Maher and Deverell crowned national champions
Last Saturday and Sunday, the 123.ie National Indoor Juvenile Championships were held at TUS Midlands in Athlone. Four of the club's track and field U19 girls competed in three events over the two days, bringing home an impressive haul of two gold medals and one silver medal.
Alisha Maher and Teagan Delaney competed in the morning session on Saturday in the 200m sprint. Alisha won her heat comfortably in 25.13 seconds and Teagan finished 6th in her heat but unfortunately did not progress to the final.
Alisha, having the fastest heat time, got a favourable lane (six) and the athletes in lanes five and four were going to have to chase hard to get close to her. Sticking to her race plan, she exploded out of the blocks with her lightning-fast start, gaining an early lead over the first 40 metres.
She then maintained her speed while conserving energy, forcing the chasing pack to work hard. In the final stretch, she surged forward once again, extending her lead and powering across the finish line to claim her second All-Ireland gold medal. She clocked a personal best of 24.82, setting a new club record in the process.
Sunday’s afternoon session saw Katie Deverell competing in the long jump. Fresh off her recent Leinster Championship victory, Katie has been progressing nicely in training and put together a good sequence of jumps. Her third attempt, measuring 5.20m, proved to be the winning mark, securing her first All-Ireland gold medal.
Alisha was back again competing in the 60m sprint with her training partner Lucy Champ. Lucy, coming back from a minor injury, finished 7th in her heat with a season's best of 8.34, but unfortunately did not qualify for the final. In the next heat, Alisha ran a blistering 7.64, a new PB, to win her race and secure a favourable lane for the final.
The final was going to be close based on the times from the heats and Alisha now was on her fourth race in two days and thousands of seconds can make the difference. Off the gun, all eight sprinters reacted quickly, but Alisha was slightly behind in the opening phase which was uncharacteristic for her.
However, she powered through the first 20 metres, gradually closing the gap. By the 40-metre mark she edged into a slight lead, but in an incredibly close finish, she was narrowly beaten by just three thousandths of a second. She claimed a superb silver medal, matching her PB of 7.64.
Congratulations to all four girls on a fantastic weekend of high standard competition, as well as to their coaches and families for their unwavering support.
A huge congratulations to Alisha and Katie for their outstanding achievements. On April 5th, they will be back in action alongside their clubmate Eimear Cotter in the All-Ireland Indoor Relays.