Keelan and Caitlin ready to race the best in Europe

Athletics: There will be significant local interest in next weekend’s European Cross Country Championships which are taking place in Turkey, with both the Ballina-based Moy Valley Athletic Club and Swinford Athletic Club proudly represented.

Moy Valley’s Keelan Kilrehill and Caitlin Hughes of Swinford have both been named in a 36-strong Irish team that will compete in the championships which are being held in Antalya next Sunday, December 8.

Keelan Kilrehill, a native of Dromore West, spearheads the senior men’s team having delivered gold-medal-winning performances over the 7,500m distance in Enniskillen at the national championships earlier this month.

Kilrehill will be joined on the senior men’s team by Cormac Dalton (Mullingar Harriers), Efrem Gidey (Clonliffe Harriers), Sean Tobin (Clonmel AC), William Fitzgerald (Craughwell AC), and Pierre Murchan (Dublin City Harriers). Kilrehill and Dalton both featured on the Irish senior men’s team that finished fourth at last year’s championships in Brussels, with Dalton finishing inside the top ten individually.

Swinford AC’s Caitlin Hughes (Swinford AC) has been selected on a six-strong Irish U20 women’s team along with Lucy Foster (Willowfield Harriers), Annabell Morrison (Enniskillen RC), Avril Millerick (Youghal AC), Eva Bartlett (Lagan Valley AC) and Anna Gardiner (East Down AC) who returns having led the Irish team home in Brussels last year.

“On the back of last year’s success in Brussels, I am delighted that we travel to Turkey with strong teams again,” said Athletics Ireland’s national endurance co-ordinator Mark Kenneally.

“It is getting harder to make the Irish team for the European Cross Country Championships year on year, and great credit goes to all the athletes who have made this team. We now travel to Turkey in December with realistic medal ambitions and will look for strong performances from athletes across the board,” he assured.