4th Round of the 1998 Munster Mountain Running Championship at Millstreet, Co. Cork.
Kerry farmer John Lenihan proved that he was not only outstanding in his own field, but that he could also shift it a bit in someone else's field too. The Riocht runner won an altered version of the fabled Eurovision Run which was last raced when Millstreet hosted the Eurovision Song Contest. Ireland, of course, has won this contest so many times that I can't remember the year. However I'm sure that there are enough Eurodittyphiles out there to remind me...
The race this year started and finished with a lap of the local sports field during Millstreet's sportsday. Thanks to local organiser Donie Shine, the spectators had a bonus as they saw the former World Champion clear off into the distance up and down their local mountain Claragh, pursued by Willie Guiney and top veteran runner Mike McAuliffe. Mike, who can climb strongly but whose weakness is the descent, was on the Listowel runner's heels at the summit cross, but fell back on the descent. He closed back up on the level run in to the finish.
Good performances littered the race with John Grimes and Patricia Twohig outstanding in the Junior sections. A brilliant descent by Colm O'Halloran matched John Lenihan's descent time, but failed to do enough to enable him to beat Athlone's Padraic Higgins. The race was definitely regarded a success by all, and looks set to become a regular fixture in the Munster calendar in the years to come.
Douglas Barry
| Senior Men | |||
| 1st | John Lenihan | Riocht | 32.02 |
| 2nd | Willie Guiney | Desmond Currans | 34.10 |
| 3rd | Mike McAuliffe | Riocht | 34.34 |
| 4th | Padraic Higgins | Athlone | 35.37 |
| 5th | Colm O'Halloran | Lee O.C. | 35.47 |
| 6th | John Casey | UCC | 36.18 |
| Senior Women | |||
| 1st | Mary Austen | Macroom | 50.32 |
| Junior Men | |||
| 1st | John Grimes | Limerick | 36.04 |
| Junior Women | |||
| 1st | Patricia Twohig | Banteer | 40.41 |