Leevale’s Ó Lionáird on May day alert

AFTER big runs over 1,500m (3:41.02) at the weekend and 10,000m (28:32.30) two weeks ago, Ciaran Ó Lionáird is all set for a return to Stanford on May 1 to tackle 5,000m.

The Leevale man, who celebrated his 23rd birthday yesterday, is enjoying the best spell of his career. On Saturday he knocked four and a half seconds of his previous best (3:48.36) for 1,500m at the Florida State Seminole Invitational in Tallahassee, Florida.

“The fact he won the race is significant,” Der O’Donovan, his old coach at Leevale AC, said. “It was an exciting follow-up to his 10k run at Stanford.”