The new tartan track in Athlone IT was officially opened on Sunday 17th May by the legendary Eamonn Coghlan and was followed by the AAI Track & Field Games in which Brendan Marshall jumped to victory in the long jump, and Jake Byrne ran a fantastic personal best time of 4:01.12 for 1,500m.

Brendan says he was a bit rusty but was still happy with his first outdoor competition and so we can look forward to even better things as the season unfolds. Jake’s personal best in less than ideal cold and windy conditions proves that he has plenty of pace and sets him up well for the 3,000m at the Schools All-Ireland in two weeks time.

For the record, Justin Collins of North Westmeath won the shot putt and was third in the discus.