Cork athletes named in strong Euros squad

Four athletes representing Cork clubs and a West Cork woman who is part of UCD AC have been selected for Team Ireland for the upcoming European Athletics Championships starting next week.

The Cork athletes were named by Athletics Ireland last week in an initial team selection for the championships which take place in Birmingham from 10-16 August.

Sophie O’Sullivan, daughter of world champion and Olympic silver medallist, Sonia O'Sullivan, will compete in the women’s 1500m after storming to her second national senior title last month at Morton Stadium in an impressive season’s best. The Ballymore Cobh AC runner will be joined in the event by fellow Irish athlete and European indoor 3000m champion, Sarah Healy of UCD AC.

Darragh McElhinney of Bantry AC has secured his spot in the men’s 5000m alongside Belfast’s Nick Griggs of Candour Track Club. Brian Fay of Raheny Shamrock AC (Dublin) will join them should his place be confirmed once the final Road to Birmingham rankings are updated.

In the men’s marathon, Cork athlete Ryan Creech of Leevale AC alongside national champion David McGlynn of Waterford AC and Paul O’Donnell of Dundrum South Dublin AC.

Cork athlete Lucy-May Sleeman of Leevale AC joins a panel of Lauren Roy of Fast Twitch AC, Sarah Leahy of Killarney Valley AC, Mollie O'Reilly of Dundrum South Dublin AC, Molly Scott of St Laurence O'Toole AC, and Ciara Neville of Emerald AC in the women's 4x100m relay.

Nicola Tuthill, who is from Kilbrittain, Co Cork, but represents UCD AC, leads the charge for Team Ireland in the field events. The world finalist competes in the women’s hammer throw, where she has continued to close in on the national record this year. The 22 year old has a personal best of 72.73m set in Poznan, Poland this summer.

Athletics Ireland high-performance director, Paul McNamara, noted that the closeness of this year’s championships to Ireland is a big positive for Irish athletes and supporters.

He said: “We are excited about the prospects for this cohort of athletes at what is essentially a local championship for athletes and supporters.

The team includes many seasoned performers who have delivered medals at the highest level, and many others who are hungry to replicate that success. With a probable final team size of approximately 50 athletes, and no fewer than 20 athletes who have achieved ‘A’ standards, this will be a week of non-stop action as Irish athletics continues to build on its upward trajectory.”