Irish quartet beat national 4x100m relay record in Geneva
In finishing in second place, their time improved the previous mark of 39.26 seconds set 25 years ago by John McAdorey, Gary Ryan, Tom Comyns and Paul Brizzel at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, when finishing fourth in their heat.
Farrelly, Akinola, Lawlor and Olatunde combined their youth and experience to break the 39-second barrier for the first time, with the promise of more to come. Last August, Olatunde improved his own Irish 100m record to 10.12 seconds, and this season trained over the winter months in Florida in the same training group of US Olympic champion Noah Lyles.
Akinola beat Olatunde for the first time to claim the Irish indoor 60m title back in February, and at the same meeting in Geneva on Saturday, improved his 100m best to 10.25 seconds, the fourth-fastest ever by an Irish man, when finishing fifth in his heat, into a -0.4 headwind.
READ MORE
Racing again on Sunday at the Stratford Speed Track meeting in London, the 23-year-old Akinola clocked 10.10 seconds, where the wind reading of +2.9 was over the permitted legal limit of +2.0, although this was still the fastest wind-aided time in the Irish record books, surpassing the 10.11 clocked by Jeremy Phillips in California in 2017, when the wind was +5.0.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
26 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Sarah Hickey the star as Ireland women overcome Norway
Ireland 78 Norway 63 Sarah Hickey led the way as Ireland's women's basketball team took an impressive win over a Norway side 14 places above them in the world rankings. The first quarter of this JYSK Summer Series clash at the National Basketball Arena got off to a lively start, with both sides showing plenty of energy on both ends of the floor. Ireland's Hickey and Micol Torresani of Norway set the tone early before a gutsy play by Sorcha Tiernan saw her hit the floor but nail a three. Ella O'Donnell, who was called up late in place of the injured Bridget Herlihy, extended the lead with a nice inside move as the hosts began to take control. An impressive opening quarter ended with Ireland ahead 23-16. It was a grittier start to the second quarter as both sides got tighter defensively. That switch favoured Ireland more, stretching the lead to 15 by the midpoint of the quarter. Hazel Finn's tenacity proved telling as Norway struggled to match Ireland's intensity. With captain Edel Thornton adding to the barrage, the hosts looked in fine form. A steal and score by Anna Horvig Wikstrøm rallied the visitors late in the quarter but Ireland still led 42-35 at the half. Ireland came out energised to start the second half, with Sorcha Tiernan finding O'Donnell on the fast break to put Ireland 10 in front again. A tighter defensive effort by the hosts made it hard going for Norway at the other end. The response from the visitors simply wasn't there. Ireland entered the final frame with a commanding 67-49 lead. The final quarter felt rather processional. Norway had the odd highlight, including a high pressure three from Maren Mildestvedt, but the result was never in doubt. Ireland took an impressive win that can be built upon. IRELAND: Edel Thornton, Enya Maguire, Kate Hickey, Sarah Hickey, Hazel Finn, Lauryn Homan, Abigail Rafferty, Ella O'Donnell, Annaliese Murphy, Sorcha Tiernan, Kara McCleane, Lorraine Scanlon NORWAY: Stine Austgulen, Synne Jacobsen, Sunniva Sørbye. Severine Uggen, Maren Mildestvedt, Karoline Teigland, Vilde Havnes, Micol Torresani, Anna Horvig Wikstrøm, Aiva Julirud
The 42
30 minutes ago
- The 42
Kate Carey registers 2-3 as Cork triumph against Dublin
Cork 3-11 Dublin 3-2 KATE CAREY finished with an impressive tally of 2-3 at Grant Heating St Brendan's Park in Birr as Cork comprehensively defeated Dublin to claim their 13th ZuCar All-Ireland U18 'A' Ladies Football Championship crown. Aiming to bridge a three-year gap to their last title at this grade, Cork hit the ground running in this encounter with unanswered points from Eabha O'Donovan and Sarah O'Connor. The Leesiders were attacking in waves during the early exchanges, and they rattled the net for the first time in the 11th minute as Ilen Rovers ace Carey drilled a fierce shot beyond the reach of opposition netminder Kalia Behan. While Dublin eventually opened their account when Niadh Mooney cancelled out an earlier effort from Johanna Foskin on 18 minutes, their Munster counterparts reinforced their authority thanks to a brace of points from Carey. Advertisement Although midfielder Lile Tully also split the posts for Dublin, Cork ended the opening period in spectacular style. After O'Donovan (an AIB All-Ireland junior club football championship winner with O'Donovan Rossa in 2023) superbly palmed home for her side's second goal of the contest, Carey