Helen Stockdale started her cross country season in fine style at the weekend winning an individual and team gold medals. The Donegal Athletic Board Novice Cross Country Championships was held on a challenging links course at The Rosses Athletic Club in North Donegal. The course considered to be one of the county’s most challenging did not deter Helen from her winning ways.
She told our reporter that ‘the hilly course across mainly maram grass and sand was one I relished. It was about grit and determination and who could hold it together over the two lap course’.
She went on to say ‘the steep inclines and sharp down hill sections were energy sapping but my track speed from the summer helped me to hold it together until the finish line’. The Rosses AC fielded a very competitive team of novice ladies over a course they train on and so had a competitive advantage, but the Finn Valley Ladies team were not in any way put off holding their own in a great competition.
While Helen was delighted with her individual gold medal she says being part of a team of fantastic ladies and winning the team title as well was icing on the cake.
The Finn Valley club also won the individual men’s novice gold, Colin Watson putting in a fabulous performance to break the tape with a comfortable margin over two very strong other Donegal club athletes.
In Drumragh 10k in Omagh on Saturday past Mark Hoy another Finn Valley AC athlete chalked up a convincing win on a hilly challenging course. Mark who this past season repeatedly set personal bests at 800m on tracks across Ireland is without doubt the most talented athlete to come out of Fermanagh for many years.