Bandon Athletic Club Est. 1964

Regular Training: Mon & Wed Nights in Sports Hall in Bandon Grammar School 7pm-8pm. 8pm - 9pm for U13 and older.

Registration Forms can be downloaded here

New section on records/rankings added.

Munster Juv Indoor Championships in Nenagh and National Senior Indoor Championships in Belfast.

PRO Report: 26th Jan 2010

Laura McSweeney and Eric Stam have been selected for the Irish Schools Athletics team who will be competing at the forthcoming Schools International to be held in Cardiff On 21st February. Laura representing Coláiste na Toirbhirte will compete in the shot. Her selection was on the back of her excellent performances during the season last year, winning three national titles. She won the All Ireland Indoor and Outdoor titles at U15 level and also won the Junior girls shot at the All Ireland Schools in May. Laura has also won All Ireland medals in discus and hammer and has competed in the prestigious English Triple A’s National Championships, winning a bronze medal in the shot. Eric Stam attends Coláiste Cholm in Ballincollig and will compete in the high jump and shot putt. Eric has won numerous medals representing Bandon AC at both indoor and outdoor All Irelands at U16. He has also competed at the English Triple A’s Indoor Combined Events, winning a silver medal. In the All-Ireland Schools representing Coláiste Choilm he won medals in the long jump and javelin as well as winning gold in  the All-Ireland combined events in both clubs and schools competitions.  He competed in the javelin on the Irish U16 team in Wales in August and was  on the Irish Schools teams for the Combined Events international in Glasgow in December. Well done to both Laura and Eric.
Carmel Crowley had a superb sliver medal winning performance finishing, behind Senior International athlete Siobhan O’Doherty at Senior level at the Munster Senior and Junior Cross Country Championships in Carrig na bhFear on 17th January. Carmel is currently in training for the All Ireland Masters Cross Country Championships due in Roscommon on February 21st.
Joan Healy won her 100m sprint and came second in the 200m at the AAI Junior Indoor Championships on January 16th. Phil her younger sister competing out of age at Junior level, finished fourth in the long jump. Timmy Harrington won bronze in the long jump, with Tracey Bradfield finishing in sixth position in the shot. Eric Stam competed in high jump and 60m sprint.
Ronan Duggan was the only Bandon athlete competing at the AAI Indoor Games in Nenagh on 17th January where he won the third Senior Men 1,000m race.
Upcoming events include the Goal Mile which will be held on Saturday 30th January at the CIT track from 2 to 4pm. This is a fundraiser for the charity Goal who are involved at the frontline in the aftermath of the recent earthquake in Haiti. The event is being supported by the Athletics community in Cork and the CIT Track is being given free of charge. Every cent raised will go to Goal. The event is open to all ages and abilities.
The Mallow 10 mile Road Race, cancelled due to weather, has been rescheduled for 7th February. The County Road Championships due to be held on this date in Ballinhassig have now been moved to coincide with the Paddy Desmond Memorial Road Race on 17th March. The Bantry 10 mile will be held on 14th February. Indoors, the Munster Juvenile Championships take place in Nenagh on Saturday 6th and 7th February. The Woodies DIY Senior Indoor Championships take place in the Odyssey Arena in Belfast the same weekend.
Registration continues at the club and all athletes, whether competing or not should ensure that their membership is renewed for the year. Application forms can be downloaded from the club website or obtained on training nights.

PRO Report: 6th Jan 2010

Bandon Athletic Club goes back into action with training resuming at the Grammar School on Monday 18^th January.  Registration will take place on two nights, the 18^th and the 20^th of January.  It is essential that all athletes who wish to train with the club register on one of those nights.  Membership for 2010 remains the same.  It costs €30 for juvenile athletes, €40 for an adult and family membership is capped at €100. 

The Club’s Annual Road Race fell victim to the inclement weather this year and had to be cancelled for safety reasons.  It is hope to reschedule the event to a date later in the Spring or Summer.   The club carol singing event due to be held on Wednesday 23^rd December was also cancelled.   The first indoor event of the season was another casualty of the weather – the Munster Senior, Junior and Masters Indoor Championships to be held in Nenagh.  No new date has been fixed for this competition. Upcoming events include the AAI Junior Indoor Championships to be held in Nenagh on Saturday 16^th January with the AAI Indoor Games being held there the following day.  The Munster Senior and Junior Cross Country and Inter County Relays will be held in Carrig na bhFear on Sunday 17^th January.

PRO Report: 9th Dec 2009

Ronan Duggan and Kevin Wilmot made the long trip to the Woodies DIY AAI Novice Cross Country Championships at the University of Ulster in Coleraine.  Ronan finished in 29^th position and Kevin Wilmot came in down the field in 58^th place in a field of 135 runners over a 6K course.   Some of the juvenile athletes also headed North for the uneven age All Ireland Cross Country Championships held on the same day. Aisling Everard who also competed in the even age All Irelands the previous weekend, ran in the girls U15 race coming in 42^nd position. However, there was some controversy at the start which means that the race may have to be re-run at a future date.

Also running on the day at U11 level were Carla Hicks who finished in 58^th place, Victor Lovell 50^th and Conor Callanan 64^th.  The Cork was team 5^th.

The AAI Even Age Cross Country Championships took place in Kilbeggan on 22nd November.  Running U14 Aisling Everard finished in 14^th place and won a silver medal as part of the Cork team which came second.  Fiona Everard and Caoimhe Ní Suilleabháin both ran well in the girls U12 race. Ailis Crowley ran at U18 level  as did Marianme Everett.  

Eric Stam travelled to Kelvin Hall in Scotland to compete in the Celtic Schools International where her came 4^th individually in the Pentathlon and was part of the Irish team which was second.

The Spar European Cross Country Championships will take place in Santry, Dublin on Sunday 13^th December.

Training has now ceased for the Christmas period with training resuming on January 11^th.The Annual Road Race is scheduled for 11am on Monday 28^th December. 

