Canty wins De Care four mile event

Like many races these days, the winners of the De Care Sport-a -Smile Claremorris 4 mile were clear of the field after the first mile. Due to the volume of events on the calendar, seven races last weekend in Connacht - battles to the line are rare, which reduces competitiveness and lessens excitement for participants and spectators alike. This is not to take away from the efforts of race winner Michael Canty (Ballina AC ) and the women's winner Ann Lennon (Mayo AC ) who led from the start, while David Tiernan, Brendan Gill and Anto Devaney stuck together and sorted out the top places. Colette Tuohy had a steady run to finish second woman. Both Paula Prendergast (Dublin 10 mile ) and Mary Gleeson (Longford Half Marathon ) had hard races the previous weekend and filled the third and fourth spots. Finishing times were down due mainly to the twisty terrain on an uneven gravel surface. The race route and distance were changed a few days prior which may also have been a factor, four miles is rarely run these metric days. Mayo AC were the winners in most categories. This weekend should be a bigger event as race four of Mayo AC Road League moves to the new kid on the block the Charlestown 10k. Again, everyone is welcome to run, walk, or jog on a loop course which has proved popular and is relatively flat and fast. The Charlestown 10k organisers are looking for a big turnout. See wwwmayoac.com for full details. Race entry on runireland.com until today, Friday September 6 and on the day at race HQ.