Athletes and spectators could have been forgiven for thinking they had landed on the Costa del Sol rather than the Cooley Peninsula, as Day 2 of the Louth Athletics Championships unfolded in the sunshine at Bush Track. Amidst the heat and excitement, Ace AC athletes shone brightly, collecting an impressive haul of medals and setting personal bests.

The morning's action was dominated by sprint heats, semifinals, and finals. U10 Maeve Reynolds, competing while carrying an injury, battled through to win her sprint heat. Smirthi Prasad and Farrah Smith both impressed, reaching the later rounds and narrowly missing out on medals.

Among the sprint medalists were Niamh Faulkner, who claimed her second gold of the championships with a commanding victory in the 100m. She had earlier won the 200m on Day 1, marking a clean sweep in her sprint events. Daniella Adebola mirrored that achievement, completing her own golden double by winning the U19 100m following her 200m victory last weekend. Bronze sprint medals went to Cathryn Cumming (U10) and Caoimhe Carolan (U13) in their respective sprint finals.

U17 athlete Chloe Cooney, current tLeinster 1500m champion, decided to step out of her comfort zone and try the 400m for the first time in her life. Chloe actually ran in the boys race and delivered a commanding performance, winning in 58 seconds, adding another gold to Ace AC's medal tally.

Ace AC’s field athletes also had a day to remember. In the shot put, Jaheim Humphrey (U17) not only secured a silver medal, but broke the championship record twice, culminating in a huge 11.42m final throw. Despite his efforts, an Ardee athlete edged ahead with a final throw, but Jaheim’s performance signals strong form ahead of the All-Ireland schools competition, where he will represent Balbriggan CC. Aoife O’Connor also earned a silver medal, capping off a strong showing in the field for the club.

The latter part of the day saw a series of middle-distance races, where Ace AC athletes dominated across the age groups. Saibh Jordan (U11) won her first individual medal for the club with a gutsy performance in the 600m, claiming bronze in a large and competitive field.

Cathryn Cumming returned to the podium with gold in the U10 500m, leading from start to finish in a powerful display of front-running. Her teammate Millie Roche ran very well, finishing outside of the medals in 7th in what was a very large field. Maeve Reynolds also ran strongly in the same event. Caoimhe Carolan added to her sprint bronze with gold in the U13 600m in an impressive time of 1.46. Caoimhe will be looking to secure a Leinster medal on this form.

Ruairi Cooney's u12 600m race was split into 2 heats due to high numbers, with the winners picked on times. Ruairi finished second however missed out on a medal, due to it being the slower of the 2 heats. Felix Everettt and Tadgh Kelly continued their improvements with strong performances in the same race. 

Tayo Lawrence impressed in the boys U14 800m, moving from fourth to second in the final 50 metres to grab a thrilling silver medal. His sister, Sholah Lawrence, continued her strong return to fitness by winning gold in the U19 800m. Taylor Gregory secured silver in the U15 boys 800m, while Lauren Faulkner added a bronze in the U16 girls 800m.

The U17 boys 800m saw two Ace athletes on the podium: Daniel Hanley took silver, and Liam Lynch won bronze, with Killian Sheridan and Tadhg Forde Dunne also running well. The final medal winning performance came from Jamie O’Reilly, who stormed to gold in the U19 800m with another new PB, with Christian Kelly taking silver just behind him.

Some of the standout performers on the day were Cathal Thompson, Hannah Black, Ollie Marron, and Niamh Lynch.