PRO Report: 24th Nov 2009

Bandon AC hosted the County Masters and Intermediate Cross Country Championships on Sunday 15 November. The event was held on the lands of the Ahern family at Clancoolmore. The weather on the day was fine and sunny but ground conditions were very wet in parts. The course was a good test for cross country running with plenty variety in the terrain.
Louise Cavanagh of Bandon AC was poised to take the gold medal in the Masters women’s race but was narrowly beaten into second place close to the finish by Anne Marie Healy of Eagle AC. Kate Coveney also competed for Bandon but was outside the medal positions. Tom Laffan finished fifth in the masters men’s race with Matthew Gedden, Joe O’Sullivan and Michael Weldon also competing. Tom was placed third in the M40 section. Kevin Wilmot also finished fifth in the Intermediate race with Liam Murphy also running well on the day.
Carmel Crowley represented the club in Birmingham recently at the British and Irish Cross Country International. Carmel was competing against some of the top runner in the UK and Ireland. It was a 6K course and she said conditions were good underfoot. She finished 11th overall and was second in the F40 category. She improved her placing by two on this occasion as she was fourth last year in F40 when she ran in Swansea. Carmel was part of the Irish team which came second, winning her a silver team medal.
The Club AGM will be held on Friday December 4th at 8.30pm. The meeting, which was due to be held in the Munster Arms Hotel, has been relocated to the Ashtree bar in Old Chapel due the extremely unfortunate recent flooding in Bandon. All athletes and parents of juvenile athletes should endeavour to attend the AGM. The Munster Masters and Juvenile even age cross country will take place on Sunday 29th November at a Tipperary venue.

National Throws Squad comes to Bandon Athletic Club.  PRO Report: 12th Nov 2009

The AAI National Throws Squad comes to Bandon on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th November. The National Throws squad consists of the top achieving athletes from clubs throughout the country who have excelled in throwing events. This is the first time that the squad have ventured down to West Cork. Events are normally held in Tullamore and occasionally at other venues. A number of Bandon AC athletes have been invited to be part of the Squad in recent years. The weekend will consist of high level coaching and lectures in discus and shot putt.
On Saturday morning, the venue is the Grammar School where there will be a session on discus and shot which is open to all interested club members. This will be followed by a Rotational Shot Clinic. This is by invitation only and is for coaches and athletes in the national squad. This session will be conducted by Denis Roscoe who is a leading UK throws specialist.
The venue for Sunday is the Town Park where there will be coaching for Regional Squad members from 10am to 2pm. Contact Catherine Duggan on 086 2399665 for further information on the above weekend.

PRO Report: 3rd Nov 2009

The West Cork Cross County Athletic Championships hosted by Bandon AC were held on Sunday 1st November. Held in the Clonakilty Showgrounds on a cold blustery day, ground conditions were tough given the copious amounts of heavy rain in the preceding days. Ella Stack won a bronze medal in the girls U10 race. Fionnuala Murphy was fifth. Caitríona Organ, Elaine O’Sullivan and Michelle 0’Donovan also ran well. Bandon also took the bronze in the team prizes. Mike Laffan won the boys U10 race with Conor Callanan coming second. Kristian Buttimer finished in eighth position with Jack Callanan coming in tenth. Also competing were Cian Kingston, Conor Walsh and Robbie Waugh. Bandon took the gold in the team prizes. Gráinne Lucey finished fourth in the girls U12 race with Mari Dineen coming fifth. Eva Stack and Carla Hicks also competed and Bandon were third in the team category. Victor Lovell won a silver medal in the boys U13 race. Eoin O’Sullivan was fifth with Eamonn O’Sullivan, Dylan Harrington, Conor Reynolds, Ronan Lucey, Cyril Dineen, Fiachra Harrington and Matthew Bolster also competing well. The Bandon team were place second. Aisling Everard had a convincing win at girls U14 level. Ciara Huston came in sixth. Sinéad Caulfield, Lisa Lovell and Melissa Callanan also ran well and the Bandon team took the silver medal. David Laffan was the only Bandon athlete running in the boys U14 and he finished in eighth place.
The County Junior and Senior Championships were run immediately after the West Cork races. Ailish Crowley finished fourth overall in the 2.5K Junior Ladies race and this also earned her a West Cork U20 gold medal. Elizabeth Prout won an U20 West Cork silver medal with Aine Weldon taking the bronze. Mariamne Everett also competed. Mark O’Sullivan and Eoin Fleming competed for the club in the Junior Men’s race over 5K. Mark finished in 7th place overall and took the U20 gold West Cork medal. Eoin Fleming came in 13th position overall and took the silver U20 West Cork Medal.
Carmel Crowley ran a blistering race over 5K at senior level winning her the bronze medal. Also competing for Bandon were Louise Cavanagh, Priscilla O’Sullivan and Noeleen Fitzpatrick. Ronan Duggan finished in 13th position in the senior men race over a tough 10K course. Tom Laffan came in 16th place. Tom Sheehan and Liam Murphy completed the team for Bandon.
The Munster Intermediate and Juvenile uneven age Cross Country Championships will be held at a Kerry venue on Sunday 8th November and Bandon AC are hosting the County Intermediate and Masters Cross County Championships in Bandon on Sunday 15th November.

PRO Report: 13th Oct 2009

Kevin Wilmot won a silver medal at the County Novice Cross Country Championships over a 6K course in Killeagh on Sunday 11th October. The County Juvenile uneven age championships took place at the same venue on the same day. Ailis Crowley won silver in the Girls U19 race. The girl’s U13 team came in third place and the girls U9 were placed second with Finnula Murphy coming in third place individually and Gráinne Mulcahy fourth. Victor Lovell came in fourth position in the boys U11 race with the team taking third prize. The boys U9 team came second.
The first round of the County Juvenile Cross Country Championships was held a week earlier in Carrig na bhFear on October 4th. Fiona Everard came fourth in the girls U12 race with Gráinne Lucey coming sixth and Bandon took gold in the team placings. Aisling Everard won an individual bronze medal in U14 girls and Ails Crowley came sixth at U18 level. The U18 team were place second. Conor Callanan won a silver medal at U10 level and the boys U10 team were placed second.
Joan Healy was honoured along with a number of Cork based athletes at a civic reception in the County Hall in Cork on October 7th. The athletes, including Derval O’Rourke, Robert Heffernan and Olive Loughnane, all performed impressively in international competition over the summer.
Upcoming events include the Munster Novice, U23 and Juvenile Even Age Cross Country in Dungarvan on 18th October. Bandon AC will host the County Senior and Junior Cross Country Championships in Bandon on 1st November.

