Kilkenny's Cathal O’Reilly to spearhead Irish cross-country challenge

Kilkenny’s Cathal O’Reilly is among a 36-strong Irish team that has been named for the upcoming Spar European Cross-Country Championship.

The Kilkenny City Harriers athlete is part of the Irish under-23 team alongside Nick Griggs (CNDR Track Club), Niall Murphy (Ennis Track AC), Matthew Lavery (North Belfast Harriers), Paul Hartnett (East Cork AC) and Callum Morgan (CNDR Track Club) as they look to make their mark in Antalya, Türkiye, on Sunday, December 8.

O’Reilly has had the misfortune of narrowly missing selection for the Irish team for the European cross-country championships for the past few years.

Having fallen just one short in 2023, when selectors opted for American-based athletes, there was no disputing his selection this year as he finished third in the under-23 section at the national cross-country championship a couple of weeks ago, snatching one of those coveted top three automatic spots.

O’Reilly finished a fantastic eighth overall in the senior race at the Castle Irvine Estate in Enniskillen, heralding his approach to being a serious senior cross-country runner in the next few years, but he still has one more year at under-23 level.

The most important cross-country event on the European calendar attracts the best distance running talents from across the continent in the under-20, under-23 and senior categories for both genders with a mixed relay the most recent addition to the programme and this will be the first time Türkiye has staged the SPAR European Cross Country Championships and Antalya will be the most southerly venue in the 30-year history of the championships.

This year’s championships take place in the Dokuma Park in the north of the city on a largely flat albeit rhythm-sapping course with sections of sand and mud for the runners to navigate across the seven races.