called up.

“I have to be ready for that so we decided to run the Northern Ireland Championships on the road and just get a good race out of it, treat it as a good training session and be ready for the call-up if needed.”

Ann-Marie now plans to enjoy Christmas, before tackling a half marathon in the spring and a marathon in the summer.

Meanwhile, other Tyrone runners in action at the Seeley Cup included Omagh Harrier, Eoin Mullan in 13th place, Keep Er Lit’s Colin Heron in 25th and Sperrin Harriers’ Andrew Newell in 71st, while Lifford Strabane AC’s Claire McGuigan was 100th overall and fourth in the senior women’s race in a fast time of 34.56 minutes.

Full results available via the Athletics NI website.