This week will long be remembered as the week when Lifford Strabane AC’s young guns came of age with four athletes on international duty.
Brendan O’Donnell is at the European Youth Athletics Championships in Georgia and Conor Breslin, Shannon Craig and Tom Mullen at the S.I.A.B Schools International in England.
It was a week that began with the club topping the medal table nationally at Day 1 of the All Ireland Juvenile Track and Field Championships in Tullamore with a tally of eight medals – four gold, two silver and two bronze- a huge endorsement of the coaching and development structures put in place over the course of the past few years.
Attention now, however, turns to Tbilisi early on Thursday morning where Brendan O’Donnell will be the first Irish athlete in action at the European Youth Olympics in Tbilisi.
The Lifford Strabane AC athlete will be aiming to qualify for the final of the Men’s Hammer against Europe’s elite throwers and should he do so, it would go down as his finest achievement yet. O’Donnell will need to be at or near his best to make Friday’s evening’s final but on recent form has every reason to feel confident.
On Friday, meanwhile, three Lifford Strabane AC athletes fly to Kent in England for the annual S.I.A.B. Schools International between Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales.
Conor Breslin (pictured above), fresh from his 53.47m personal best at the recent Tailteann Games Interprovincial in Dublin represents his country for the first time in the Boys Hammer while Shannon Craig (pictured below) who jumped a lifetime best of 1.70m at the same venue gains her first international vest in the Girls High Jump.
Tom Mullen (pictured below), the third Lifford Strabane AC athlete to wear the green vest of Ireland in Kent, has been selected to run both the 400m Hurdles and 4 x 400m Relay. Mullen, who is just back from a recent groin injury will be hoping to dip under 56 seconds for the first time in the 400m Hurdles.
Speaking to Donegal Sports Hub this week, club coach, John O’Donnell stated: “The four athletes on international duty this week have come up through the juvenile ranks of the club together from a young age and have shown immense dedication and commitment to the sport throughout. They are an inspiration to the younger athletes in the club who look up to them as role models and who dream of wearing the Irish vest themselves some day”.
Club chairperson, Sharon Gallen was fulsome in her praise for the 4 athletes and wished them well while representing their country.
[adrotate group=”60″]She added that: “Lifford Strabane AC continues to grow and flourish and this is just the beginning of a conveyor belt which I have no doubt will produce many more international vests for the club in the future as evidenced by the huge success at All Ireland Juvenile level last weekend”.
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