On Sunday, four young Olympian AC athletes competed with great heart and determination at the All Ireland Cross Country Championships held in Waterford and now travel home with an All Ireland Champion amongst them.
The first athlete to toe the line and step up into an older age group was Boyd Russell. Just three weeks ago Boyd had placed 6th in the under 12 age category and he really stepped up to the mark to place 28th overall in today’s U13 category.
After the final placings and team results were accumulated Boyd was fifth counter for his Ulster team, helping them to interprovincial team bronze medals. This adds to Boyd’s medal tally from the Even Age group championship and is a well deserved reward for this dedicated and determined young athlete.
Next up saw Holly Duddy take part in her first ever All Ireland’s Cross Country Championships in the U13 girls age category. Holly equipped herself well and had a great performance in her first national championship and she will no doubt continue to develop and have many more championships to look forward to in the future.
In the U15 girls, Nuala Bose like her team mate Boyd was stepping up an age group and performed superbly well improving her placing from three weeks ago at the U14 National Championships by almost 30 places and finished 54th in this older age category. Her efforts helped her to come home as the 3rd counter on her Donegal team and helped the team to a county placing of 7th overall.
The final Olympian athlete of the day Sean Mc Ginley was worth his weight in gold and came home crowned as the All Ireland U15 Cross Country Champion.
After coming 7th in the older U16 age category three weeks ago hopes were high for Sean as he prepared for the U15 championships.
As he began the race it became evident all the dedication, determination, courage and heart instilled in this young athlete would persevere right to the finish line, as he lead from gun to tape and was rewarded with his highlight achievement of the year to be crowned All Ireland Champion.
To add to his individual medal Sean collected another gold medal with his Ulster interprovincial team and a silver medal was rewarded with his Donegal team. A superb achievement for this highly motivated and dedicated young athlete.
