The All-Ireland Schools Track and Field Championships took place in Tullamore last weekend and a number of Laois students excelled.
Laois students in Colaiste Iosagain, Portlaoise CBS, Heywood, St Leo’s College (Carlow) and Kilkenny College all took part over two days.
Four Laois athletes returned home with medals while another group were successful in a relay event.
We had two individual gold medals with Portlaoise CBS’ Dan Downey taking first place in the Inter Boys 400m hurdles.
The Park-Ratheniska dual GAA player stormed home in a time of 54.04 to claim the top prize in a new championship record – replacing the one that stood since 1998.
The second Laois athlete to reach the top of the podium was Zoe Dunne for Bilboa.
The St Leo’s College student clinched gold in the Minor Girls 75m hurdles in a person best of 11.99.
The race itself was very tight all the way to the line with Zoe diving across the line to take gold.
That wasn’t the only gold medal that Dunne took home as she was also on the St Leo’s team that took first place in the 4X100 metre relay event.
Dunne teamed up with Faye Brennan (Arles), Sophie Dowling (Crettyard) and Ava Broderick (Carlow) to run a championship record of 51.25.
They toppled the previous record of 51.82 that was held by St Vincent’s Dundalk since 2016.
Two further Laois athletes claimed silver medals – one in utterly heartbreaking circumstances.
Andrew Cooper, representing Kilkenny College, was just pipped for the gold in the Senior Boys Shot Putt by one centimetre.
The Camross man threw 17.49 metres and was just beaten by Theo Hanlon from Kildare Town who managed a throw of 17.50 metres.
While a second Portlaoise CBS student also took home a medal as David Wajrack claimed silver.
The Portlaoise student’s time of 4.06.87 was enough for second in the Inter Boys 1500 metres.
There were a couple of near misses too with two Laois students just missing out on bronze medals.
The aforementioned Zoe Dunne also competed in the Minor Girls Long Jump where her effort of 4.77 left her fourth – one place ahead of her classmate Faye Brennan who was fifth with an effort of 4.71 metres.
While Colaiste Iosagain’s Cillin Hoey, who is from Portarlington, finished fourth in the Inter Boys 100 metre hurdles in a time of 14.25.
Colaiste Iosgain sister Eliza and Della McLoughlin, who are from Fisherstown, also competed over the weekend.
Eliza came sixth in the Inter Girls 1500 metre Steeplechase while Della was seventh in the Senior event.
Portlaoise CBS’s Joshua Osumah finished sixth in the Junior Boys High Jump while Heywood’s Aaliyah Troy, who hails from Durrow, was tenth in the Inter Girls High Jump.
Well done to all involved!
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