PRO Report: 29th Sept 2009
Kinsale Riverstick Open Cross Country was held on Sunday 20th September in a picturesque setting, overlooking the Bandon River, adjacent to the Rugby Club. Mark O’Sullivan was joint first with Ethan O’Donovan coming second in the junior men race. Ailis Crowley, Aine Weldon, Liz Prout and Marianne Everett ran well in the junior ladies race and won the third team prize. Emily Keane came second at girls U16 level. Aisling Everard won silver in the girls U14 race with Louisa Keane, Lisa Lovell and Kellie Harte also running well. David Laffan ran in the boys U14 race. Fiona Everard came fourth at girls U12 level. Mari Dineen, Gráinne Lucey, Kerri Buckley, Eva Stack, Caoimhe Ní Suilleabháin and Aoife O’Leary also ran well. Victor Lovell was 7th home for Bandon in the boys U12 race. Also running were Conor Reynolds, Johnny Keane, Ronan Lucey, Nathan Holding Fiachra Harrington and Nigel O’Mahony. Ella Stack, Leah Buckley, Leah Crowley, Chloe Buckley and Elaine O’Leary competed at girls U10 level but were outside medal positions. Michael Laffan, Conor Walsh and Tadhg O’Suilleabháin ran in the boys U10 race. The girls U8 ran well with Niamh Sugrue coming in 5th position. Tola Ní Suilleabháin was ninth. Sarah Buckley and Hannah Buckley also competed. Callum Holding was fourth at boys U8 level with Ciarán Reynolds in fifth position. Fionn and Ruairi Harrington and Liam Buckley also ran.
The club held another very successful primary schools cross country event at Bandon Rugby Club on Friday 25th September. Full results of this will be posted on the club website.
A number of athletes from the club ran in the Evening Echo Women’s Mini Marathon on Sunday 27th September. Louise Cavanagh came in sixth place. Anne McCarthy also ran. The Evening Echo will publish a Mini Marathon special on Saturday 3rd October with full results and photos.
Upcoming events include the Cork County Juvenile Even Age Cross Country Championships to be held in Carrig na Bhfear at 1pm sharp. Athletes should aim to arrive at 12.15 in order to have time to warm up and check out the course. The next BHAA event will be the Sports Supplies “Cork to Cobh” 15 mile road race will take place on the same date October 4th with a 9.30am start.

PRO Report: 15th Sept 2009
A number of athletes from the club made the trip to Dunmanway where the first event of the cross country season was held in glorious sunshine on Sunday 13th of September. There was a league for the U9s to U17s and a West Cork Championship for the seniors and masters. Michael Weldon and Finbarr Harrington came second and third respectively in the Masters race. Kate Coveney won the senior women’s race.
The juveniles competed in a league with medals for the first ten finishers in every race. Grainne Mulcahy won bronze won bronze in the girls U9 race.  Callum Holding, Fionn Harrington, Alan Blair and Ruaridhí Harrington all competed in the boys U9. Carla Hicks won a bronze medal for the U11 girls with Eva Stack and Caoimhe Ní Suilleabháin also competing well. Victor Lovell had a convincing win in the boys U11 race with Conor Reynolds and Conor Callanan coming in second and third respectively. Mike Laffan was fourth with Ciaran Murphy, Cameron Blair and Ronan Lucey also running well. Fiona Everard, Gráinne Lucey and Kerri Buckley ran well in the girls U13 race. Gerard Crowley won the boys U13 race with David Laffan and Fiachra Harrington also among the first ten. Aisling Everard won the girls U15 race with Kelly Harte coming second. Aine Weldon took the gold medal in the girls U17 race. The boys U17 race was on by Mark O’Sullivan with Daire Harrington coming second.
Riverstick Kinsale Open Cross Country will take place at Kinsale Rugby Club at 1pm on Sunday 20th September. Training will move indoors to the Grammar School hall from Monday 21st September. The Evening Echo Women’s Mini Marathon takes place at 1pm on Sunday 27th September. If you have already received a race number, please ensure that you remember to bring it to the run as race officials are reluctant to allow anyone with out a number to participate!
There will be group Cross Country Training in Farran Wood on a number of Saturdays during the coming months from 12.30pm to 1.30pm. Dates as follows – 19th and 26th September,  24th and 31st October and 14th November.

PRO Report: 2nd Sept 2009
The Munster B Track and Field Championships were held on August 30th in Ennis. At U11 level, Kate Bernard won a silver medal for long jump and a bronze for the 60m sprint. Carla Hicks competed in the U11 long jump and Amy Crowley in the ball throw but were outside the medals on this occasion. Erin Kingston came second in the U12 shot. Lisa Lovell won a bronze in the U13 long jump and came fourth in the 80m. Fiona Ivrie Fiona Duggan won the U14 shot with Aoibheann Harte coming second in the long jump. Cian Kingston came fourth in the U10 ball throw
Competing internationally for Bandon Athletic Club, Eric Stam came second overall at the 7th International Meeting of Combined Events in Woerden, in the Netherlands on 29th and 30th August. Eric had personal best performances in the 100m sprint, the shot, high jump, 100m hurdles and javelin.
A number of athletes from the club competed at the national finals of the Community Games in Athlone on August 23rd and 24th. Representing Ballineen-Enniskeane, Colin Kingston won the U14 shot and was part of the bronze winning relay team. Sinéad Mulcahy was part of the girls U14 team which also took bronze. Sinéad Caulfield reached the final of the girls U12 600m as did Aisling Everard to the girls U14 800m Matthew Draper was part of the boys U12 relay team. Fiona Duggan represented the Bandon area in the U14 shot.
Training for the Cross Country Season continues at the Town Park on Mondays and Wednesdays at 7pm.

