Race Report

This Years St. Patrick's Day Half Marathon in Mullingar attracted over 950 Runners to the Midlands Town. Numbers were vastly up on last years 600 participants.

Running is certainly alive and kicking in the Midlands. The majority of runners were from the surrounding area with Maurice Looby Fitness, Mullingar Harriers & Tullamore Harriers giving strong support to the event. However, many participants made long journey's from Cork, Fermanagh, and many other locations. Funds raised will go towards a very worthy charity in Childline.

Runners set out on their Half Marathon Journey...

The Weather conditions were ideal for running with a slight breeze and temperatures of 9 degrees. Runners took advantage of this hitting some PB times. The location was superb starting at 10:35am just after local St. Patrick's Day Mass in the Town Centre.The Finish line was placed in the heart of Mullingar's Town Park across from the main Registration area of the Annebrook House Hotel. Great facilities were offered by the hotel. There was a real friendly and social feel to the finish line area as the Spring weather allowed runners to congregate providing friendly interaction with each other. Hopefully the wet winter weather is behind us now.

Winning delight; John Byrne wins Mullingar Half Marathon

The top placed winners of this years Mullingar Half Marathon were both from Mayo. John Byrne of Mayo AC in a time of 1:09:36. The Female winner was Norah Newcombe Pieterse also of Mayo AC. There was a great atmosphere at the Finish Line and this was due to the many close battles for placings on the home straight. With so many runners with similar talents gave way to tough battles which also resulted in PBs all round.

Peter Mooney's great running streak continues ..