Sports briefs: Mayo pair help smash world record
The Ireland W65 masters team who ran a new world record for the 4x800m relay. From left to right: Pauline Moran, Mary Browne - both Mayo AC, Noreen Bonner Finn Valley AC, and Brigid McCabe Mullingar Harriers AC
Athletics: Two Mayo AC athletes helped make history in Dublin last Sunday. Pauline Moran and Mary Browne (first and second from left) joined Noreen Bonner of Finn Valley AC and Brigid McCabe of Mullingar Harriers AC in an Irish team attempting to break the World W65 4x800 metres relay record. It was a record held since 2022 when the USA ran 14m49s.
Dublin Athletics Board included an event in their Graded Meeting at Santry to facilitate the attempt. The Irish W65s were joined in the relay race by an Irish W45 women's team also trying to break the world record for a 4x800m relay held by Australia in a time of 9:43.76 since last year. And what an exciting and successful day it was.
The W45 team crossed the line first in 9:40.94 just under three seconds inside Australia's 2023 time for a new world record. And then the Irish W65 relay team were led brilliantly by national 800m record holder Pauline Moran, from Newport, Co Mayo, and they came home in 12:59.94, which was a massive two minutes faster than USA and another a new world record for Ireland.
It was a fantastic achievement by the two Irish quartets and another immensely proud day for Mayo AC.
The success came just two days out from the start of the Mayo AC 2024 Intersport Elverys 5k Series. The 12th edition of the series of five races begins at Castlebar this evening (Tuesday). Registration and bib collection is at the De La Salle Hall in St Gerald's College. The race gets underway at 8pm.
GAA: Having already blazed a trail through the round robin section of the competition, the minor ladies footballers of Mayo are setting their sights on becoming champions of Connacht. Nothing is likely to come their way easy though, as Galway will be intent on revenge for their earlier defeat when the teams clash in the ‘A’ final at the Connacht GAA Centre of Excellence, Bekan, this coming Saturday afternoon.
The game forms part of a double header with the ‘B’ which sees Sligo and Roscommon face off at 2pm followed by Mayo and Galway at 4pm. Both games are to be decided on the day.
Golf: Swinford Golf Club staged the Valerie Clarke Memorial stableford competition last weekend. Kevin Irwin was the gents winner on 42 points with Mark Fulham (39) and Douglas Cairns (38) taking second and third places. Breege Spain won the ladies with 31 points closely followed by Ann Deacy on 30 points and Margaret Haran on 29. The club extends its sincere gratitude to John Sheahan for his generous sponsorship of this event.
In addition to the individual competitions, Swinford achieved a notable victory in the recent 9-hole Inter-Club match against Achill. The contest was closely fought, with Swinford emerging victorious, 3.5 points to 2.5 points.
GAA: The under-17 hurlers of Mayo have advanced to the last four of the Celtic Challenge Cup. That’s after they ran out comfortable winners over Kerry in last Saturday’s quarter-final which was played in Ennis.
Mayo were seven points up at the break, and two second-half goals helped them to a handsome 3-24 to 3-10 victory.
Golf: An 18-hole stableford sponsored by Greens Menswear and JG Sports was held at Claremorris Golf Club last weekend, May 10 to 12. Riana Kean won the ladies with 38 points, with the category prize secured by Bernie Divilly on 30 points and Margaret Kitching having the best front nine holes with 18 points.
The men’s winner was Bert Sexton on 42 points while category prizes were claimed by David Grant (37pts), Chris O'Neill (38pts), Ray Wooley (40pts) and Janny Pilbrow (31pts).