PRO Report: 25th Aug 2009

Bandon AC had two representatives at the 'AAA' U.K. Track and Field Championships in Bedford, UK recently. Competing against athletes from across the UK, competition was going to be tough. Laura McSweeney finished in 9th place in the U15 discus. She went on to throw a season’s best in the shot with a throw of 11.77m which won her the bronze medal. Earlier in the season she won the All Ireland Shot putt for the fourth year running as well as winning the All Ireland Indoor title in March for the third time. Patrick McSweeney finished in 13th place in the U17 shot.
At the Woodie’s All Ireland Masters Track and Field Championships in Tullamore on 16th August, Liz Coomey won the hammer, came second in her 100m, long jump, high jump and discus. Priscilla O’Sullivan won gold in the 3000m walk, silver in the javelin, shot and hammer and came third in discus.
The Bandon ladies team finished 5th in the Premier division at final of the National League in Tullamore on 8th August just missing out on a medal position.
On the road Tom Laffan finished in fourth position at the recent Army/Navy 5 mile road race. Tom Sheehan came in 19th place. Tom won the M40 section with Tom coming second in the M45 category.
Upcoming events include the Munster B Juvenile Track & Field Championships which take place in Ennis on Sunday 30th August. Training has resumed at the Town Park where the main focus will be training for the forthcoming cross country season. The first event of the season will be hosted by Riverstick Kinsale AC and held in Kinsale on September 20th. The Evening Echo Women’s Mini Marathon will be held on Sunday 27th September. Closing date for online entries is Friday 18th September.

PRO Report: 4th Aug 2009
The National Senior Track & Field Championships took place in Santry on August 1st and 2nd. Timmy Harrington and Rachel Roche and Ronan Duggan were there representing Bandon Athletic Club. Timmy came away with two fourth place positions in the men’s long jump and triple jump. Rachel was also just outside a medal position coming fourth in the women’s javelin.  Ronan Duggan ran in the heats of the 800m but missed out on qualifying for final. In Carmarthen, Wales, Eric Stam and Joan Healy were competing for Ireland for the Celtic Cup. Joan won the U18 100m sprint in a time of 12.19 seconds. Eric came third in the U16 Javelin with a throw of 40.39m
Eric was also in action the weekend before in Tullamore winning the boys U16 Pentathlon at the combined events Track and Field on 26th July. Unfortunately, Colin Kingston had to withdraw from the U14 competition due to injury.
The Masters athletes had an impressive medal haul at the Munster Masters Track & Field Championships in Castleisland on Sunday 26th July. Liz Coomey won gold in the 100m, high jump, long jump and hammer. Priscilla O’Sullivan won her shot, discus, javelin and came second in the hammer. Marian Roche won her discus, shot and javelin.
Upcoming events include the England Athletics U17 & U15 Championships in Bedford, UK on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th August. The National Track & Field League final takes place on Saturday 8th August in Tullamore.
Liscarroll Open Sports take place at the GAA pitch on Sunday 9th with a 1pm start. The AAI Masters Track & Field Championships will be held in Tullamore on 16th August. There will be a break from training for two weeks from Monday 10th August.  Training will resume on Monday 24th August at the Town Park heralding the start of the Cross Country Season.

Local athletes Tracy Bradfield (Bandon Grammar School) and Patrick McSweeney (Hamilton High School) were members of Irish Schools U17 team for the recent Schools International in Antrim, competing against teams from England, Scotland and Wales. Tracey and Patrick were both competing in the Shot Putt and amid tough competition they both finished in 7th place. Their selection was based on their performances at the All-Ireland Schools Championships and recent Tailteann Inter-Provincial Championships when they were both on the Munster team.  Tracey and Patrick are both members of Bandon Athletic Club. Joan Healy of Bandon AC is in Tampere, Finland, competing in the European Youth Olympics Festival. On Monday last Joan qualified for the 100m final running in a time of 11.95. Joan ran in the final the following day, Tuesday in a time of 11.90. She had a 15m lead but unfortunately faded to finish just 5 hundredths of a second behind the winner coming in fourth position. Joan will be competing in the heats of the 4 x 100m relays on Thursday. A number of athletes from the club were in action at the Woodies DIY Juvenile U12-U19 championships of Ireland at the weekend where the shot putters produced some top results. Laura McSweeney won a gold medal the girls’ U15 shot. Tracy Bradfield won silver in the girls’ U17 shot and Patrick McSweeney won the boys’ U17 shot. Lynn Bradfield came third in the U16 discus. Shane Howard came in sixth position in the U16 triple jump. Daire Harrington competed in the U16 shot and discus but was outside the medals. The Bandon women’s team will be going to the finals of the National League in second position in Tullamore on August 8. The team members are Liz Coomey, Carmel Crowley, Joan Healy, Priscilla O’Sullivan, Rachel Roche, Róisín Howard and Tracy Bradfield. Timmy Harrington has received the 96FM Jury’s Evening Echo Athlete of the Month Award for July. Timmy also competed in the recent Cork City Sports and amid an International came fifth overall in the long jump with a jump of 7.01m. Upcoming events include the National Seniors in Santry on the August bank holiday weekend where Rachel Roche, Timmy Harrington and Ronan Duggan will compete. In Wales the same weekend, Joan Healy, Eric Stam and Daire Walsh have been selected to compete in the Celtic games based on their performances in the All-Ireland Club competitions. The final in the West Cork Summer League series takes place in Bantry at the GAA pitch at 7pm on Friday, July 24. The AAI Juvenile Combined Events Championships take place in Tullamore on Saturday and Sunday, July 25–26, and the Munster Masters will be in action at their Track and Field Championships in Castleisland on Sunday 26th.

Adding another major achievement to her impressive CV, Joan Healy of Bandon Athletic Club has been selected as part of the European Youth Olympics Team who will be competing in Tampere, Finland from July 18^th to 25^th.  Joan will compete in the 100m sprint and be part of the 4 x 100 relay team.  The club wishes Joan every success for the event.

