Saturday night may have brought about an air of gloom over the London Stadium, but Irish eyes were smiling once again at the World Championships yesterday after an array of strong performances.

It is, in many ways, a make-or-break weekend for Ireland at the IAAF World Championships in London, with seven of the 11-strong team taking to the track or roads in the English capital over the next two days.

For many months now, Irish athletes have been striking the same chord when talking about the IAAF World Championships, which get under way in London tomorrow evening.

Two-time Irish marathon champion Sean Hehir says he is far more inspired by legendary Clare hard-man Seamus Power than the Kenyan Olympic champion who took part in the recent bid to break the two-hour marathon barrier.

Mark Christie won the Great Ireland Run in 29:30 in the Phoenix Park yesterday and also secured the national 10km title.

Mick Clohisey of Raheny Shamrock AC yesterday led the field home to win his first Ballycotton 10-Mile title, finishing strongly in 49:20, 20 seconds, clear of Sergiu Ciobanu of Clonliffe Harriers, (49:46) and third-placed Kevin Maunsell (Clonmel AC) in 49:54.

Mick Clohisey of Raheny Shamrocks has won this year's Ballycotton 10 road race.

Over 3,000 runners will fill the narrow street of an east Cork village on Sunday next as the Ballycotton ‘10’ celebrates its 40th birthday.

Fionnuala McCormack will have to overcome her Turkish nemesis at the European Cross Country Championships in Chia, Italy, tomorrow.

Fionnuala McCormack will again lead Irish hopes at the European Cross Country Championships in Chia, Italy on December 11.

Raheny Shamrock’s Mick Clohisey and UCD’s Ciara Mageean will be two of the leading lights at the Irish Life Health National Cross Country Championships at the Sport Ireland National Sports Campus tomorrow.

It wasn’t what he wanted, but that says more about his mentality than his performance. Paul Pollock finished a respectable 32nd in the Olympic marathon yesterday, reaching the finish in Rio’s Sambodromo in 2:16:24.

Three years ago, Ciara Mageean was unable to run, beset with injuries and staring down the barrel of career-threatening surgery.

For several of Ireland’s best marathoners, the door finally closed on Olympic qualification at the London Marathon yesterday, with the race to Rio de Janeiro now left in the hands of selectors ahead of next month’s deadline.

Leevale AC retained their women’s title at the Glohealth National Road Relays, in Dublin, yesterday, while hosts, Raheny, won the men’s race.

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.

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.

Gemma Steel denied Fionnuala Britton a maiden victory in a fascinating duel in blustery conditions in the Phoenix Park at the SPAR Great Ireland Run 10km on Saturday.

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.

Athletics: The national indoor championships take place in Athlone this weekend with two headline acts having travelled very different paths to star in the midlands and then, hopefully, on the European stage next month.

Athletics: Athletics

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.

The shock announcement on Sunday that Fionnuala Britton will run in the marathon at the European Championships on August 16 is a high-risk strategy which has raised eyebrows in the athletics community.

Distance runners often look lucky to be able to stand up after some races, but one man fell to his knees for a very different reason yesterday.

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.

Mary Cullen stormed to a course record of 25 minutes and 37 seconds in windy conditions at the Axa Raheny five-mile race yesterday while there was also plenty of action in the Woodie’s DIY National Junior and U23 Championships in Athlone.

By Will Downing

Sergiu Ciobanu (Clonliffe Harriers) coasted to victory in the 36th running of the Ballycotton 10 mile road race.

MARTIN FAGAN is ready to take on all comers when he defends his title in tomorrow’s Spar Great Ireland Run.

MOLDOVAN Sergiu Ciobanu yesterday produced a personal best of 49 minutes 37 seconds to win the Ballycotton 10 mile road race in East Cork.