clinically bagged another green flag score to ensure Kieran O'Shea's charges held a commanding 3-5 to 0-2 buffer at the interval. Dublin needed a strong start to the second half to give themselves a fighting chance at forging a dramatic comeback, and Declan Patton's outfit were desperately unlucky to see two opportunities at goal rebounding off the crossbar shortly after the restart. Yet Cork continued to possess a potent attacking threat, and their lead was stretched to 15 points when Laura Walsh, Carey and O'Donovan (free) all found the range in a six-minute spell. However, Dublin displayed admirable perseverance throughout the second period and the Leinster champions cut significantly into their deficit when influential St Brigid's star Molly Bourke fired home two goals in as many minutes inside the final quarter. Nevertheless, Cork were still in a strong position to collect the silverware on offer and with Walsh finding the target either side of a well-worked point from Douglas' Aoibhe Sheehan, the outcome was placed beyond doubt long before substitute Rebecca McEvoy secured a consolation goal for Dublin in the final minute of the action. Scorers – Cork: K Carey 2-3, E O'Donovan 1-2 (0-1f), L Walsh 0-3 (1f), J Foskin, S O'Connor, A Sheehan 0-1 each. Dublin: M Bourke 2-0, R McEvoy 1-0, L Tully, N Mooney 0-1 each. CORK: A Toye; O Drummey, A Tobin, A O'Sullivan; R Breen, M McRae, É Walsh; S Cunningham, J Foskin; S O'Connor, L Walsh, A McAuliffe; É O'Donovan, K Carey, A Sheehan. Subs: G Young for Foskin (50), E Burns for Sheehan (52), C Horgan for McAuliffe (55), A Leahy for Carey, S Ni Laoire for O'Sullivan (both 60). DUBLIN: K Behan; K Hayes, T Walsh, A Pollock; C Sone Lenou, H Murphy, K O'Donovan; S McDonnell, L Tully; L Murtagh, M Bourke, C Murphy; N Mooney, Z Flood, G Connolly. Subs: K Mooney for Walsh, R Kirby for Murphy, R McEvoy for Flood (all h-t), C Almeida for McDonnell (42), E Reen for O'Donovan (47). Referee: Gavin Finnegan (Down).
Extra.ie
41 minutes ago
- Extra.ie
Olympian Rhys McClenaghan gives fans post-surgery update
Olympic gold medalist and Dancing with the Stars champion Rhys McClenaghan has shared a health update from the hospital after his shoulder surgery. Rhys gave the camera a thumbs up from his hospital bed as he shared the update on social media. The Olympic gymnast is recovering from having surgery on his shoulder which he remarked can be the 'reality of sport'. Rhys is in good spirits after the surgery. Pic: Instagram/Rhys McClenaghan Rhys wrote: 'Day 1 of recovery from shoulder surgery'. 'I've been struggling with this injury for a while now, so I'm delighted that everything went to plan with the operation and I can make my way back to maintaining my spot as the best in the world at what I do. 'This is the reality of sport, and I love all of the challenges it throws my way. Champion Mindset.' Rhys McClenaghan in action at the Olympics. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile Earlier this year, the gold medalist was forced to withdraw from the European Championships in Leipzig because of an unspecified injury. At the time, he said: 'I tried my best to push through preparation but an injury kept holding me back. 'I chose to prioritise being healthy and recovering for future competitions this year and be sure that I can put out my best work yet. The Olympic gymnast is recovering from having surgery on his shoulder which he remarked can be the 'reality of sport'. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile 'I may not be retaining my European title but the path to being the GOAT is still very clear.' His fellow Dancing with the Stars team were quick to send their well wishes in the comment section of his recent post. Kylee Vincent wrote: 'Speedy recovery', with Karen Byrne adding the same message and Brian Redmond saying: 'Get better soon champ. I hope the feet are still at their exceptional best.' Earlier this year, the gold medalist was forced to withdraw from the European Championships in Leipzig because of an unspecified injury. Pic: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile Rhys shared an additional post on Instagram from the hospital bed with him narrating over videos from the hospital and clips from his gymnastics. He said: 'This time last year, I was at the Olympic Games and today I'm in a hospital bed. 'I think this is why sport is such a great example for life. 'One moment, you're on top of the world and the next, well, you're not. 'Well because to have the good days, I think you have to have the bad days. 'I also think that this is one of the reasons why I love what I do so much because even though I'm in a bad situation currently, I know that when I'm back competing in front of millions again, when I finish that routine, it's going to feel so much sweeter. 'But that comeback starts today.'
