Back on top: Caolan McFadden wins National U18 1500m title

Caolan McFadden closed out his track and field season in style on Saturday.

The Cranford AC athlete won the U18 1500m on day 3 of the National Juvenile Championships in Tullamore.

McFadden, who was at the European U18 Championships the previous week, finished in 3:55.25 for an impressive win and was the sole gold medal winner from Donegal on the day.

Parnell's Noah Harris was second in 3:59.50 with Midleton's Odhran O'Sullivan third in 4:00.85.

Ethan Dewhirst, who also competed at the recent European U18s, earned a silver in the U18 400m hurdles.

Tir Chonaill AC's Dewhirst finished in 54.15 seconds in a race won by Raheny's Des O'Neill in 53.97 seconds.

Aoife McGeehin of Olympian YAC left with silver from the U16 girls javelin, reaching out to a best of 37.84m.

Sarah O'Keeney from Letterkenny AC landed a place on the national podium, grabbing a silver in the U16 triple jump. O'Keeney leaped a best of 10.56, a PB that was edged out of the top spot by the 10.69m jumped by Georgia Myerscough from Crookstown Millview.

Letterkenny AC's Sarah O'Keeney with her silver medal.

Donegal athletes Katie Elliott and Stephen Slevin each won silver in the U17 high jumps.

Letterkenny AC's Elliott had a best jump of 1.55m for second in the U17 girls high jump, bettered only by Dundrum South Dublin's Lauryn Healy (1.64m).

Slevin cleared the bar at 1.75m for silver in the U17 boys high jump. The Finn Valley AC man was beaten to gold by Craughwell's impressive Conor Penney, who arched over at 1.95m.

Lifford-Strabane AC's Clara Mullen won silver in the U18 triple jump, getting out to 9.97m.

Riona Doherty, another of the Finn Valley AC contingent, was third in the U18 long jump. Doherty got to 5.16m on her third visit but was inhibited by a hamstring injury, preventing a challenge for a gold won by Bandon's Aoife Callan, jumping to 5.44m.

Katie Louise McMonagle jumped to 5.02m for bronze in the U17 long jump, that leap coming on her second attempt.
Tir Chonaill AC's Oliver Polak threw out to 14.05m for bronze in the U18 shot put while Olympian YAC's Briana Doherty took bronze in the U14 200m, finishing in 29.94 seconds and Philip McGee of Letterkenny AC was the U19 bronze medallist over 1500m.

Erin Friel, just back from the European U18 Championships, finished fouth in the U17 200m. Friel clocked 25.94 seconds. There was little between the various protagonists with less than a second between Friel and race winner Molly Daly, who won in 25.05.

Friel was just 0.08 of a second from a medal.

Harry McIlwaine was fourth in the U16 200, the Letterkenny AC man crossing the line in 23.36 seconds, while Tir Chonaill AC's Emily Kelly came fourth in the U17 300m hurdles, her 45.43-second run pipped to the top three by 0.21 of a second.

There was a fourth-place finish also for Tir Chonaill AC's Sean Gilbride in the U18 1500m, finishing in 4:13.41 and Finn Valley AC's Darcie Clarke came fourth in the U14 1500m

Oisin McBride of Cranford AC was fifth in the U14 1500m, Rosses AC's Eva Logue was fifth in the U16 high jump, Lifford-Strabane's Clara Mullen was fifth in the U18 high jump, Olympian YAC's Ellen O'Donnell was sixth in the U19 shot.

Jayden Sproule from Finn Valley was seventh in the U15 200m final while Anya Duffy from Letterkenny AC was seventh in the U16 javelin.

In the U17 1500, Paraic McGettigan was seventh in one heat and his Finn Valley AC colleague Odhran McBrearty eighth in the other.