Club members had a very successful outcome at the AAI Juvenile Track and Field Championships in Tullamore last weekend with Colin Kingston bringing home a gold and silver medal for shot and hammer.  Sipke Shaughnessy (U17 300m hurdles) and Joan Healy a gold medal each. (U17 300m hurdles and U18 100m sprint).  Laura McSweeney and Eric Stam won two silver medals each. (discus and hammer and high jump and javelin).  David Reynolds came second in the U18 javelin and Tracy Bradfield was third in the U17 discus.  Other club members competing well on the day but outside medal positions included Shane Howard, 4^th in U16 pole vault, Robert O’Sullivan 6^th in U15 Javelin, Patrick McSweeney, 4^th in U17 hammer, Lynn Bradfield 7^th in U16 shot. Phil Healy came 5^th in U16 100m sprint and Fiona Duggan, 4^th in U14 hammer. She also competed in discus and shot.

The first Bandon Athletic Club Summer Camp held last week at the Grammar School was deemed a resounding success.  The weather was good all week with rain only on the final day which meant that activities moved indoors to the very spacious Grammar School sports hall. Numbers participating were at capacity on each day of the camp.  Reaction to has been hugely positive by both participants and their parents.  Activities included all the various athletic disciplines along with fun events– running, both sprint and distance, long, high and triple jump and  throwing events culminating on the final day with an “Olympics” in which all participants had their performances recorded.  Everybody who attended was presented with a certificate and a medal to reward their week long participation. The new Mayor of Bandon, Gearóid Buckley was a guest at the final awards ceremony. Joan Healy who did some sprint coaching at the camp was also presented with good luck card from the club in honour of her forthcoming participation in the European Youth Olympics.

Priscilla O’Sullivan, who specialises in throwing events, took part in the British Masters Outdoors Track & Field Championships on July 5^th and 6^th in Birmingham.  Priscilla came second in the 3000m walk and shot and came third in the hammer and 9kg weight (short hammer).  She also had a number of successes at the Leinster Masters Track & Field Championships on June 7^th winning gold in all her events - hammer, javelin, discus and shot and 35lb weight. She also won a silver medal in the javelin at the County Masters on May 10th

Patrick McSweeney and Tracy Bradfield have been selected for the Irish Schools U17 teams both competing in shot putt.  The Irish schools team will be competing against schools teams from England, Scotland and Wales in Antrim on Saturday 18^th July.  Their selection was based on their performances at the All Ireland Schools Championships and recent Tailteann Inter Provincial Championships when they were both on the Munster team and finished second in their shot putt competitions on the day.

Upcoming events include the West Cork Summer League which takes place on Friday 17^th July at 7pm at the pitch in Ballinadee.  This event was due to have been held the previous Friday in Ballinspittle but was cancelled due to rain. The Bantry Summer League will be held on Friday 24^th July. The Bandon Week Sports which take place at the Town Park on Thursday 30^th July at the Town Park. Admission is free and the event is open to residents of Bandon and surrounding areas.

The AAI Junior and U23 Track and Field Championships took place in Tullamore on Sunday 28th June. Competing for Bandon AC were Timmy Harrington, Joan Healy, Tracy Bradfield and Rachel Roche. Timmy won the Junior Men triple jump with a personal best jump of 14.48m. He also won the long jump, jumping 7.06m. Joan Healy won the junior women 200m and came second in the 100m. She had a personal best time in the 100m or 11.78. Tracy Bradfield came third in both junior shot and discus. Róisín Howard came third in junior long jump, fourth in shot and fifth in high jump. She also competed in the 400m. Rachel Roche won bronze in the U23 discus and also the javelin where she had a personal best throw of 33.49m. The Junior women’s team won the 4 x 100 relay. On the team were Róisín Howard, Joan Healy, Lynda O’Donovan and Tracey Bradfield. The Woodies DIY All Ireland Team Competitions took place the previous day also in Tullamore. Carla Hicks and Kate Bernard came fifth in the U11 60m sprint.
The second Courtmacsherry/Timoleague 10k took place in brilliant sunshine on Saturday 27th June. The numbers of runners was substantially up on last year. Kevin Wilmot of Bandon AC retained his winning title from last year as did Carmel Crowley in the women’s race. Tom Laffan was second. Tim Lucey came 7th. Paddy Murphy came in eighth position, with Tom Sheehan coming tenth. Phil Murphy also competed. Liz Barry was the fourth woman home and Sheila Muckian was first in the F45 category.
I omitted to mention in last week’s report that Fiona Duggan was unfortunate to miss out on medals with three fourth place positions for U14 discus, hammer and shot at the Munster Juvenile U14-U19 Championships held at the Waterford Regional Sports Centre on June 20th and 21st.
Upcoming events include the Cork City Sports at the Mardyke Arena on Saturday 4th July. The Munster Juvenile Combined Events take place the following day Sunday July 5th at CIT and the second round of the National Track and Field League also takes place on the same day.

