Castlegar Athletics Club

We were delighted to finally present Ella Igoe, Amelia Farragher, Niamh Corbett and Hana F***j Gheziel with their All-Ireland Qualifiers’ tops at training last Thursday evening.
These tops are presented to athletes in recognition of the fantastic achievement of qualifying for the National Championships.
They certainly received the seal of approval at the recent Senior Nationals in Santry, where Irish National Hurdles Record Holder Sarah Lavin commented on how lovely they are.
A very special achievement for these four talented athletes. We are incredibly proud of you all. 💚🤍 🇳🇬🇮🇪

🌍🇮🇪 WORLD U20 CHAMPIONSHIPS MATTHEW NEWELL 🇮🇪🌍

A fantastic experience for our own Matthew Newell as he competed in the Men’s 5000m Race Walk at the World U20 Championships in Oregon yesterday.
Matthew finished 21st in the world in a highly competitive field and in some very testing conditions.
To line up at your second World U20 Championships and compete against the very best young race walkers in the world is a fantastic achievement in itself.
It was an even more special occasion to compete in the iconic Hayward Field in Eugene, a venue steeped in athletics history.
With a new world record being set at the front of the race, Matthew gained invaluable experience competing at the highest level and can be extremely proud of his performance.Matthew finished the men's 5000m Race Walk final at the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships in a time of 20:26.11

Everyone in Castlegar AC is incredibly proud of you and all the hard work you have put in to reach this level.

Well done Matthew 💚🤍

🇮🇪☘️ World U20 Championships – Oregon ☘️🇮🇪

Everyone at Castlegar AC would like to wish Matthew Newell the very best of luck as he departs for Oregon tomorrow with the Irish U20 team to compete at the World U20 Championships.

Representing your country is an incredible achievement for any athlete, but doing so on the world stage is something truly special. Matthew's dedication, commitment and hard work have earned him this opportunity, and everyone in the club is immensely proud of all he has achieved.

Matthew will compete in the 5000m Race Walk on Saturday, 8th August, taking on 12½ laps of the iconic Hayward Field against the world's best young race walkers.

The entire Castlegar AC community will be cheering him on from home. Enjoy every moment, Matthew, and wear that Irish singlet with pride.

Best of luck, Matthew 🇮🇪☘️
Galway Athletics Connacht Athletics Galway Bay FM Sports Athletics Ireland

What a fantastic weekend at the National Athletics Championships in Morton Stadium.

Some of our juvenile athletes had an unforgettable weekend, meeting some of Ireland's top athletes as well as the future stars of our sport.

On Saturday, Aoibheann and Oisín Connolly described it as "the best day of my life" after meeting Rhasidat Adeleke and Sharlene Mawdsley, who were competing in the 200m. Rhasidat went on to claim the National title and secure her place at the upcoming European Championships. Unfortunately, Sharlene was forced to pull up with an injury and was unable to contest the 400m. We wish her a speedy recovery.

On Sunday, Zara Casserly and Ciara Murphy arrived armed with autograph books and markers and had a brilliant day meeting many of Ireland's top athletes. The highlight was meeting Sarah Lavin, who complimented the girls on their Castlegar AC All-Ireland Qualifier tops.

The weekend concluded with a touching tribute by Athletics Ireland to Ciara Mageean. Four hundred juvenile athletes joined Ciara for a special 200m run, celebrating her incredible achievements and inspiring influence on Irish athletics. Zara Casserly and Aoibheann Connolly had the great honour of representing Castlegar AC in this memorable tribute to an outstanding athlete and ambassador for our sport.

Athletics Ireland Galway Athletics Connacht Athletics

Weekends like these inspire the next generation, creating memories that will last a lifetime. 💚🤍

World u20 Irish team selection for Matthew Newell 🇳🇬🇮🇪🇳🇬🇮🇪🇳🇬🇮🇪

Congratulations to our club member, racewalker Matthew Newell on booking his place on the flight to Oregon for the U20 World championships, which will take place at the famous Hayward Field from the 5th to the 9th of August.
Matthew has developed his racewalking skills over the last few years with Tuam AC and recently joined our club at the beginning of this year.

Matthew secured his place on the team alongside his good friend Seamus Clarke, son of Irish Olympian Deirdre Gallagher after they both broke the Irish record this year and also securing a top two finish at the recent national championships.
Matthew was first to break the Irish record at the Connacht championships. Both Seamus and Matthew once again dipped under the recent record set my Matthew at the National championships with Seamus taking the record from Matthew.

What an opportunity this is for Matthew, and we are so proud of him and wish him the very best of luck. 🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪☘️☘️

🇳🇬National Outdoor Championships Day 3 🇳🇬

Another fantastic day for Castlegar AC at the 123.ie National Outdoor Championships in Tullamore, with three athletes proudly representing the club in extremely hot conditions.
First up was Ciara Murphy in the U14 200m, competing in her first National Outdoor Championships over the distance. Ciara crossed the line in 28.16 seconds, finishing 15th in Ireland. While Ciara was understandably disappointed with her performance, her coaches couldn't be prouder of the hard work, commitment and determination she has shown throughout the season. Reaching the national stage is a fantastic achievement, and there is no doubt she has a very bright future ahead.

Next was Siún Ní Chonaill in the U16 1500m. Siún produced another outstanding performance, running a massive personal best of 4:46.77 to finish 7th in Ireland. This time last year Siún didn't make it to nationals. Her hard work and consistency this season continue to pay off, and this was another excellent result. To break things down, her run today is a whopping 18 seconds faster since this time last year. Her time is also a new club record. A brilliant improvement which she should be very proud of.

Rounding off the day was Orla Casey in the U18 1500m. Orla showed great determination, battling right to the finish line to record 4:58.71, earning 13th place in Ireland after a strong and courageous race. There were two heats for this age group. This didn't help as the pace went out very fast as the medals were decided on the three fastest times from the two heats, but Orla held her own and should be proud of how she ran.

A huge congratulations to all three athletes and their coaches. Competing at a National Championships is a tremendous achievement, and everyone at Castlegar AC is incredibly proud of your performances. Enjoy a well-earned rest ladies.

Galway Athletics Connacht Athletics Galway Bay FM Sports Athletics Ireland

Huge congratulations to Killian O'Brien on a fantastic run in yesterday's Clontarf Half Marathon! 👏🏃‍♂️
Finishing in 1:47:40 (5:06/km pace), it's not a bad way at all to kick-start the season again. Wishing you plenty more strong performances in the months ahead. 🇳🇬🇳🇬

🥈 National U20 Championships – Tullamore 🥈

A fantastic performance from Matthew Newell, who claimed silver in the U20 5000m Race Walk at the National U20 Championships in Tullamore!

Matthew produced another outstanding display, setting a new personal best of 20:08, taking 13 seconds off the PB he had set just three weeks ago. An incredible achievement and a testament to all the hard work he's been putting in.
The race was won by Seamus Clarke, who broke Matthew's previous championship record in the process, making for a high-quality and competitive race.

Everyone at Castlegar AC is incredibly proud of everything Matthew has accomplished so far this year. We can't wait to see what the rest of the summer has in store.

Congratulations, Matthew👏💚🤍

Galway Athletics Connacht Athletics Galway Bay FM Sports Athletics Ireland Perri Williams Photography