The black and amber of Kilkenny and Kilkenny City Harriers will be represented in Brussels next month with two members of the local athletics club selected for Ireland’s involvement at the European Cross Country Championships.
Tuesday’s team announcement sees an Irish squad “stacked” with European championship experience selected for the 29th edition of the event, set to take place on Sunday 10 December. On the local front, Kilkenny City Harriers duo Maebh Richardson and Hannah Kehoe have been included on the U20 womens team alongside Anna Gardiner (East Down AC), Amy Greene (Finn Valley), Kirsty Maher (Moy Valley) and Avril Millerick (Youghal AC).
It’s been a fruitful year for the club once more with KCH claiming national titles for both senior men and junior ladies at last week’s National Cross Country championships. The win for the men’s side was the first time a club outside Dublin has taken the title since 1999. Both Richardson and Kehoe are currently based in the US but had returned home for the event in Gowran, finishing 4th and 6th respectively. They will also be part of the European Club Cross Country championships in Portugal next February.
On the senior front, Fionnuala McCormack will be leading the line alongside Eilish and Roisin Flanagn (Finn Valley AC), Mary Mulhare (Portlaoise AC), Fionnula Ross (Armagh AC) and Fiona Everard (Bandon AC). Ireland claimed 5 medals at last year’s championships in Piemonte (Italy), securing a second place finish in the overall medal table.
