NBH Race Report, 22nd –28th June 2026

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The racing season is now in full swing with a range of events to suit all tastes. Between them, North Belfast Harriers have adorned many podiums this week!

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Thurs 25th June 2026: Hills & Dale Series – Drinnahilly
Drinnahilly is the closing race of the Hill & Dale Series, organised by Newcastle Athletic Club in the Mourne Mountains. Starting in Donard Park on the edge of Newcastle, the 6k course climbs steadily on gravel trails and woodland paths up through Donard Forest to the summit of Drinnahilly, looping around the hill’s radio mast. From the high point, runners descend sharply via a firebreak before rejoining the main forest path for a fast run back down to the finish at Donard Park. With a steep, sustained climb followed by a quick descent, it is a short but demanding mountain race on mixed forest terrain. Traditionally the shortest race of the series, it doubles as a celebration, with prize-giving, food and banter afterwards, and raises funds for Mourne mountain charities.

Simon Reeve and Conor Doris took on the challenge with both men achieving third place in their respective age categories.

Well done gents.

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Place Bib Name Category Gender Time Notes
9 436 Conor Doris M45 M 26:22.4 3rd M45
35 444 Simon Reeve M50 M 29:36.8 3rd M50

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Photos: Richard Cowan.

 

 

Thurs 25th June 2026: The Bob and Berts North Coastal 5k and 10k
Known as much for the after party than the race, Bob and Berts is a firm favourite of the Harriers. With 100% of the entry fee going to charity, this is a very worthwhile race.

Four Harriers made the journey to the north coastal town of Portrush where 5k and 10k options were available.

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10k
Pos Bib# First Name Surname Gun Time Chip Time
625 736 Cathy Scullion 01:12:32 01:12:01
676 762 Robert Speers 01:24:54 01:23:47
5k
Pos Bib# First Surname Gun Time Chip Time
116 301 Philomena Donaldson 00:41:16 00:40:41
145 5148 Kathleen Montgomery 00:48:40 00:48:01

 

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Photos: Alan McKeeman.

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Fri 26th June 2026: Ards Half Marathon
Organised by Scrabo Striders, this annual event takes runners through the towns and countryside of Ards, County Down. Starting and finishing in Newtownards, the hilly route was made even tougher this year by the warm evening conditions.

Six Harriers joined a field of 500 runners with Martin Muldoon, Arran Rutledge and Nuala Muldoon claiming age category places.

Well done all.

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Pos Bib Firstname Lastname Gender Cat Finish Chiptime Notes
8 1055 Martin Muldoon Male M50 01:19:05 01:19:04 1st M50
16 398 Oscar Purvis Male MO 01:22:31 01:22:31
41 443 Robbie Gould Male MO 01:29:17 01:29:14
48 423 Arran Rutledge Male M50 01:30:17 01:30:09 2nd M50
111 999 Nuala Muldoon Female F45 01:41:00 01:41:00 1st F45
370 273 Fiona Magill Female F45 02:06:51 02:06:25

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Photo Credits: Belfast Sports Photos.

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Fri 26th June 2026: Carnlough Quarry Challenge 5k
On what was a warm and clammy evening, runners started in the heart of Carnlough village before heading up the Waterfall Road and turning right into the Quarry, where they enjoyed the picturesque views across the bay. The route then continued down the Gortnagory Road before turning left onto the Largy for out-and-back section, finishing with a fast descent back into the village.

Mark Smith was the sole Harrier to take on the challenge, hosted by Glenlough Running Club, finishing second overall and first in his age category (M55) with a time 19:23.

Very well done Mark.

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Photo: Tim Lowry Photography.

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Sat 27th June 2026: Northern Ireland Masters Track & Field Championships
Held at the Mary Peters Track Belfast, this meeting involved many disciplines from both track and field. North Belfast Harriers competed in a broad range of events picking up many wins.

Special congratulations to David Clarke who was awarded Athlete of the Year award at the the event.

