By Ciaran O’Donnell
Last Saturday morning in the Phoenix Park around 9.45, Martin Kerr wrote himself into the record books of Irish athletics when he posted a new over-70s national record of 42 minutes and 38 seconds for 10K. In doing so, he trimmed 11 seconds off the previous record set by his sporting idol, the late Jim McNamara.
Back at the start of December, the quietly spoken Milford AC man broke the over-70 record for 5K when clocking 20:02 in the Letterkenny AC turkey trot. Being the holder of two national records is no mean feat in the business of long-distance racing.
Yet, as he made the journey to the capital for Saturday’s Great Ireland Run, which attracted a field of 1,400, a second Irish record was the furthest thing from his mind. A troublesome foot injury almost ruled him out of taking the starter’s gun at 9 am.
“I had entered (the Great Ireland Run) and wasn’t recovering as quickly as I wanted. I raced the Drumman 5K on March 27 and that was my first run out in two months. I ran 20:50 and figured I’d be ok for the 10K. While 5K is ok, 10K is a lot tougher when you’re not training hard,” he says.
The Fanad man reckons he was in much better shape last year when he turned 70 on February 15. He used the lockdown to good effect and increased his fitness levels through a series of virtual races in the peninsula. 19:45 on his tod for 5K was serious shifting.
However, a bad reaction to his second Covid-19 booster jab in June 2021 knocked him for six.
“I developed a chest infection and just as I was getting over that, I broke a bone in my back when I was splitting logs. It took a long time for it to be diagnosed. They thought it might have been pleurisy at one stage. I could do nothing for two months. It certainly wasn’t good preparation for my new category,” he recalls.
A podium finish was the main objective on Saturday. It was only over the closing stages that he realised a new Irish record was on.
“I was about three-quarters of a kilometre from the end when I could see the big clock still on 40 minutes. I couldn’t believe it. I pushed on as hard as I could and my tongue was hanging out going over the line. I looked up at the clock and it read 42:38. To beat Jim McNamara’s time was unbelievable. I admired that man for so long and to better his time was a fantastic feeling.”
Jim McNamara was second to Donegal’s double Olympian, Danny McDaid, in the national marathon championships and clocked 2:14:54 in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. The Donore Harriers club man passed away in March 2016, at the age of 76.
It was more by accident than design that Martin got into the world of athletics. He’d played football for Kerrykeel for around twenty years before damaging a toe in the mid-eighties. To recuperate, he took to running.
“Somebody suggested that I should do a marathon for charity. Between 1985 and 1988 I competed in six marathons. My best time was 2 hours and 49 minutes. I was just training on my own.”
After his last marathon, Letterkenny AC’s Kevin Toner invited him to join the black and amber vests.
“I joined Letterkenny for about six months. But I couldn’t commit to club sessions twice a week because of my job and I was farming as well. I was working as an engineer with the EPA, so between the two I just hadn’t time. When I was training for the marathon, I’d only train once a week and that was on a Sunday. I used to run from Portsalon over the coast road to Rathmullan and back. That was my only run – I think it was about 18 or 19 miles.”
He hung up the racing shoes and went back for another stint at soccer – this time it was five-a-side along with Gerard Patrick Shields and Oisin Harkin. Regular playing venues included the Pin Tavern in Letterkenny, Ramelton and Kerrykeel.
He retired in 2012 and did a lot of mountaineering along with a group of friends over a four-year period. His travels saw him scaling The Pyrenees, The Andes, The Alps, and The Himalayas.
“We had some fantastic experiences,” he recalls.
Not surprisingly, Martin wasn’t idle for too long after his final climbing trip in 2015.
“Hugh Hunter was starting the adventure races and some lads at home wanted me to join them and do the hill running and kayaking. I built my own kayaks back in the seventies and used to do a lot of kayaking on the Mulroy. I didn’t do a lot of hiking, but did the running and kayaking.”
Martin was part of teams that won The Race on two occasions.
“Along with Hugh Coll and Peter O’Donnell, we set the fastest time of 12 hours which remains a record for the team section. I did the kayaking from Ramelton to Rathmullan and did the run up and down Muckish in 42 minutes which was the fastest ever. I do enjoy keeping fit. I’m certainly not going to go out with a whimper – I’m going to go out with a bang.”
He raced the 2016 Cranford 5K in 19:50 and was still catching his breath with Milford AC’s James Gibbons approached him about signing on the dotted line.
“James said ‘you’re a handy runner’ and asked me to come along to a training session. I didn’t bother for a few months and then Hugh Coll asked me to join. So, I did and enjoy being a part of the Milford club,” he adds.
In 2018, Martin qualified to compete for the Ireland over-65 cross country team in Wales after a stellar performance at the trials.
“That British and Irish masters’ international cross country championships in Swansea four years ago was my first taste of serious running and I really enjoyed the experience.”
Since the weekend, Martin has been inundated with messages of congratulations for becoming a double Irish record holder.
“I suppose you could say it’s been my 15 minutes of fame,” he says with a laugh.
“I really appreciate those messages because they are coming from people who are in the sport and who understand what you have to do to run those times at my age.”
Looking ahead, his hopes are to remain injury-free.
“I know I won’t keep injury-free, but I want to be able to deal with injuries and keep away from injuries as much as I can. Maybe I’ll do the Autumn International again this year. This time it’s in Santry and that would be my focus now. I’ll do a few races in between,” he adds.
“I enjoy my running. Sometimes you don’t enjoy it in the middle of the race. But you get an adrenaline rush when you cross the line. It’s a good feeling. It’s all about keeping fit and keeping healthy as long as I can,” he says.
“Jim McNamara had a very good time when he was 75 years of age. He was dead at 76, so there are no guarantees in this world.”
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