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New Irish sprint champ Sarah Leahy still buzzing after spectacular win at nationals

Published

8 months ago

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Sarah Leahy celebrates after winning gold at the National Indoor Championships in Dublin. Photo: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile.

by Adam Moynihan

Star Killarney athlete Sarah Leahy says she's still “buzzing” this week following her spectacular victory in the 60m sprint at the National Indoor Championships in Dublin on Sunday.

Leahy regained the title she last won in 2023 by fending off Ciara Neville (Emerald AC) and Sive O’Toole (St Laurence O’Toole AC), crossing the line in a time of 7.39 seconds.

“I’m absolutely ecstatic,” the 25-year-old told the Killarney Advertiser. “I’m back to work now so reality kicks in pretty quickly! But I achieved one of my main goals for the winter. The main thing on Sunday was to get the title. I didn’t get my PB yet (her current PB in the 60m is 7.30 seconds) but I’ll try again on Saturday at the Leinster Indoors.”

Preparation is key and the Killarney Valley woman felt things couldn’t have gone any better in that regard.

“The winter training was tough but it was the best I’ve done over the past three years. The gym is going great, although I don’t think my strength really showed the last day. I think there’s definitely more there and I should be running quicker. I was really focussed on my mindset leading up to the competition because we all do the training; it’s the mental part of it that makes or breaks you. I made myself really confident and that definitely helped me over the line.

“[At the start line] I was concentrating on myself, telling myself to not let the race get away from me, and not to panic if the people next to me get out quicker or if I can feel them on my shoulder. Just keep the focus, because I’ve definitely lost that focus before. In a few All-Ireland finals I was winning up to the last four or five metres and then I lost.

“On Sunday I just had that extra experience and I had that belief in the work that I’d done. I didn’t let the external environment pull me down.”

Leahy looked to be in a strong position from start to finish but it was a competitive race and the commentator on the Athletics Ireland stream initially felt she might have been pipped by Neville at the post. The Killarney native knew she had done enough, however.

“It’s always a bit of a blur but I do remember thinking if there’s any photos of me mid-race my face will look a little bit worried! There was a delay at the start so I felt a little bit fatigued halfway through – not as energetic as I was hoping for. But I got that out of my head and said, ‘we’re here to win the race by any means necessary’.

“There were girls beside me but when we got to the line, I didn’t dip. I knew I had it. It was very close and usually from my perspective it’s very hard to tell. One of the things I’ve been training for is not to dip. I’m not the best at it and I know I’ll run quicker if I run through the line. So when we got to the line, I was pretty confident. I knew I had won.”

Sarah had support on the day from her boyfriend Daniel, close friends, and parents Marie and Mike, both of whom were brought into the post-race interview. They were the only non-athletes interviewed on the day.

Speaking to host Mick Bowler and holding back the tears, Mike said: “It’s fantastic. Nerve-racking, absolutely nerve-racking, but it was fantastic. We’re very proud of her.”

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Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

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3 days ago

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7 November 2025

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Paudie O’Connor National Cup (Round 1)

Utility Trust St Paul’s v GCU Brunell

Saturday 7.30pm

Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre

The St Paul’s women’s team will be hoping to get their National Cup adventure off the ground on Saturday when they welcome 2024 champions Brunell to Killarney. Tip-off in the Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre is at 7.30pm.

Paul’s have displayed some fine early season form, although their unbeaten start in the Super League came to an abrupt end last weekend when they lost to the Trinity Meteors in Dublin. James Fleming’s side weren’t at their best on the day but they were well in contention heading into the final quarter with the scores at 47-45 in favour of the hosts. The Meteors pushed on in the fourth, however, eventually running out 63-53 winners.

St Paul’s scorers on the night were Maisie Burnham (13), Tara Cousins (12), Lorraine Scanlon (12), Lovisa Hevinder (9), Denise Dunlea (5) and Leah McMahon (2).

The Killarney club are now joint second in the table alongside the Meteors with both teams holding a 4-1 record. Killester are top having won each of their first five games.

Paul’s opponents on Saturday, Brunell, have won three out of five league matches so far.

LAKERS

The Utility Trust St Paul’s Lakers have now won three of their last four games in Division 1 of the Men’s National League following an impressive home victory over Moycullen in Killarney.

Eoin Carroll and Jack O’Sullivan made significant contributions of the Boys in Black; Carroll hit 17 points and collected 13 rebounds while O’Sullivan had 14 points, 12 rebounds and some spectacular blocks.

Steve Kelly posted 30 points and the durable Sam Grant played every second, adding 21 points along the way.

The Lakers started well before the visitors found their footing and the sides went in level at the half-time break after scores by home captain Carroll. There was still nothing to separate the teams entering the fourth quarter (68-65) but buckets by Carroll, Pablo Murcia and Grant opened up a nine-point lead. Moycullen fought back admirably, however, cutting the deficit to just four, but Luke O’Hea’s charges held firm to prevail by eight (88-80).

Next up is a cup tie against the Tipperary Talons, a side they defeated by 30 points just a couple of weeks ago. The cup can be very different to the league, though, and they will need another solid performance to advance to the next round. Tip-off in in Killenaule is at 6.30pm on Saturday.

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Chances of Kerry v Cork Munster final in 2026 decrease as Munster GAA delay seeding plan

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3 days ago

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7 November 2025

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After facing a backlash from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipperary players, Munster GAA have postponed their plan to keep Cork and Kerry separate in the 2026 Munster Football Championship.

The new seeding system – which gives the two highest ranked Munster teams in the National League byes to separate semi-finals – will now come into play in 2027, twelve months later than initially planned.

This will give Clare and Limerick a chance to earn promotion to Division 2 of the league, potentially overtaking Cork if the Rebels were to get relegated to Division 3.

Despite traditionally being the two main contenders for Munster football honours, Kerry and Cork haven’t met in a provincial decider since 2021. The Kingdom have won each of the finals since then (one versus Limerick and three versus Clare) by an average margin of 15.75 points.

More high-profile Kerry v Cork finals might be desirable for fans of those teams, businesses in Killarney and Cork, and neutrals alike but Munster GAA’s plans to effectively keep the great rivals on opposite sides of the draw understandably drew criticism from the other participating counties. A statement by the GPA confirmed that players from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipp had met via Zoom to discuss the matter. They were said to be “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the decision.

The 12-month delay will at least give two of those disaffected teams an opportunity to benefit from the new seeding process.

The draw for the 2026 Munster Football Championship will take place on November 27 under the old rules. As 2025 finalists, Kerry and Clare will get byes to the last four (but they will not necessarily be kept apart).

Nine members of Kerry’s squad are up for All-Stars at tonight’s awards ceremony in Dublin with Joe O’Connor and David Clifford also in contention for the prestigious Footballer of the Year award.

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