David Rooney of Raheny Shamrocks AC won this year’s Corrib Oil Streets of Galway 8k Road Race from a field of more than 2,500 runners.
Rooney, having won in 2010 as a 22-year-old in a time of 23:57, reclaimed the title in a time of 24:01. He headed off Paddy Nailton of Anndandale Striders who finished in second place, and Sergiu Ciobanu of Clonliffe Harriers who crossed the tape in third place.
Five Galway riders finished in the top 10. First home in fifth place was Michael O’Connor, while his Galway City Harriers’ clubmates Matthew Bidwell and Fintan Hyland finished in sixth and eighth place respectively. Along with a 12th placing, it was enough for the city club to win the men’s team prize. Craughwell’s Peadar Harvey and Peter O’Sullivan were ninth and 10th across the line.
Four Galway City Harriers were category winners - Cian Corcoran in the junior men; Ian Egan in the M45; Dermot Lowe in the M50; and Martin McEvilly in the M60. Tuam’s Roger Rush took the M70 category.
In the women’s race Maria McCambridge of Letterkenny AC won in a time of 26:36. The first Galway runner home was Helen Corbett in seventh place with a time of 31:35, followed by clubmate Regina Casey in eighth place in 31:59. Local category winners were Maebh Brannigan (junior ) in 34:06; Jacqueline O’Donell (F40 ) in 33:50; and Carmel Brannigan (F50 ) in 34:50.
As Saturday evening’s race celebrated its 27th anniversary, it continued to remain true to its original ethos of “sport for all”.
As always many runners took part to raise money for charities. Galway couple Regina and Tom Power were the driving force behind Charity Cardiac Risk in the Young had 250 competitors, while their son Colm, living in Australia, organised a parallel 8k race to take place in the Southern Hemisphere at the same time.
Regulars Croi also had a large group of runners, while another notable group was the On the Road Again of 10 athletes, organised by GCH’s Paul Fallon. OTRA is a non-profit organization that promotes the self-sufficiency of homeless populations and people suffering mental health issues by engaging them in walking and running as a means to build confidence, strength and self-esteem.
Patrick Larkin, Ger Meehan and Patrick Murphy were back on the streets for the 27th time - the only three competitors to have run every Streets race, while the Kenny family of Kenny’s Bookshops, Art Gallery and Book Bindery, boasted three generations and some 20 family members, including Des Kenny and his daughter Aisling, both of whom completed the Dublin City Marathon for the past two years.
