An Cosantóir

www.military.ie THE DEFENCE FORCES MAGAZINE | 33 BY CPO CIAN MCPARLAND, NAVAL COLLEGE PHOTOS BY A/B DAVY JONES & ARMN JAMIE BARRETT DF 10 MILE ROAD RACE T he Defence Forces athletic calendar has various events ranging from 60m indoor to a half marathon on the road. One distance that was missing from the range of events was a 10 Mile Road Race. In early 2013 an idea at morning coffee in the NCOs Mess in the Naval Base quickly became a reality. A committee of Naval Service athletes of all ranks was formed, to flesh out the possibility of hosting the Navy's first ever DF athletic event. All aspects of organising an event were explored including route measuring, catering, entries and many more. The NS BPEO Lt Cdr Grace Fanning and CPO Cian McParland brought a proposal to the Secretary of the DFAA Comdt Neil Taylor and chairman of the DF Athletics Committee Comdt Noel Conway, which was approved. The event was scheduled to be held in July 2013, and as news spread of a new event, entries quickly arrived into Haulbowline. Amongst the 150 entries received included athletes from Finner Camp in Donegal down to Collins Barracks, Cork. Race day arrived quickly and as the competitors descended on Haulbowline Island, the race committee machine swung into action. Registration was completed without any major issues and the athletes took their places at the start line on Haulbowline Bridge. The ships horn of LÉ Eithne signalled the start of the race and athletes made their way out towards Ringaskiddy. The route led out to Ringaskiddy and through winding country roads to Currabinny Woods to the halfway mark. The return leg back to the Naval Base with undulating terrain was a challenge for even the experienced runner. The first man past the finish line under the iconic archway at Logistics HQ was Pte Paul Buckley of 6 Inf Bn, Athlone with the first female Pte Maebh Fenton of 12 Inf Bn, Limerick. One by one competitors passed the finish line with some impressive personal bests despite the tough course. The event concluded with refreshments in the Naval Catering Centre followed by the presentation of prizes by then FOCNS Commodore Hugh Tully. The event was a great success and had now cemented a place in the DF annual athletics calendar. The event is now entering its 6th year and has added the 'Dermot Bates Perpetual Cup' and the 'Thomas Kelly Perpetual Cup' for the male and female champions. Both Dermot and Tom are retired Warrant Officers (Sgt Maj equivalent) and champions of athletics in the Naval Service during their service. This year's event took place on Thursday 12th July with 66 ath- letes competing in sunny and humid conditions. The Senior Men as always was extremely competitive with PO Darren Molloy of the Naval Service pipping defending champion Pte Paul Buckley of the 6th Inf Bn by 5 seconds at the line. The prizes were presented by Commander Neil Manning of Naval HQ representing FOCNS. The event has also received fantastic support from PDFORRA and we are extremely grateful to ANSAC Credit Union for coming onboard as our main sponsor two years ago. The organisers would like to thank a number of people for their hard work in supporting the event from the beginning: Naval Service Military Police Section, Naval College staff, NS BPEO & PTIs, Naval Headquarters staff, An Cosantóir, DFAA, DF Athletics, Warrant Officers (Retd) Dermot Bates and Thomas Kelly. RESULTS 2018 SENIOR MALE 1ST DARREN MOLLOY WEU NS 2ND PAUL BUCKLEY 6 INF BN 2 BDE 3RD ENDA CLOAKE NAVAL COLLEGE NS MALE O/40 1ST TOM MONKS 2 ORD COY 2 BDE 2ND GRATTAN O'ROURKE 1 BAR 1 BDE 3RD JIM CLEARY SHORE OPS NS MALE O/45 1ST BRENDAN MCCARTHY 2 CAV RES 2 BDE 2ND THOMAS COSGRAVE LOGS NS 3RD THOMAS PLUNKETT LOGS NS MALE O/50 1ST MARK BULMAN TPT 1 BDE 2ND PAUL MCGRATH 28 INF BN 2 BDE MALE O/55 1ST MICHAEL DOHERTY 28 INF BN 2 BDE SENIOR FEMALE 1ST KATE O'FLYNN 1 BDE CIS 2ND CLAIRE GILLESPIE ENG GP DFTC TEAM 1ST NS: DARREN MOLLOY, ENDA CLOKE & GRAHAM SWORDS Commander Neil Manning presenting PO Darren Molloy with his 1st place prize along with Comdt Noel Conway, DF Athletics Committee.

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