THERE was no stopping the Kingstons from Caheragh at the 123.ie All-Ireland Schools Track and Field Championships.
The brother and sister combination of Sam (14) and Katie (18) won gold and silver medals respectively, and both in the same discipline of the javelin.
For Sam, his gold in the junior boys’ javelin (600g) saw him complete the clean sweep at schools’ level this year – he has won South Munster, Munster and now All-Ireland titles. His best throw at Tullamore Harriers Stadium saw him hit 45.16 metres, and he had 15 centimetres to spare over Noah Tracey (St Pauls SS Monasterevin) in second place.
For Katie, her silver medal continued her consistent success at schools’ level, having medalled every year. With South Munster and Munster gold medals in the senior girls’ javelin added to her collection this year, Katie brought home silver from the All-Ireland with her best effort of 37.15m. Eyna Silenka (St Louis Dundalk) was the clear winner with 41.54m.
Katie and Sam Kingston with their All-Ireland schools' medals. (Photo: Perri Williams)
There was success, too, for several Bandon athletes, including Leila Cummins (Coláiste na Toirbhirte, Bandon) who won gold in the intermediate girls’ hammer with her best effort of 49.01 metres. There was double delight for Adaora Nnemeka (St Brogan's College) who won gold in the junior girls’ 100m (with a time of 12.57) and then silver in the 200m (26.00). Juliet Biggs (St Brogan's College) brought home a silver medal from the senior girls' walk, finishing in 15:54.47, while Eoghan Foley (Bandon Grammar School) won silver in the minor boys’ 100m with a time of 11.99.
While Caoimhe Flannery, Katie Kingston and Sam Kingston all won medals representing Skibbereen Community School, there were a number of strong performances from the school’s athletes. Ciara Delaney finished fifth in the senior girls’ 800m with a time of 2:16.03; Diana Coakley was fifth in the senior girls’ hammer with a top throw of 36.33m; Elaine O'Sullivan finished sixth in the intermediate girls’ javelin (500g) with her top effort of 32.55m; and Lorraine Coakley was eighth in the intermediate girls’ javelin (500g) with her best throw of 31.54m. Also, Skibbereen CS finished second out of 123 schools in the senior girls’ category thanks to the points accumulated by Caoimhe, Katie, Ciara and Diana for their placings.
