Gary Thornton a brilliant winner in Tuam

THE 7th running of the Tuam 8k Road Race took place on Sunday in almost perfect weather conditions apart from a strong headwind on part of the course. Tuam AC had pulled out all the stops for this year's race as we had joined forces with Tuam Cancer Care to amalgamate two great races into one.[/private] Runners and walkers came from all over the country, the UK and we even had runners from the USA and they all helped to create a record entry with over 400 starting the race at the new Tuam Cancer Care Centre on the Dunmore Road which was officially opened earlier in the week by President Mary McAleese. Gary Thornton of G.C.H. made his debut in Tuam and led from the start but he was very closely followed by Jason Fahy, a talented young runner from Olympic Harriers and the evergreen Gerry Ryan of Craughwell AC who has already won this race on three previous occasions and was keen to defend his title. In the ladies race well known runner Veronica Colleran of Ennis Track Club was followed all the way by her clubmate Maria Carey and our own Siobhán Healy ran a fantastic race. The runners had to contend with roadworks and pot holes which had opened up again during Saturday's downpour, despite the best efforts of Galway County Council who had very kindly repaired the roads on Thursday. As the leaders passed Tuam Cathedral on the first lap it was obvious that Gary Thornton was inside the course record set by Gerry Ryan in 2007 but it was too close to call the winner at that stage as Jason Fahy was flying in second place and Gerry Ryan was right there in third place and also inside his own course record at the halfway mark. The leaders were soon followed by over 400 athletes who were all in great form and well supported by Tuams residents, family and friends. Tuam Gardaí and marshalls from Tuam Rugby Club did a superb job of making sure the runners were safe on the course and also managed to keep the traffic flowing without a hitch. As the runners started their second lap Aoife Brady and friends provided a welcome cup of water to keep them going to the finish and we didn't have to wait long as the second lap of 4km was covered in under 13 minutes by the leaders and Gary Thornton sprinted to the finish line in 24 mins 29 secs. Jason Fahy was just 5 secs behind him with Gerry Ryan finishing in 24.46 which beat his own previous record by 5 seconds. Veronica Colleran won the ladies race in 31.38 followed by Maria Carey in 31.44 and Siobhan Healy in a fantastic 32.12. Other notable performances were Ann Marie Miskell who won her category, Enda Mannion making his debut for Tuam AC, Dan O'Rourke, Dave Mullins and Derek Burke the well known cyclist who has also proved to be a very handy runner. Rory Murphy was the first Tuam Cancer Care runner to finish in 35.42 and won the splendid Bert Gillard Trophy for his efforts. Bert was always a great supporter of Tuam AC and we had fantastic help from Charlotte Farragher with this year's event and she was on hand to present the trophy at the prize giving ceremony in the Mercy Gym after the race. Linda Porter of Craughwell AC was the first junior in the 8k race and earlier in the day we held our very enjoyable Children's Fun Run which also attracted a record entry and well over 100 children from all over Tuam and Co Galway ran the 1km course in style. Robert Murphy of Tuam was the first runner home and Shauna Kelly was the first girl home. Tuam AC were delighted to see a big increase in the number of local athletes taking part in this year's race including John and Keith Fahy, Stuart Barrows, Brian Murphy, Marion and Mattie Lydon, Mary Tierney and a host of other Tuam people. Everybody retired to the Mercy Gym afterwards for some much needed refreshments and a post-race chat to compare times, tactics, old and hopefully no new injuries. Prizegiving followed a Thank You speech from the organisers who were extremely grateful to everybody who helped in anyway to make the race such a success and a full set of results are now available at www.tuamac.com Finally, a special mention must go to a running legend: Roger Rushe won his category once again, a feat he has managed to achieve every year since the race began and he also celebrates his birthday this week. His family were there to support him and he was quite rightly wearing No. 1 on his Tuam AC vest. Roger has been running for Tuam AC for over 50 years and is one of the finest athletes ever from the West of Ireland. Everybody in Tuam AC is extremely proud of him and looking forward to another great year from Roger.[/private]