The second Great Western Greenway 10k run/walk, co-organised by Mayo Sports Partnership, Westport Leisure Park and Westport Town Council, took place on Saturday May 26 last with more than 300 participants lining up for a 2pm start on the Newport side of the Greenway. According to Mayo Sports Partnership, the event which took place in fantastic weather conditions mainly attracted first time runners of this distance and was an off road trail run/walk.
The first woman to cross the line at a time of 38: 52 seconds was Mary Gleeson from Mayo Athletic Club, followed in second by Maura Ginty, and in third place Ann Marie Needham. In the men’s section Gerry Ryan, Craughwell AC finished in a time of 34:32 seconds, second place went to Noel Gibbons and he was followed by Brendan Conway in third place. The first over-40 female to cross the line was Kathleen Barry; the first male was Noel Gibbons, incidentally they are brother and sister. Tony Killarney left his contemporaries behind as the first to finish in the over-50 age group, Pauline Moran was the first woman to finish in this category. All participants were treated to a wide range of refreshments and entertainment at the Westport Leisure Park where presentations to place winners and many spot prizes took place.
The organisers would like to thank the landowners along the Greenway, the residents of St Mary’s Crescent, Mayo Civil Defence and all the volunteers from various organisations who assisted with the running of the event. For future opportunities to participate in similar events log on the Mayo Sports Partnership website at www.mayosports.ie