PRO Report: 23rd June 2009
Bandon Athletic Club is holding its inaugural Summer Camp which will run from Monday 6th to Friday 10th of July. The camp is open to children between the ages of 5 and 12 years. Cost for the week is €50 per person. The camp will be held at the Bandon Grammar School and will start at 10am and run until 2pm. The camp will provide an introduction to some athletics events and how to train for them. There will be fun exercises to get better coordination, flexibility, core strength, agility and of course how to become fitter overall. The camp is open everybody not just club members. There will be plenty fun and games as well as athletics. To avoid disappointment be sure to book early by contacting any of the following Catherine 086-2399 665, Ann 086-2597 961, Denise 085-1066 366 or Sharon 085-7325 281.
Bandon athletes had a number of record breaking championship bests at the Munster Juvenile U14-U19 Championships held at the Waterford Regional Sports Centre last weekend June 20th and 21st. Colin Kingston won both the U14 shot and hammer. He threw a distance of 36.06m in the hammer breaking the existing record of 32.02m. His shot throw of 13.70m broke the record which has been held since 1978. That record was for a distance of 13.37m. In the girls U15 shot Laura McSweeney beat the existing 2007 record of 12.55m with a throw of 12.65m. Laura also won the hammer and came third in the discus and 5th in javelin. The U16 boys had a good day’s competition with Eric Stam winning the boys U16 high jump, javelin and 100m hurdles and coming second in discus. Daire Harrington won a silver medal in the U16 hammer, bronze in the shot and came fourth in discus. Shane Howard came second in the triple jump and third in both high and long jumps. He was sixth in the 250m hurdles. Ronan Sheehan came fifth in the 200m and the relay team were second in the 4 x 100m relay. Lyn Bradfield won a bronze medal in the girls U16 discus and was fourth in shot. Phil Healy came 4th in the U16 100m sprint and 6th in the 200m. Robert O’Sullivan came third in the U15 javelin and Oisín Sedgewick was fourth in the 100m.
At U17 level Tracy Bradfield came second in the discus. Sipke O'Shaughnessy won the 300m hurdles and the 200m. Patrick McSweeney won the shot and came third in both the hammer and discus. Mark Sugrue came second in the discus and javelin. Mark O’Sullivan came fifth in the 3000m. David Reynolds won the boys U18 javelin. Sinead Mulcahy qualified for the final of the U14 200m. Also competing on the day were Sammy Jo Ho, Aoibheann Harte and Helena Murphy.
The BHAA John Buckley 5K took place at the Marina in Cork on June 16th. Kevin Wilmot finished in 18th position with Tom Laffan coming 21st. Tom was also placed second in the M40 section with Tim Lucey coming third in the M45 category. Also running well on the day were Paddy Murphy, Tom Sheehan, Declan O’Halloran, Joe O’Sullivan.
The coming weekend is a busy one on the athletics calendar. The West Cork Athletics Summer League takes place at 7pm Skibbereen. Please note that the venue for this event has been changed from Bantry to Skibbereen. The league due to be hosted by Skibbereen AC on Friday 24th of July will now be hosted by Bantry AC. The Courtmacsherry/Timoleague 10K will be run at 5.30pm starting in Courtmacsherry. The Tailteann Schools Inter Provincial games take place in Tullamore on Saturday 27th June. The Juvenile Team Games under 9, 10 and 11 will also take place on the same day in the same venue. The AAI Junior and U23 Championships take place the following day also in Tullamore. Tracton Open Sports will be held in Minane Bridge GAA pitch on Sunday 28th June.

PRO Report: 3rd June 2009

The third Cork City Marathon took place on Monday 1st June. Temperatures were high on the day making conditions difficult for runners but good for spectators. Temperatures during race reached 23 degrees with the heat causing many of the runners to struggle. Tom Laffan came in 15th position in a time of 2:54:57 which was similar to his time last year. Kevin Wilmot clocked up a time of 3:17:05. Also participating was Tom Sheehan, 3:35:07, Phil Murphy 3:37:05, Robert Merrick and Pat O’Sullivan. Matthew Gedden travelled to Scotland for the Edinburgh Marathon on Sunday 31st May.
The All Ireland Schools Track and Field Championships were held in Tullamore on Saturday 30th May. There were some super performances from Bandon athletes who were representing their schools in the competition. Timmy Harrington (Kinsale Community College) won the senior triple jump and was third in the Long Jump. For Coláiste na Toirbithe, Joan Healy won the intermediate 100m and came second in the 200m and Laura McSweeney won the Junior Shot and came second in the discus. Tracey Bradfield (Bandon Grammar School) came second in the intermediate shot and third in the Discus. Eric Stam (Coláiste Cholm) came second in the javelin and 3rd in the Long Jump. Also competing but outside the medal positions were Ivan O’Brien and David Reynolds of Bandon Grammar School, Sipke O’Shaughnessy and Patrick McSweeney of the Hamilton High School and Shane Howard of Coláiste an Chraoibhín, Fermoy.
Events next weekend include the Munster Juvenile U9-U11 Team Events and the U12-U13 Track and Field Championships on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th June in Templemore.
The West Cork Athletics Board B competitions will take place the following weekend on Friday 12th June at 7pm at the Town Park with competitions for U9 to U16. Relays will be for U10, U12, U14 and U16.

The County B Track & Field Championships took place on 24th May at the CIT track on what turned out to be one of the finest sunniest Sundays of the year so far. It was a paired competition and open to U9s to U12s. Gráinne Lucey and Kerry Buckley won the girls U12 shot. Gráinne also won the U12 700m with Fiona Everard. Fiona paired with Marie Dineen came second in the U12 long jump. The U11 boys won the shot – Cameron Blair and Conor Reynolds were the winning pair. Ryan Blackmore and Cameron Blair won the U11 long jump. Conor Reynolds and Ronan Lucey came second in the U11 500m and Ronan paired with Ryan Blackmore won bronze in the U11 100m. The U11 girls won gold for the 500m with Ava Stack and Aoibhín O’Sullivan on the team. Katie Bernard paired with Ava Stack took the silver medal in the U11 100m and Katie paired with Aoibhín O’Sullivan came third in the long jump.
The U10 boys, Cian Kingston and Jack Calnan came second in the 300m and second in the long jump. Angharad Shaughnessy and Leah Buckley won the U10 girls long jump. Róisín O’Sullivan and Gráinne Mulcahy won the gold in the U9 ball throw and in the 100m Gráinne and Chloe Buckley came second. The U9 girl’s pair of Ella Stack and Róisín O’Sullivan came third in the long jump.
Also taking place at the same venue was the Munster Pole Vault Championships. Eric Stam and Shane Howard came 4th and 5th respectively. At the County Multi Events, Colin Kingston won the U14 Pentathlon. Unfortunately, Fintan Shaughnessy was injured and not able to complete event. The pentathlon consists of hurdles, long jump, high jump, shot and 800m.
About 20 of the younger club athletes attended the Little Athletics Jamboree at Douglas Community School on Saturday 23rd May. Sonia O’Sullivan was in attendance with her own children to help out at this fun event.
Events next weekend include the All Ireland Schools Track & Field Championships to be held in Tullamore on Saturday 30th May. The club sends it best wishes to its athletes who will be representing their schools at All-Ireland level. Courceys Annual Sports take place on Sunday 31st May at the GAA pitch. Club members will be meeting at 12 noon at the ESB car park (opposite Kelleher’s) where lifts to the event can be organised.
One of highlights of the year for road runners, the Bórd Gais Energy Cork City Marathon and relay takes place on the Monday of the Bank Holiday weekend. A number of athletes from the club will be participating again this year. The West Cork Athletics Board B Track and Field Championships will be hosted by Bandon AC at the Town Park on Friday 12th June at 7pm. Athletes who did not win an individual medal at the A competition are eligible to participate.

