Friday night’s Morton Games delivered it all: the most amazing weather, a record attendance, four Stadium records, two world championship qualifiers, four Irish wins, PBs galore and 13 sub- 4 Morton miles.
Pre programme:
the U/10 mixed 4 x 200 relay got the night’s action underway, followed in quick succession by relays over the same distance for U/12, U/14 and U/16.Clongriffen AC with wins in the U/16, U/12 and 3rd place in U/10 were the dominant club. The unique 16 x 100 relay produced thrills and spills with an extraordinary 192 athletes spread over the 12 competing teams, it was Mullingar Harriers who took the win followed by Clongriffin AC and Dunboyne AC. Lucy Foster (Willowfield Harriers) was the winner of the Jerry Kiernan Foundation women’s U/20 mile with Lorcan Benjacar (Clonliffe Harriers) producing the kick to win men’s equivalent (4.17.20).
Main program:
It was 9 time Paralympic gold medallist Hannah Cockroft winning the T34/T54 women’s 800 in 1.50.94 that got the main program underway, after that it was one event after another as Morton Games thundered along with highlight after highlight until that breathtaking Morton mile finale.
Highlights included Israel Olatunde with a brilliant Irish win in the men’s 100, sponsored by Athletics Leinster, in a time of 10.20 really getting the crowd up on their feet. Then there was the Irish performance of the night coming in the DCU men’s 800. Coming down the home straight Poland’s Maciej Wyderka held the lead being caught at a rate of knots by Cian McPhillip who powered past to take the win for Ireland in a new PB, meet record, Stadium record and world championship qualifier of 1.44.19.
The stadium announcer’s introduction to the crowd of Sharlene Mawdsley on the start line of the Bon Secours Hospital Dublin women’s 400 brought a huge cheer from the estimated attendance of some 3500 sun drenched athletics fans. Mawdsley was inspired producing a superb run and displaying great strength over the final 80m to hold off the challengers to win in a new meet record of 51.61.
Returning 2023 Loki Sports 400 champion Elian Larregina of Argentina obliterated the meet and Stadium record as he scorched around the blue Mondo surface in 45.09 in what was one of the deepest 400 fields gathered, with 4 athletes breaking the 46 second barrier, including 4th place finisher Conor Kelly who set a new Irish U/20 record of 45.85.
Likewise the deep fields gathered for the Aviva women’s 1500 resulted in a brilliant fast race with 4 athletes all dipping under the existing Stadium record, as Lithuania’s Gabija Galvydyte ran an extraordinary 4.00.71, not only a meet and Stadium record but a world championship qualifying time. Gabriela DeBues-Stafford (Canada) took 2nd place in a season’s best of 4.01.19 with European 10,000 silver medallist Diane Van Es 3rd in a PB of 4.02.97.
Then all of a sudden it was UPMS SSC Morton mile time! It was an absolute corker. With the pacemaker doing a superb job the field was strung out in single file, as the pacer pulled off at 900 it was defending champion Cathal Doyle who found himself now the de facto pacemaker. On the back straight for the final time 2022 Morton mile champion Andrew Coscoran made his move, it looked like Doyle was beaten but once again they were toe to toe down the final straight. It was Coscoran who took the day winning in a lightning fast 3.51.12, a meet and Stadium record, wiping Will Leer’s 2014 record from the books. Doyle ran a PB of 3.51.26 as 5 Irish athletes took the top places. 3rd Darragh McElhinney in a huge PB of 3.51.99, 4th Nick Griggs, a Northern Ireland record of 3.52.42 and Brian Fay 5th, 3.52.98. 13 of the 14 finishers clocked sub- 4 minute miles.
The field events produce superb competition, the Whiteford Geo Services men’s shot, now positioned right in front of the main stand, was a brilliant competition which was won by New Zealand visitor Nick Palmer in a new PB of 20.20, Ireland’s Eric Favors was 2nd with a 19.75 best and Poland’s Szymon Mazur 3rd with 19.32. Fedra Fekete (HUN) won the HyGo Women’s High Jump with an excellent 1.88m, also a PB and Germany’s Antonia Kinzel successfully defended her discus title winning with a best of 58.78.
Other winners: Laura Pellicoro (ITA) winning the Dublin Marathon sponsored women’s 800 (2.01.33), Uruguay’s Valentin Soca won the Albie Thomas 5000, sponsored by Dublin Athletics and the Albie Thomas family, in a time of 13.18.88 and Estonia’s Diana Suumann won the Davy 100 hurdles (13.11).
The Irish Athlete of the meet, sponsored by the Jerry Kiernan Foundation was Cian McPhillips.
Morton Games was a night when dreams where indeed made!
Morton Games would like to thank all our partners, sponsors and supporters, the huge attendance on the night which resulted in a brilliant atmosphere and the brilliant athletes for putting on such a show and in particular for being so giving of their time to sign hundreds and hundreds of autographs.
We look forward to welcoming you all back to Morton Games in July 2026.