Ireland celebrated a landmark performance at the European Cross Country Championships in Lagoa, Portugal, claiming a silver medal in the men’s team event for the first time in 25 years. Brian Fay, Efrem Gidey, Cormac Dalton, Jack O’Leary, and Darragh McElhinney powered the team to a strong finish, ending ten points behind Spain, who took gold.
Jack O’Leary was the standout individual performer for Ireland, moving from 27th position on the first lap to finish fifth. Fay and Dalton ran together to cross the line in 10th and 11th places respectively. Spain’s Thierry Ndikumwenayo claimed the individual title, narrowly edging out pre-race favourite Jimmy Gressier after Gressier faltered entering the final corner. Dominic Lobalu of Switzerland took bronze after a photo finish with Great Britain’s Scott Beattie.
Ireland’s success extended beyond the senior men’s race, with the team collecting four medals overall. Nick Griggs secured gold in the U23 men’s race, becoming the first Irish athlete to win a title at the championships in Lagoa. The Tyrone native broke away from France’s Aurelien Radja in the final lap to claim victory, while Radja took silver and Pierre Boudy, also of France, claimed bronze. Griggs’ training partner Callum Morgan achieved his best-ever finish at eighth, closely followed by Niall Murphy in 11th.
The U23 men’s team won the team race by 14 points from France, posting a total score of 19. Griggs, Murphy, and Jonas Stafford had previously been part of the U20 squad that won gold in Brussels two years ago. Reflecting on his victory, Griggs described the achievement as “unreal” and said he had long dreamed of standing atop the podium. “I haven’t cried in a long time, there’s a few tears been shed already… to put it together on the day is so special,” he said.
The Irish women also had notable performances. Emma Hickey secured bronze in the U20 race, finishing behind Innes Fitzgerald of Great Britain, who completed her hat-trick of titles. Anna Gardiner finished sixth in the same race. In the senior women’s competition, Fiona Everard placed a career-high tenth after moving up from 40th in the first lap. Niamh Allen and Danielle Donegan were next home in 23rd and 36th, while Mary Mulhare and Emily Haggard-Kearney completed the team, which finished eighth.
Kirsty Maher led Ireland in the women’s U23 race, while in the men’s U20 event, Noah Harris finished in the top ten. Cormac Dixon was 13th and Caolan McFadden 36th, with the team finishing fifth, 13 points short of the podium.
Ireland’s strong performances across multiple categories highlighted the country’s growing depth in cross-country running and marked one of its most successful days in recent championship history.