PRO Report: 12th May 2009
Bandon athletes had a number of successes at the first round of the County Juvenile Track & Field Championships took place at the CIT Track on Sunday 3rd May. Aisling Everard won the girls U14 1,500m, Laura McSweeney took the gold medal for the girls U15 javelin and Lynn Bradfield won the U16 discus. Bringing home silver medals were Erin Kingston for the U12 shot, Aoibheann Harte for the U14 long jump, Helena Murphy for the U15 javelin, Lynn Bradfield in the U16 shot and Phil Healy in the U16 long jump. Ailis Crowley won silver in the U18 1,500m. Fiona Duggan won bronze medals for the U14 discus and shot and Niamh Mulcahy took bronze for the U16 discus.
The boys too performed impressively on the day significantly adding to the medals for the club. The following won gold medals, Travis Coomey, U11 shot, Colin Kingston, U14 hammer, Eric Stam, U16 80m hurdles, pole vault and javelin. Also at U16 level, Daire Harrington won the hammer, Shane Howard the 250m hurdles. Patrick McSweeney won the U17 shot, hammer and discus and Sipke Shaughnessy won the U17 300m hurdles. Winning silver medals were Jason Bradfield in the U11 shot, Oisin Sedgewick in the u15 100m sprint, Shane Howard in the U16 pole vault, Tadhg O’Donovan in the U17 hammer and Sipke Shaughnessy in the U17 100m. Bonze medals were won by Conor Calnan in the U10 300m, Victor Lovell in the U11 ball throw, Matthew Draper in the long jump, Colm Minihane in the U13 hammer, Gavin Hicks in the U13 shot, Joey Henchy in the U13 80m. Fintan Shaughnessy and Colin Kingston won bronze in the U 14 high jump and javelin. Mark O’Sullivan came third in the U17 steeple chase. The boys U16 team won their relay.
Club athletes representing their schools also had a number of fine performances at the South Munster Schools Track and Field Championships at CIT on 2nd and 9th of May. Full results can be seen on the Club website www.bandonathleticclub.com .
Upcoming events include the Munster Schools Track and Field Championships to be held at the University of Limerick on May 16th. The second round of the County Juvenile Track and Field competition will be held at the CIT Track on May 17th. Check in is at 10.00am with events starting at 10.30am. The Rising Sun Athletic Club will hold their annual Mile run in aid of Enable Ireland at 7pm also on Sunday 17th. This is always a very enjoyable event and supports a very worthy organisation. All ages invited to participate.

Bandon athletes had a number of successes at the first round of the All Ireland Juvenile Indoor championships which took place in Nenagh at the weekend. Laura McSweeney won an all Ireland gold medal in the U14 shot. Eric Stam won the U16 hurdles and the long jump. He came second in the high jump. Joan Healy won gold in the U18 60m sprint. Colin Kingston won silver in the U14 shot. Fintan Shaughnessy won a silver medal in the U14 long jump and came 4th in the high jump. Daire Harrington and Ronan Sheehan were also competing but finished outside of the medal positions on this occasion.
The second round of the All Ireland Juvenile indoors will take place in Magherafelt next weekend on April 4th and 5th, with Joan Healy competing again, this time in the 200m. Patrick McSweeney and Tracy Bradfield will contest the Shot.
Tom Laffan and Kate Coveney were the only representatives from the Club at the Cork County Road Championships held in Carrig na bhFear on Sunday 29th March. Tom competing over 4 miles came in third overall and won the M40 category.
The first leg of the West Cork Track and Field Championships take place at the CIT Track next Sunday April 5th with a start time of 12 noon. Events this Sunday are for the uneven ages starting with U9. There will be events also for Seniors and Masters. The athletic club will be bringing a bus to the track which will leave Kelleher’s at the bridge in Bandon at 10.45am.

PRO Report: Bandon Athletic Club Annual Awards
Long time Bandon AC Head Coach Catherine Duggan received the Club Person of the Year award at the 2009 Athletic Club Awards held on March 6th at the GAA Pavilion. While the award is for achievement during the past year, Catherine was being awarded for her dedicated contribution to the club over many years. John Sheehan received the Hall of Fame award and Fiona Duggan was the first recipient of the newly created President’s Award. John Sheehan is a Bandon native who has won County, Munster and All Ireland athletics medals in the 1960s. He is an athletics coach in Limerick and the Munster Regional Squad coach. He managed the Irish Junior team in Grangemouth, Scotland in 2008. He has never forgotten his Bandon origins and is very supportive of Bandon athletes at any athletics meeting. The President’s Award was donated by Club President Billy Good. The idea behind this particular award that it would be presented to a juvenile member who typifies what the club is about and shows exceptional personal qualities.
Carmel Crowley again received the overall Cross Country award. Her achievements last year included representing Ireland in Wales at the British and Irish Masters Cross Country event in November.
For Juvenile Cross Country Conor Callnan received the U9 award. The Everard family, namely Fiona, Aishling and Ciarán took the U11, U13 and U15 Cross Country Awards respectively. Mark O’Sullivan was awarded in the U16-19 section.
Joan Healy took the overall Track and Field track award for achievements including representing Ireland in Poland at World Junior Track and Field Championships. Liz Coomey won the overall Masters award. In Juvenile Track and Field, Erin Kingston won the U11 award. Fintan Shaughnessy was awarded in the U13 section. Fintan has an all Ireland silver medal for long jump and came first in the Munster A combined events. Laura McSweeney won the U15 award and the U16-U19 award went to Róisín Howard. Laura is the current U14 All-Ireland shot champion and Róisín Howard has won all Ireland silver for U19 shot and is Munster Champion in high and long jump.