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800m
800m W50+
Place Time Age
1 223 Louise Smith 2:52.34 W55
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800m M35, M40, M45
Place Time Age
2 129 Ian Keys 2:18.53 M35
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800m M65+
Place Time Age
1 35 David Clarke 2:26.92 M65
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1500m
1500m Women all ages
3 149 Una McConnell 5:45.90 W45
2 223 Louise Smith 6:02.07 W55
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1500m M35 & M40
Place BIB Time Age
2 129 Ian Keys 4:52.08 M35
1 242 James Trainor 4:31.75 M40
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1500m M60+
Place BIB Time Age
1 35 David Clarke 5:24.53 M65
3 79 Joe Gallagher 6:07.65 M65
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3000m
3000m Women all ages
Place BIB Time Age
3 255 Orla le Mahieu 13:17.14 W40
3 234 Diane Taylor 12:32.81 W45
2 223 Louise Smith 12:16.99 W55
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3000m MEN ALL AGES 
Place BIB Time Age
1 9 John Black 9:09.10 M35
2 43 Mark Cornett 9:15.29 M35
2 196 Ian O’Neill 12:07.17 M60
1 120 Laurence Johnston 12:05.31 M65
3 79 Joe Gallagher 12:42.44 M65
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Field Events
Discus M65+
Place Distance Age
2 146 Jim McClean 21.97 M75
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Javelin M60+
Place BIB Distance Age
2 146 Jim McClean 15.51 M75
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Shot    M60+
Place BIB Distance Age
1 146 Jim McClean 9.04 M75

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Sun 28th June 2026: Frankfurt Ironman
While temperatures began to drop here, there was no such luck in Frankfurt. The heat levels were such that the Frankfurt Ironman event was almost cancelled, going ahead at the last minute. That didn’t stop Sam Carr from competing and putting in a fine performance across all three disciplines. His results were:

Swim [3.8km]: 1:07; Cycle [125km]: 3:32; Run [21.1km]: 1:25

Well done Sam.

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Sat 27th June 2026: Purple Dash
Not a race, but a charity event in aid of the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice. Participants complete a 5k course around the Titanic slipways while having an unidentified purple power thrown at them.
Everyone had fun and raised some much-needed cash for a very worthwhile charity.

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Sat 27th June 2026: PARKRUNS
A total of 78 Harriers took part in 23 parkruns.

Well done to this week’s First Lady Finishers: Alina BISKUPSKA (Waterworks), April CLARKE (Sixmilewater parkrun), Nuala MULDOON (Valley parkrun, Newtownabbey)  and Eimear O’REGAN (Weedon Island Preserve parkrun), and to the gents: Zak WILSON (Waterworks parkrun) and David FOSTER (Valley parkrun). Well done all.

Two runners achieved PBs this week: David FOSTER and Bernadette DUFFY. Well done to you both.

One unofficial milestone this week: Robbie GOULD achieved 300 parkruns. Well done Robbie.

Finally, well done to everybody who took park in this week’s parkruns and a big thank you to the army of volunteers.

