Ace Athletic Club athletes delivered a series of strong performances across both days of the 2026 Louth Championships, collecting medals across sprinting, middle distance, hurdles and field events in multiple age categories.
Among the youngest competitors, U9 athlete Finn Murphy enjoyed an impressive championship, winning bronze medals in both the 60 metres and 300 metres events.
In the U10 category, Millie Roche and Harry Reilly both ran strongly in the 500 metres, finishing fifth in their respective races.
The U11 events brought one of the club’s standout performances of the weekend as Catherine Cumming claimed gold in the girls’ 500 metres. Clara Plunkett and Maeve Reynolds also competed strongly in the sprint events, while Aidan O’Connor impressed on his debut in the 60 metres hurdles.
Ace AC continued its medal success in the U12 category, where Abdurrahmane Darragh Cicce secured bronze in the boys’ 600 metres. Muireann Chammas and Sadhbh Jordan also delivered strong performances across sprint and middle distance races.
In the U13 girls events, Sophie Black showed great determination in the hurdles after recovering from an early clash with a hurdle to finish strongly. She later returned to record a personal best time of 1:59 in the 600 metres, narrowly missing out on a medal in a highly competitive event. Ella Doyle and Niamh Lynch also performed well in the same race.
Caoimhe Carolan emerged as one of Ace Athletic Club’s most successful athletes during the championships. Competing in the U14 girls category, she claimed gold in the long jump along with silver medals in the 80 metres, 200 metres, and 800 metres.
Ace also had strong representation in the U14 girls’ sprint finals, with Farrah Smith finishing among the medals and Smurti Prasad also producing an impressive performance.
In the older boys’ middle distance events, Taylor Gregory won gold in the U16 boys’ 800 metres following a strong display.
Liam Lynch, still an U18 athlete, stepped up to compete in the U19 category and enjoyed an outstanding championships. He won gold in the U19 1500 metres before returning on day two to take silver in the 800 metres.
Ace AC also celebrated success in the girls’ U16 and U17 categories. Niamh Faulkner won silver medals in both the 200 metres and long jump, with Kate McKenna taking bronze in the same field event. Faulkner later returned to claim gold in the 100 metres to complete an excellent weekend.
In the U17 girls events, Aoife O’Connor won gold in the hurdles, while Naiya Semple continued her consistent form at county level with another medal winning performance.
Tayo Lawrence also impressed across the championships, finishing fourth in the 200 metres before later claiming silver in the U15 boys’ 800 metres.
Overall, the championships marked another successful and enjoyable weekend for Ace Athletic Club, with athletes producing strong performances across all age groups.
