Sometimes the best part of being runner-up is making amends, and so it proved for Siobhán O’Doherty – her somewhat surprising victory in the Women’s Mini Marathon yesterday coming after two successive second places.
“The best thing to happen to me,” said the 28 year-old from Tipperary, “especially after being runner-up the last two years.”
O’Doherty, who runs with Borrisokane Athletic Club, also set her best time of 34 minutes and 20 seconds for the 10km event, improving on the 35:09 she ran last year, and the 35:31 in 2011. She also held off several strong contenders, with Dublin’s Fiona Roche battling hard until the last 3km, when O’Doherty made the decisive break.
Roche held on for second in 34:43, with Maria McCambridge of Dundrum South Dublin third in 35:00. Greeting the winner at the finish was her mother Agnes, who had travelled up with her from Nenagh.
Little disappointed
McCambridge described it as "a bad day at the office" but was happy she competed as she builds up the World Championship marathon in Moscow in August, having been pre-selected along with Paul Pollock in the men's race.
There was a surprise winner of yesterday’s Cork City Marathon, too, when Poland’s Bartosz Mazerski denied Clonliffe Harriers’ Gary O’Hanlon a fifth marathon victory in eight weeks, winning in 2:28:29. The women’s race was won by 2008 Beijing Olympian Pauline Curley, who ran a new women’s course record of 2:47:44 ahead of the masses of what has become a vibrant running festival.
O’Hanlon’s 2013 marathon streak began in Connemara followed by wins in Limerick, Kildare and Newry last weekend His bid for a fifth consecutive victory fell short by 23 seconds running 2:28:52 as Mazerski pulled away in the last mile.
“In the last two miles I was saying to myself ‘all these marathons are madness,’” said the 39-year-old Louth man who nearly died in a fatal car crash 20 years ago. “At the start line I thought it was going to be easy enough and the field wasn’t great. I was running with the relay runners at the start at 5:10 (per mile) pace so I eased back a bit.
“Then a guy came up to me (Zawerski) and I didn’t know who he was so I asked him what his best time was. He couldn’t understand me at first but then said 2:17. (Zawerksi’s best is 2:18:25 set in 2005). I knew I was in for a long day then . . .”
Peter Mooney was third in in 2:35:25 with seasoned marathoner Cathal O’Connell of St Finbarr’s AC the first Cork man home in fourth in 2:35:54.
Angela McCann (Clonmel AC) was going for a hat-trick of women’s wins but had to settle for second behind Curley, in 2:55:08. Leevale’s Nollaigh O’Neill finished third and first Cork woman in 2:55:41.