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Waterworks parkrun
Pos parkrunner Run Time Notes
1 1 Zak WILSON 00:18:13 First Finisher
14 10 Brendan McCAMBRIDGE 00:22:23
27 18 Seamus LEHENY 00:23:25
31 21 Cohen TURLEY 00:23:34
34 24 Adam McCLEAVE 00:23:50
39 1 Alina BISKUPSKA 00:24:03 First Lady Finisher
41 2 Georgia O’SHAUGHNESSY 00:24:09
43 27 Thomas McLAUGHLIN 00:24:11
57 37 Greg McCLURE 00:25:28
73 48 Orán STEELE 00:26:19
75 50 Paul WILLIAMS 00:26:23
76 51 Declan GORMAN 00:26:26
85 8 Clare O’SHAUGHNESSY 00:26:59
93 11 Donna McLAUGHLIN 00:27:28
96 13 Robyn THOMPSON 00:27:38
98 14 Ann CRAVEN 00:27:45
101 62 Ian BRENNAN 00:27:55
114 69 Ciaran BEATTIE 00:28:35
115 70 Martin DOHERTY 00:28:35
123 73 Patrick HAMILL 00:28:58
125 75 Aidan HAMILL 00:29:01
150 22 Stella HARRISON 00:30:38
173 90 Gerry ANDERSON 00:32:03
187 93 Lyle CARLETON 00:33:08
207 101 Matthew PURVIS 00:34:42
215 104 Paul Mc CUSKER 00:35:11
220 45 Margaret STEPHENS 00:35:36
222 46 Catriona McCAMBRIDGE 00:35:41
224 47 Ita McCAMBRIDGE 00:36:07
238 54 Philomena DONALDSON 00:37:21
250 61 Eadaoin KELLY 00:39:04
258 114 Naoise LYNCH O HARE 00:40:42
262 67 Orla McALLISTER 00:40:59
263 68 Catherine CARLETON 00:41:05
269 71 Aisling DOHERTY 00:42:00
285 120 Steven GREENE 00:44:52
287 79 Denise FUENZALIDA 00:45:40
291 81 Cathy SCULLION 00:46:59
302 84 Michelle HARKLEY 00:52:58
305 85 Kathleen MONTGOMERY 00:56:26
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Valley parkrun, Newtownabbey
Position parkrunner Time
1 1 David FOSTER 00:19:03 First Finisher / New PB
12 1 Nuala MULDOON 00:23:29 First Lady Finisher
13 11 Mark SMITH 00:23:29
71 54 David JOHNSTON 00:30:08
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Enniskillen parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
8 8 Simon REEVE 00:24:10
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Crawfordsburn Country parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
52 37 Malachy McKENNA 00:31:09
71 44 Mannix McALISTER 00:39:15
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Falcarragh parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
6 6 John Gerard MURPHY 00:21:47
84 29 Angela ROGAN 00:43:42
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Ards Forest Park parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
4 4 Mark DIAMOND 00:23:19
44 17 Lynn MURRAY 00:37:17
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Derry City parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
81 27 Joanne BOAL 00:27:54
130 51 Leah LAMONT 00:36:52
131 52 Bernadette DUFFY 00:36:52 New PB
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Bundoran Promenade parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
47 22 Aoife McCAUGHEY 00:35:47
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Belfast Victoria parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
22 21 Piaras McSHANE 00:18:18
27 26 Robbie GOULD 00:18:26 300 parkruns
342 103 Kerry McSHANE 00:35:02
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River Oaks parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
11 11 Peter DOLAN 00:22:36
85 22 Nola JAMIESON 00:35:18
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Larne parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
24 4 Carol CLARKE 00:25:23
56 36 Greg LAVERY 00:40:39
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Rostrevor parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
2 2 Colin McDOWELL 00:20:20
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Antrim parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
27 25 Brian STEWART 00:22:29
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Sixmilewater parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
10 1 April CLARKE 00:20:25 First Lady Finisher
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Wallace parkrun, Lisburn
Position parkrunner Time
210 72 Sharon HOBBS 00:36:15
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Falls parkrun, Belfast
Position parkrunner Time
94 30 Ruth McCOMB 00:41:33
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Pomeroy Forest parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
35 28 Philip McILWRATH 00:29:04
59 21 Ita WEIR 00:39:11
68 26 Rosy RYAN 01:00:11
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Ormeau parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
540 247 Paul LAVERY 00:50:12
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Orangefield parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
11 9 Colin WILLETTS 00:21:00
92 61 Fergus JAMISON 00:31:44
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Belvoir Forest parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
47 31 Kevin McCANN 00:31:16
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Weedon Island Preserve parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
7 1 Eimear O’REGAN 00:22:53 First Lady Finisher
29 11 Erin O’REGAN 00:30:46
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Southwark parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
13 13 Andrew NEWELL 00:18:48
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Monrepos parkrun
Position parkrunner Time
20 16 Glenn BEATTIE 00:30:51
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