ATHLETICS:ANYONE THAT wandered into the Mardyke on Saturday afternoon would have seen a white Irish guy gunning down some of the world's top sprinters over 100 metres. If they'd stuck around they'd have seen him do the same over 200 metres.
It was an incredible sight, the fastest 100 metres ever run in Ireland; and in the 200 metres, the white Irish guy looked at the clock as if to say, "not happy with that".
No question then as to who was the star of the 57th Cork City Sports - and if Paul Hession is having a hard time living up to his billing as Ireland's Fastest Man then he's certainly not showing it.
If Saturday is an indicator, Hession may well turn out to be Ireland's big story of the Beijing Olympics. It's just a pity there weren't more there to witness it, but then it was a Saturday afternoon, and there was shopping to be done.
Hession's 100m win was built on a superb start and a beautiful execution of speed, his 10.21 seconds just short of his Irish record of 10.18, set last year. The Athenry man left in his wake Jamaica's Dwight Thomas (10.27) and three Americans led by Jordon Vaden, who ran 10.28 to take third.
Some 90 minutes later, Hession won the 200 in 20.67, his third successive victory in Cork over the distance, leaving Chris Williams of Jamaica in his afterburn. Williams was a finalist in last summer's World Championships in Osaka, but was well down here, clocking 20.93, Vaden third again in 20.99.
"I was a little bemused by the time there, thinking it was quicker," said Hession - who ran his record 20.30 in Santry last summer. "The start wasn't as good as the 100 either. But it was a good field. It gives me great confidence going to Beijing, and I think this year I really will get it right in terms of peaking.
"It's all very encouraging, and to win in front of a home crowd is always fun. It's all about confidence at the moment, and I'm definitely running with that now. I'll run only the 100 at the nationals, but I'd like to get one more 200 before Beijing. I'm staying healthy as well, which is important. I'm stronger, and faster than last year, and working on that all the time."
Hession went some way to making up for Derval O'Rourke's second place in the 100-metre hurdles, for the third successive year.
O'Rourke was in her home town still seeking that elusive Cork victory, but left with her seventh second place of the past decade.
O'Rourke still has some way to go to rediscover her form of two years ago, when she posted 12.72 for silver at the European championships. Her 13-second clocking on Saturday was reasonable, especially given her shaky clearance of the first three hurdles, but she was always chasing Jamaica's Andrea Bliss, who took the win in 12.96.
"It was such a horrendous start," she admitted. "I thought I chased back very well, but just ran out of track. But it was all right.
"Of course I would have preferred to win. I think I did my best. Things are going really well, though. I just keep surprising myself at how I can make massive mistakes and still run okay.
"Technically I'm not there yet, and because I'm so much stronger I'm finding it hard to lean into the hurdles. But I know if I do run very quick, I won't be at all surprised.
"I'm just looking forward to the Olympics now. People are getting injured, and it's starting to open up a little . . . I keeping saying, 'I've made the cake, I just need to put the icing on it'."
There was a more encouraging pre-Beijing performance from Alistair Cragg, who finished a good second in the 1,500 metres and then decided that wasn't enough so also ran the 3,000 metres, and again finished second.
Kenya's Bernard Kiptum got the better of him in the shorter race, running 3:38.70 to Cragg's 3:39.12. Another Kenyan, Mike Kigen, won the 3,000 - running 7:49.50 to Cragg's 7:55.86.
Cragg confirmed he would also run the 1,500m in Beijing, before his specialist event, the 5,000m.
More importantly, he indicated he is enjoying the sport again, and in this sort of form, he could well repeat his feat of making the final as in Athens four years ago.
"I was cooling down after the 1,500 and I wasn't tired. I won't argue, it felt tough in the middle of the 3,000, but I just wanted a good blow-out, which I felt I hadn't done in the 1,500. It's like the old days in the school sports. You come out and run a few events and go home wrecked. That's the fun part."
Cragg is confident doubling up in Beijing will help: "If you had two opportunities to stand on the biggest stage in the world, wouldn't you take it? The 1,500 won't hurt me, it will only do me good, get my nerves out. . . Of course the 5,000 metres is the priority, and I think I can make the final. I'm running stronger than ever."
