Mourne Way Marathon
Adventure Racer Eoin Keith Wins Inaugural Mourne Way Marthon
15.06.2009
Over 500 competitors took part in four events on the day and each of these had to be transported by bus to their relevant start locations, dotted along the foothills of the Mourne Mountains. The wheels were in motion from early morning and did not stop until the last finisher crossed the finish line almost ten hours later. The turnout for the event exceeded all expectations of the race organisers and competitors travelled from across Ireland, the UK and from parts of Europe to take place in this unique event.
Race Organiser Rowan McMahon said “this is a great event for the village of Rostrevor and for the whole of Newry & Mourne as it is bringing an influx of runners into the town and locality for the whole weekend. It is providing a much needed boost in tourist numbers in the area and there is no better place to have a race finish than in a sunny Kilbroney Park�
The Marathon was hotly contested by some of the best runners in Ireland and it was the on form Eoin Keith from Cobh who won in a fantastic time of 3:19:07. Gary Bailey was second with a time of 3:29:04 followed by another on form local athlete Don Travers in third place with a time of 3:30:47. In the ladies section Margaret Coulter from Culcavy won in a time of 4:19:56.
The half marathon was won by local fell runner Eddie Hanna in a time of 1:27:23 a fantastic achievement after having won the Hill & Dale race series two days prior to the event at a mountain race which covered the peaks of Meelbeg and Meelmore in the Mourne Mountains. The first lady home in the half marathon was Mary Dawson from Bray in Co Wicklow in a time of 1:54:16 and in 14th place overall in the half marathon.
The 10k race was a closely contested race and was won in a time of 45:58 by Jonathan Gray from Dublin. The first lady home in the 10k event was Dympna Magee from Rostrevor in a time of 51:47.
For full results from the event please check www.mournewaymarathon.com for more details.
As with any event of this nature it requires a large amount of marshals and help on the day for it to run smoothly and the organisers of the Mourne Way Marathon, 26 Extreme, would like to sincerely thank each and everyone of those people who turned up on the day to help with registration, timing, handing out fruit and water at feed stations, looking after the running wounded and giving support and encouragement to each and every competitor from the first to the last.
Race Director Ian Cumming said “the help and services provided by the local community rescue teams and other local people during the setup of the event and on the day of the event was invaluable and we express our gratitude to each and every one of these people. They are part of the team which has made this event the fantastic success it is has been today. We would also like to thank each of our sponsors for supporting this event and showing faith in a unique event which moves marathon running in a new direction in Ireland�
The Mourne Way Marathon is set to become one of the most talked about and premier off road running events across the island of Ireland and the UK over the next year and is set to become a firm fixture in the calendar of any runner for many years to come.
If anyone missed out on the chance to compete in the event the race Directors are planning another event of this nature long the Causeway Coast on 10 October 2009. For more details on this event log onto www.causewaycoastmarathon.com.
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