Finn Valley AC duo Joseph Gillespie and Bridget McDyer won golds at the National Senior Track and Field Championships on Sunday.
Joseph earned gold in the triple jump and Bridget topped the charges in the weight for height.
They join an elite pantheon now at 20 people who have won national senior golds in track, field or road events in the Finn Valley AC singlet, while there were silver medals for Finn Valley AC trio Amy Timoney (100m hurdles), Arlene Crossan (400m hurdles) and Lauren Callaghan (long jump) as well as a new Donegal record for Leah O’Gara.
Joseph Gillespie jumped to a best of 14.19m to clinch a memorable gold. The Carrickmagrath man was out over 14m on three attempts, also recording 14.18m and 14.12mumps on his way to his first senior gold.
A standout athlete as a schoolboy at Sessiaghoneill NS, he was a John Carlin Award winner in his young days.
In the weight for height (28lbs), Bridget went to 3.50m for gold. That mark goes in as a new Ulster record for the Rosses native and indeed she becomes only the second ever national senior gold medal winner from the Rosses area – the first since John Gallagher in 1949.
In the 100m hurdles final, Amy Timoney was second, behind only the great Sarah Lavin, after surging to a new personal best 14.11 seconds.
In super-tight finish, Amy hurdled magnificently and nosed ahead of Donore Harriers athlete Abigail Farrell, who crossed the line just 0.02 of a second behind in 14.13 while Sarah Quinn from Mayo was fourth in 14.20.
Two-time Olympian Lavin won her 20th National Senior title, her 12th outdoors. Amy, a 19-year-old, was competing in her first ever national senior final – and excelled to a podium place.
Arlene Crossan was pipped late in the 400m hurdles final. Out of lane 6, the Finn Valley AC woman looked set for victory, leading as she headed into the home straight, but Midleton AC youngster Ellie Kate McRae hit back over the last couple of hurdles and took victory in 58.35 seconds.
Arlene just couldn’t reel back McRae and took second 0.04 seconds behind in 58.39 whole Cara Murphy from UCD AC was third in 58.98 while Tir Chonaill AC’s Lucy McGlynn was sixth in 61.79.
Lauren Callaghan saw her Irish long jump title snatched away from her by Ruby Millet, the Crossroads woman having to settle for silver.
The Finn Valley AC athlete, who had an outside chance of making the European Championships, leaped a best of 6.45m – going to that distance twice – but Millet touched the sand at 6.47m, the St Abban’s AC athlete leaving with gold.
Lauren had broken the Donegal long jump record a couple of times this summer, most recently when getting out to 6.51m in Belgium earlier this month.
There was bronze and a new Donegal record as Leah O’Gara finished third in the 5000m race walk.
Leah clocked 24:22.91 in a tight finish, with Kate Veale taking gold in 24:18.38 Aisling Lane crossed the line in 24:21.03 for silver.
The Termon teen’s time takes out the 24:34.79 set last weekend when she competed at the European U18 championships in Rieti, Italy.
There was a fourth-place finish for Oisin O Gailin, who finished the 5000m final in 14:01.12 in a race won by Darragh McElhinney from Bantry AC in 13:31.71.
A day after winning gold in the weight for height, Bridget McDyer came fourth in the weight for distance, throwing a best of 6.23m.
In the women’s 5000m, Amy Greene was 12th in 16:49.71 and her club colleague Eilish Flanagan was forced to pull up during the race, while Joe Wright was fifth in the high jump (1.85m), Cara Laverty took eighth in the 1500m final (4:19.42) with Tara Rose Smith coming eighth in a 1500m heat (4:29.42) and Janine Boyle clocked 12.42 in a 100m heat.
Finn Valley AC athletes competed in the John Kilmartin Memorial 5k in Milford.
Enda Doherty (16:43) and Shaun Bannigan (16:46) were fifth and sixth overall while Darren Toland was eighth in 17:09.
Gary Gallagher clocked 17:57 for 17th while Michael Penrose was second M60 (21:23), Noreen Bonner (23:51) took the F70 category win and Gloria Donaghey (29:29) were also among the participants.
Some Finn Valley AC athletes were in action at the Burtonport Festival 5k.
Gerard Gallagher was second overall in 15:42 with Barry Gallagher sixth in 16:57. Martina Quinn was fourth woman to finish in 20:31 while Michael Penrose (21:34), Kayla Moy (23:54) and Gloria Donaghey (28:30) were among the circa-130 participants who toed the line.
At the Blaney Rockets 10 Miler at the weekend, Nadine McIntyre was the leading woman in 61:17 while Maggie O’Hara was third in 64:48.