Last weekend was a busy one for Bandon athletes. In Sheffield Eric Stam won a silver medal at the England Athletics U15 – U17 Combined Events. Competing in the U15 pentathlon, his events included the 60m hurdles, long jump, high jump, shot and 80m.
Mark O’Sullivan represented Bandon Grammar School in Jordanstown the same weekend at the All Ireland Schools Cross Country Championships. Ronan Duggan ran in the Inter Varsities Cross Country representing DCU at the same venue.
The Ballycotton 10k road race always attracts a large entry. Kevin Wilmot was the first Bandon AC athlete to finish coming home in 38th position in a field of 2,000 plus runners. Tom Laffan finished in 47th position. Also running for the club were Tom Sheehan, Matthew Gedden, James Daly, Phil Murphy, Padraig Sheehan, Robert Merrick and Paddy Murphy. Louise Cavanagh was the sole female runner from the club. In Dunmanway on the same the West Cork Road Races attracted a small entry due to the severe weather conditions on the day. Cameron Blair of Bandon AC won a silver medal in the boys U10 race. Fiona Everard won the girls U12 race with Gráinne Lucey sharing third position. Aisling Everard came second in the U14 race with Ciarán Everard taking the silver in the boys U16 race.
Upcoming events include the Munster Senior and Junior Road Race Championships on Sunday 15th March and the Rising Sun 4 mile on Tuesday March 17th . Detailed results and fixtures can be seen on the Club Website www.bandonathleticclub.com

The Munster Juvenile Indoors and Multi Events were held at the Indoor arena in Nenagh on the 21st and 22nd February. Competition is always tough at Munster level with large numbers participating on both days. Fintan O'Shaughnessy came second in the U14 Pentathlon, with Colin Kingston coming third in the same age category. Erin Kingston came fourth in the U12 shot
In Carrigaline, Kevin Wilmot came 5th in the BHAA Tommy Ryan Memorial 5 mile road race. The previous week he finished one place up in fourth position in the BHAA 5K Cross Country event.
Carmel Crowley came sixth over a distance of 4K at the All Ireland Masters Cross Country Championships held in Tallaght, Dublin on February 15th. Louise Cavanagh came 13th and both won all Ireland silver medals as part of the Cork which came second. Tom Laffan also competed in the Master men’s race over a distance of 7K.
The club will hold its Annual Awards Night on Friday 6th March at 8.30pm. The event will be held in the GAA Hall and all club members and families are invited to attend. The West Cork Road races will be held on Sunday March 8th at Kilbarry Road, Dunmanway with a 12 noon start. There will be races for U10s to U20s and for adults.

PRO Report: 26th Jan 2009

Bandon athletes brought home all Ireland medals for the Club at the Woodies DIY Junior Indoor Championships which took on place in Nenagh on Sunday 24th January. Timmy Harrington won the long jump with a best of 6.77m. Joan Healy won silver in both the 60m and 200m and Tracy Bradfield came third in the shot. Ronan Duggan competed in the 1000m at the AAI Senior Indoor games also in Nenagh on the same day.
The Woodies AAI All Ireland Juvenile B Cross Country Championships were held Lough Key Forest Park, Boyle Co Roscommon Sunday 25th January. Three members of the Everard family competed on the day. Fiona came 4th in the girls U11 race, her sister Aisling came 6th at girls U13 level. Ciarán came 7th in the boys U15 race. Elizabeth Prout and Aine Weldon both competed in the girls U17 race coming 16th and 17th respectively.
In Little Island on Sunday 25th January, Louise Cavanagh was the first woman home in the BHAA FMC 4 mile road race. Kevin Wilmot came 7th in the men’s race.
Upcoming events include the Munster Juvenile U13-U17 Indoors Championships in Nenagh on Saturday 7th February and Sunday 8th February. The Munster Masters Indoors championships also take place in Nenagh on Sunday 8th February. The AAI Senior Championships also take place in Belfast on Sunday 8th February.
Due to the hall at the Grammar School not being available, there will be no training for younger club members, who attend the 7pm-8pm session, on Monday 2nd and Wednesday 4th of February. Weather permitting, outdoor training will go ahead with the older group each evening at 8pm. Regular training will resume the following week.

PRO Report: 20th Jan 2009
The Cork County Athletics Board held its Annual International Awards night on Friday 16th January at the Vienna Woods Hotel. Athletes are recognized with International Awards for their achievements in representing Ireland in junior, senior or master’s international competition during 2008. Among those recognized this year were former World Indoor champion Derval O’Rourke, multiple Irish record holder and former European Indoor champion Mark Carroll, both from Leevale AC and Rob Heffernan of Togher AC who had 8th place finish in the men’s 20k walk at the Beijing Olympic Games last year. Receiving International awards for Bandon were Carmel Crowley and Phil Healy. Carmel Crowley has been at the forefront of Cork athletics for a number of years. She won the County Road Race Championship this year among other Road and Cross Country titles. Now in the over-40 category, Carmel represented Ireland at the British and Irish Masters Cross Country Event in Swansea, Wales in November 2008.
Joan is one of the top junior sprinters in the country. Along with receiving many Schools and National Junior accolades this year, she also represented Ireland at the 2008 World Junior Track and Field Championships in both the 100m and the 4x100m relay.
Linda O’Donovan picked up a County Award for County for her performance in 400m and long jump in Junior Track and Field competition. Rachel Roche was awarded in Senior Level Track and Field for the discus, javelin and shot. Well done to these athletes for their commitment and achievement.
Carmel Crowley had a busy weekend as she also competed for Bandon and Cork at the Munster Senior Cross Country Championships in Dungarvan. Carmel finished in 7th place behind fellow club athletes Louise Cavanagh who came 5th. Both were part of the Cork County team who came first on the day.
The AAI Woodies Juvenile Indoor Combined Events also took place last weekend at the indoor area in Nenagh. Fintan Shaughnessy and Colin Kingston competed for Bandon at U14 level finishing 5th and 6th respectively. Eric Stam having won his shot competition unfortunately had to withdraw from the U16 event due to injury in the hurdles. Phil Healy competed in the Girls U16 event but finished outside the medal positions.
Upcoming fixtures include the AAI Junior Indoor Championships in Nenagh on Saturday 24th January. Nenagh is also the venue the following day for the AAI Senior Indoor Games and the Juvenile B Cross Country Championships and Relays take place in Roscommon.