Cork City Sports chairman Tony O’Connell yesterday described the entry list for next month’s event as “shaping up to be the best” in the event’s history.

Olympic team manager, Patsy McGonagle, predicts Ireland could have 24 athletes at the London Olympics.

While some fine early season sprinting and a number of exciting finishes were the highlights of the Leevale Track & Field meeting at Cork IT on Saturday, the big upset of the day came in the women’s 1500m, where European Junior silver medallist Ciara Mageean had to settle for second behind Orla Drumm.

Derval O’Rourke had a grin of satisfaction after reclaiming her 60m hurdles title at the Woodies DIY Irish indoor championships at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast yesterday in 8.21 secs — modest by her standards.

Ciara Everard and Laura Crowe combined to produce the most exciting race of the domestic indoor season when they clashed in the 800m at the recent Universities Championships in Nenagh, breaking the U23 record set by Sonia O’Sullivan all of 22 years ago.

PRAYERS paid off for a pair of nuns on the run, part of an 11,000-strong crowd taking part in the 30th Evening Echo Cork Women’s Mini Marathon.

CIARÁN Ó LIONÁIRD (Leevale), fresh from his sensational 1,500m run in Oordegem, Belgium, will contest the 800m at this weekend’s Woodies DIY national senior championships at Morton Stadium, Santry.

AILIS McSWEENEY (Leevale AC) stormed to a new personal best performance with a sensational 7.32 sec victory in the women’s 60m — just two hundredths of a second off the national record — at the Woodies DIY Irish Indoor championships at the Odyssey Arena yesterday.

Mary Cullen broke away from the field in the final 400 metres to win gold in the 1500 metres final at the Woodie's DIY Irish Indoor Championships in Belfast.

DERVAL O’ROURKE diverted to Dublin en route from Thessalonika on Thursday night for an early morning check-up with Mark McCabe in advance of her appearance today at the Cork City Sports.

DAVID McCARTHY (Le Cheile) posted his qualifying standard for the European Championships when he won the 800m in 1:48.18 at the Irish Milers’ Club races held in conjunction with the schools championships in Tullamore on Saturday.

DERVAL O’ROURKE put the perfect finishing touch to her preparations for the world championships with her fastest time of the season when she was second to the Dawn Harper of the USA in 12.88 secs in the 100m hurdles final at yesterday’s international track and field meeting in Wattinsheid.

EILEEN O’KEEFFE launched herself into 13th position in the global rankings for the year when she took her national record to 73.21 metres en route to a seventh successive hammer throw title at the Woodies DIY National Track and Field Championships at Morton Stadium on Saturday.

Sonia O'Sullivan ran her last ever track race in Ireland this afternoon, finishing second in the 5000 metres at the Woodie's DIY National Senior Track & Field Championships in Santry.

The big guns are all still in sight of winning the men's 800m title as David Campbell, Thomas Chamney and David McCarthy all qualified as easy winners of today's heats.

DERVAL O’ROURKE runs in the Grand Prix meeting in Budapest tonight — lining up against a strong field for the 100m hurdles in better conditions than she experienced at The Mardyke last weekend.

AFTER some spectacular performances on the road over the past three months, racewalker Robert Heffernan (Togher AC) returns to the track on Friday night when he will compete in a 5k event at the Grand Prix meeting in Lille.

ROBERT HEFFERNAN will be looking for the performance of a lifetime when he faces double European champion, Francisco Fernandez, in the 5,000m walk at the Irish Indoor Championships at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast tomorrow, with Gillian O’Sullivan also looking for something special.

MARK CHRISTIE (Westmeath) claimed his first national senior title with victory at the inter-counties cross-country championships at St Augustine’s College, Dungarvan, yesterday.

JOANNE CUDDIHY (UCD AC) stole the limelight from Derval O’Rourke at the Woodies DIY national championships in Morton Stadium, snatching the 200m title with a new personal best of 23.33 secs on Saturday, before producing another lifetime-best to win the 400m in a championship-best time of 51.28 secs yesterday.

LABAN ROTICH failed by a fraction in his bid to become the first athlete to break four minutes for the mile in Kerry at last night’s Lee Strand international meeting on Castleisland’s resplendent track when he outsprinted fellow Kenyan, Paul Korir, to win in 4:00.63.

DERVAL O’ROURKE will kick off her outdoor season at The Mardyke on Saturday, where she claims star billing at the BUPA Cork City Sports.

SONIA O’SULLIVAN will present the awards when the Irish Milers Club stages 1,500m races for men and women in conjunction with the Kit Kat Irish Schools Track and Field Championships in Tullamore tomorrow.

DAVID GILLICK, the European indoor 400m champion, will be included on the team for the world indoor championships when it is announced next week although the early indications are that he will not travel.

PAULINE CURLEY has dominated road racing in Leinster all summer and on Sunday she will take her talents to Munster when she lines up for the Irish Examiner Limerick Women’s Mini Marathon.

THE team for next month’s European Youth Olympic Festival in Lignano was finalised following the Kit Kat Irish Schools Track and Field Championships on Saturday when, despite some inclement weather, all the qualifiers produced some spectacular performances.

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

DERMOT GALVIN (St John’s AC) heralded his return to domestic competition with his first win in the Munster senior cross-country championships at St Augustine’s College, Dungarvan, yesterday, when he put his pre-Christmas injury problems behind him to win the title at the expense of fellow Clareman James McIntyre (Tulla) and fast-finishing Bryan McMahon (Carraig na bhFear).

JER O’DONOGHUE (Leevale) once again highlighted his liking for the Nenagh Indoor Arena with another sparkling performance in the 60m at the Munster indoor championships yesterday, clipping six hundredths of a second off the time he ran at the AAI Games a week earlier.