Athletics: Hession and Heffernan lead Irish charge in Cork
Friday July 03 2009
INJURY has forced local star Derval O'Rourke out of tomorrow's Cork City Sports where top Irish Olympians Paul Hession and Robert Heffernan will still provide huge Irish interest.
But several Irish athletes are worth keeping an eye on beforehand in tonight's prestigious Bislett Games in Oslo, not least Alistair Cragg -- now based in San Diego but still coached by John McDonnell -- whose early season form has demonstrated that he has put his Olympic injuries well behind him.
Cragg has already run 13:16.83 -- the fifth fastest 5,000m of his career -- this season, yet despite the fact that a men's 5,000m is back on the Bislett programme for the first time in three years, he is opting to run the 1,500m in Norway and is also running the metric mile in Lausanne, Switzerland, next week, where Hession is also racing.
There is additional Irish interest in Oslo's star-studded event as the 800m features great Irish rivals Thomas Chamney and David Campbell, who have season bests of 1:46.56 and 1:48.00 respectively. Another big domestic star missing Cork is David Gillick, who has opted to run Madrid tomorrow, still chasing that elusive sub-45-second time with an impressive 45.12 already under his belt this summer.
The 58th Cork City Sports still provides the highest quality meet of the domestic season. It includes a 3,000m walk (starting at 3.35) to showcase local 20km specialist Heffernan, with top Mexican Eder Sanchez and Irish Olympians Jamie Costin and Colin Griffin providing the opposition as the Togher man attempts to break his own 11:27 Irish record.
A groin strain picked up at the European Team Championships two weeks ago has forced O'Rourke's withdrawal, which is a pity considering her 12.95 form in Ostrava and a top-class sprint hurdle field that includes defending champion Andrea Bliss (Jamaica) and Britain's Sarah Claxton.
Hession, who emphasised his pre-Olympic class by completing a sprint double in the Mardyke last year, is defending both titles and his biggest challenge will come from Antigua's Brendan Christian, who has already posted a 10.09 this season.
talented
Guyana's Aliann Pompey, British Olympians Abi Oyepitan and Montell Douglas and Bulgaria's Ivet Lalova are among the high-quality visitors and the sprints also include talented home stars Kelly Proper and Niamh Whelan.
Kilkenny's Adrian O'Dwyer is a welcome entrant in a high-class high jump field that includes America's James Nieto (who set a meet record of 2.30m last year) and Mickael Hanany, France's 2008 NCAA champion who is also an 8m long-jumper.
Action starts with an Irish Milers Club 800m at 2.0, with the 200m finals around 4.0 and the relays finishing up close to 5.0.
- Cliona Foley
