Fionnuala McCormack cruised to a facile win at the Spar Great Ireland Run in Dublin yesterday, the 31-year-old taking her first victory in the 10km race in 33:30 ahead of Deirdre Byrne and Maria McCambridge.

Mark Hanrahan of Leevale Athletic Club led home an entry of well over 3,000 yesterday in the annual Ballycotton 10-mile road race in East Cork.

Lizzie Lee produced a front-running performance to win the national half marathon championships in 73 minutes and 27 seconds on the streets of Dublin yesterday.

UK Athletics has found no evidence of wrongdoing by Mo Farah in the initial findings of its investigation into allegations of doping against his coach Alberto Salazar.

Fionnuala Britton will aim to make it third-time lucky at the SPAR Great Ireland Run 10km in Dublin’s Phoenix Park tomorrow as she continues her transition to road running.

There was double joy for Robert Heffernan (Togher AC) at the 50km race walk in Dudince, Slovakia on Saturday where he finished fourth in 3:48:44 to qualify for the World Championships in Beijing this summer and a record fifth Olympic Games.

Fionnuala Britton led Ireland women’s team to bronze at today’s European cross country championships in Samokova, Bulgaria.

Kevin Batt, Ireland’s newest middle distance star is ready and waiting for Sunday’s European cross country championships.

Fionnuala Britton will earn her 31st international cap at next month’s European cross country championships in Bulgaria.

Athletics: Fionnuala Britton romped to her fifth GloHealth Inter-Counties Cross-Country Championships title in Dundalk yesterday while Paul Pollock defended his crown in a thrilling three-way sprint finish.

Fionnuala Britton raced to her second consecutive Glo Health Inter-Counties cross-country title and declared she was ready for a third European cross country title.

Leevale AC’s men and DSD women proved themselves to be the best in the country when they emerged victorious at the GloHealth National League Final at Tullamore Harriers Stadium yesterday.

At 27, Mark Hanrahan found himself at a crossroads.

Fionnuala Britton had that familiar fourth feeling akin to the European cross country championships at a windswept Phoenix Park yesterday where Poland’s Iwona Lewandowska was a surprise winner at the Spar Great Ireland Run 10k in 33:39.

Paul Robinson went under the four-minute barrier when he finished third in the Herb Elliot mile at the Perth Track Classic in Australia on Saturday.

UCD’s Mark English underlined his world-class potential at the Woodie’s DIY AAI Games in Athlone yesterday with a national 800m indoor record (1:46.82) which qualifies him for the world indoors.

ODM MUNSTER SENIOR CUP SEMI-FINAL:

Middle-distance athlete Laura Crowe may have to throw in the towel on achieving qualification for next month’s World Championships.

An impressive double by 18-year-old Clonmel athlete Sean Tobin was the highlight of the 13th annual Leevale T&F meeting which took place at the Cork IT track in dry but windy conditions on Saturday.

With favourable weather forecast, some exciting performances are expected today when the Leevale club promote the first day of a two-day programme of athletics.

They may have waited all of a decade to reclaim the Cork county senior cross-country crown from East Cork, but Leevale did it in style yesterday at Carrignavar and for good measure, the city club also won the women’s title along with providing the winners of the two individual races.

Ireland’s Olympic Team manager said last night the women’s 4x400m relay team will put the controversy that embroiled the squad behind them and move forward towards their goal — a place in the Olympic final.

Joanne Cuddihy cast aside the pain of the elimination of younger sister Catriona’s from the women’s Olympic 4x400m squad to win the Athlete of the Meet award at the Woodies DIY national track and field championships at Morton Stadium yesterday.

FIONNUALA BRITTON produced the performance of her life to win the BUPA Great Edinburgh cross-country race on Saturday, leaving the best runners from Europe and the US gasping behind her over the hilly and muddy Holyrood Park course.

WORLD youth race walking champion Kate Veale has been named on the Irish junior cross-country team for the McCain UK Cross Challenge in Bristol on Sunday.

LIAM HENNESSY, President of Athletics Ireland, was elected to the Council of European Athletics at the European Athletics Congress in London.

The 2011 Woodie's DIY Irish Indoor Championships got underway at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast today. The highlight was the women's 3,000 metres walk which was won by Laura Reynolds from Mohill AC.

CATHERINE WAYLAND was the toast of the Irish team at the Paralympic Athletics World Championships in Christchurch, New Zealand after taking a silver medal in the club throw in the F51 category.

MARK HANRAHAN (Leevale) will be targeting a place on the Irish team for the SPAR European cross-country championships when he lines up in defence of his Cork senior crown at Clonakilty Showgrounds on Sunday.

Paul Hession, the big draw on the second and final day of the Woodie's DIY Senior Track and Field Championships in Santry, was forced to withdraw from the 100 metres today due to illness.

ALAN O’BRIEN (Crusaders) was relatively unknown when he won the IMC 800m at Cork City Sports last year.

SPRINTERS Paul Hession (Athenry AC) and Derval O’Rourke (Leevale AC) will captain the Irish team to compete in the European Team championships in Slovakia this weekend.

THE expression on his face as he powered his way up the home straight said it all as Drogheda athlete, Keith Kelly, buried 10 years of frustration at Santry Park yesterday by claiming the National senior cross-country title for the first time at the age of 31.

MARTIN FAGAN will go to the line among the favourites for tomorrow’s senior men’s race at the European cross-country championships in Brussels but the Mullingar Harrier knows it will be difficult to improve on last year’s seventh placing in Toro.

ALAN McCORMACK gave another sensational performance in yesterday’s Woodies DIY national inter-counties cross-country championships at Tramore Racecourse when leading Dublin to the team honours.

MARTIN FAGAN and Mary Cullen are named in the Irish senior teams for the European cross-country championships in Toro, near Madrid, on Sunday week.

SUZANNE HUET (Dundrum/South Dublin) achieved her qualifying standard for the European junior championships when she won the 5,000m in 16:52.67 at yesterday’s national junior and under-23 championships in Tullamore.

WORLD indoor 60m hurdles champion Derval O’Rourke will be among the stars present when her club Leevale AC celebrates its 40th anniversary on Sunday week.

MARK CARROLL produced a strong sprint to the line to earn second place in the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run in New York’s Central Park on New Year’s Eve.

Fionnuala Britton took silver today for Ireland in the Under 23 event at the Spar European Cross Country Championships in Legnano, Italy.

AILISH McSWEENEY will be the star attraction at the Munster indoor championships in Nenagh on Sunday as she attempts a double in the sprints.

MARK CHRISTIE, one of the country’s most exciting athletes, is all set to bring down the curtain on his junior career with a stylish performance at the European Cross-country Championships in Heringsdorf, Germany, on Sunday.

Sonia O'Sullivan turned on the style as she eased to victory in her final Irish appearance before next month's Olympic games at the Mardyke.