McGrath claims National gold at Indoor Championships

ATHLETICS

It was celebration time for Bohermeen AC's Kevin McGrath at the National Indoor Arena in Abbotstown on Sunday as he claimed his first National senior indoor title by winning the 800m with metres to spare over a high quality field.

McGrath dedicated the win to his late grandad Seamus McConnon from Monaghan town who had died just a month ago. His win marks perhaps not the end but the beginning of a new chapter of challenges in his athletic career, a career that began when he was age nine.

McGrath's win on Sunday came after he won the preliminary heat on Saturday, but on Sunday he was the one to watch in the field of 12 as his finishing kick is well recognised since he was an outstanding juvenile and junior athlete over the past decade.

On Sunday as the four lap race unfolded into the final 300m he appeared to get boxed, but soon after he took the front and kicked for home and won his first senior title and a very popular winner as he was cheered to the line.

His winning time of 1:51.11 was off his best indoors time of 1:48.83 which is the fastest ever indoors by a Meath athlete, but in championship racing making the podium is always the only target.

Sunday's win is the latest milestone in an already glittering career. In 2011 McGrath won the National underage cross country title at the Curragh and four years later he claimed the European Olympic title over 1500m in Tbilisi. He also made his first National senior final that year reaching the 1500m decider as a 16-year-old.

The following year McGrath placed fourth in the European under-18 800m in Tbilisi and he also set National records for u-18 800m and 1500m that year which still stand today.

From 2017 he endured many setbacks with injuries, but still his dogged determination saw him persevere and in recent years he used the cross-country season to add strength and he won three Meath senior cross-country titles in the past four years and the most recent last December at McNally’s Farm at Boyerstown.

Between his under-12 title win at the Curragh he has won many National underage titles on track and multiple schools titles, but his win on Sunday was perhaps his finest win and with his coach Joe Ryan still advising him after 10 years or more, there will be many more great days ahead for him.