Westmeath athlete on podium at Westport Sea 2 Summit
Geraldine Gill Heery from Castlepollard finished third in the spirit race of Westport Sea 2 Summit at the weekend.
The event returned after a two-year break due to Covid, on Saturday morning and more than 2,000 competitors signed up to test mind, body and spirit in Westport Sea 2 Summit, the last adventure race of the season and the largest in the country.
The winner of the Supreme Event was previous champion Shaun Stewart, who finished in 2:49:32. The Donegal man was back for his sixth year (having previously finished in first in 2018 and twice in second on previous occasions).
Shaun and fellow Donegal man Declan Ferry had a close battle throughout, until Shaun pulled away on the final stretch. He said: “It’s good to be back here. It was a funny kind of race; it was very hard at the start. I gained time on the way down from the reek and myself and Declan worked hard together on the bike. It was very windy out there today. I’m absolutely delighted!”
First Supreme Lady over the Line was Kerry native Ellen Vitting, who finished in 3:15:04.
The race for first in the Men’s Spirit was between local man Paul Feeney and Galway native Lonan O’Farrell, and Paul crossing the line ahead. He has been on the podium a few times over the years, and this is his first year in the top spot.
Paul said: “The last couple of years have been close so I’m thrilled to win it this year. There was a great group of us out there on the bike and we worked really well together. It was hard coming down the reek but I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.”
Caroline McLoughlin from Keel broke the record for the Ladies Spirit event by five minutes to take the win. She had a fantastic year of racing, fresh from the Dublin Marathon two weeks ago. “That was savage! The first run I went hard and just tried to hold on from there.”
Westport Leisure Park have double celebrations as colleagues Caroline and Paul won top spots in the spirit races.
The Westport Sea 2 Summit charity partner this year was Focus Ireland.
Full race results are available on www.westportsea2summit.ie.