Orla Comerford clocks lifetime best to win at Bislett Games in Oslo
That brought her home well clear of Norway's Ida-Louise Overland (12.88) and Dutch sprinter Zara Temmink (12.88). The para 100m was among several events staged on the eve of the main programme at the Oslo Diamond League, where Rhasidat Adeleke and Mark English will be in action on Thursday.
Comerford's race came just 48 hours after her victory at the FBK Games in Hengelo on Monday, where she clocked 11.96 into a 1.2m/s headwind.
'It's really early in the season, this is my second 100m and I was able to take some of the things from last week, change them and I'm happy we've been able to improve,' she said in Hengelo.
'The World Championships is the big one for us in New Delhi at the end of September so I'm keeping everything focused for that. I'll get a few nice races in, get back into good training and hopefully go faster and faster. That's the name of the game.'
Comerford won 100m bronze in the T13 (visually impaired) category at the Paralympics last year and powered to victory in the para 60m staged at the European Indoor Championships in the Netherlands in March.
With more Diamond League appearances on her horizon this summer, she's hopeful other major events will incorporate para races.
'I'm blue in the face saying it, but para athletics is athletics and if you're a fan of athletics there's no reason there can't be meets like this who all integrate with different events,' she said. 'Here's to more of that.'
Elsewhere, Nicola Tuthill broke new ground in the hammer throw in Lahti, Finland on Wednesday evening. The Paris Olympian smashed her Irish U-23 record with 71.71m, which placed her third in a competition won by Finland's Krista Tervo with 77.14m.
While Tuthill's throw is short of the automatic World Championships qualifying standard of 74.00m, it will all but ensure her place in Tokyo via her world ranking.
There was a second Irish U-23 record at the same meeting as Ava O'Connor clocked 9:45.00 to finish third in the 3000m steeplechase, taking one second off the mark she set in California in April.
Meanwhile, seven Irish athletes will be in action at the NCAA Championships in Oregon over the coming days with Sophie O'Sullivan, the reigning European U-23 champion, looking to hold the best chance in the women's 1500m.
O'Sullivan, who is in her final season with the University of Washington, will race the 1500m heats on Thursday afternoon, with the final scheduled for Saturday evening.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
22 minutes ago
- RTÉ News
Eve McMahon drops down after starting error in Sweden
After previously incurring a penalty for early starting, Ireland's Eve McMahon plummeted from second to 20th place today at the European Championships in Sweden when she was again disqualified for a starting error. The Howth sailor was not alone as ten others similarly found the strong tide difficult to judge accurately. If two more races are completed on the final day then another series discard can drop the weighty penalty and she could still reach a top-five result. Her brother Ewan lies 15th in the men's event just eight points ahead of double Olympian Finn Lynch from Carlow. The points are very tight in this event as well so a good day for either or both sailors could dramatically improve their final standings. However, all three Irish boats will need to regain the form they displayed at the start of the six-day event to finish off their 2025 season on a high.
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Ireland end scoring drought but suffer Women's EuroHockey Championship defeat to Scotland
A 3-2 defeat saw the lower-ranked Scots record their first EuroHockey victory over Ireland since 2013, scoring three times in the last 11 minutes for good measure. The riveting finale followed an uneventful three quarters, with Lizzie Murphy making two noteworthy penalty corner saves. Roisín Upton finally opened Ireland's campaign in the 35th minute. It came via a penalty stroke after Katie Mullan was fouled in the circle. Upton was off the pitch when Ireland missed from the spot at a crucial moment in the Germany defeat midweek - although rules dictate that she could have come on - but here she flicked clinically to hand her side the lead. Charlotte Watson equalised courtesy of the same route in the fourth quarter, before Mullan restored parity with a powerful shot nine minutes from time. Moments later and Amy Costello's corner dragflick proved too good for Murphy as Scotland levelled again. Ireland's hopes for another fifth-place finish then evaporated six minutes from time. A crash ball into the D was seemingly left alone by the Irish defence, only for the ball to clatter off the post and Heather McEwan gleefully tapped home. It was an inglorious ending, especially for the hapless Murphy in goal, Ireland's standout player this week. Gareth Grundie's side will now face England in their final classification match on Sunday morning. England, who have finished outside the medals for the fourth edition running, will be looking for their fifth EuroHockey win in succession over the Green Army. Ireland have dropped two places to world No.13 following their pool exit. One respite is that they have earned a place at a 2026 World Cup qualifier tournament.
Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Michael Johnson apologises as troubled Grand Slam Track misses payments to athletes again
Grand Slam Track founder Michael Johnson has apologised for missing payments to athletes and said the event would not go ahead in 2026 unless a solution was found. The league, which is in its inaugural season, reportedly owes competitors millions of dollars in appearance fees and prize money, and in June the fourth and final meet on the calendar - scheduled for Los Angeles - was cancelled. In a statement on Friday, Johnson said the company was "struggling with our ability to compensate" athletes due to not receiving promised funding. "It is incredibly difficult to live with the reality that you've built something bigger than yourself while simultaneously feeling like you've let down the very people you set out to help. However, I have to own that," the former Olympic champion said. "And yes, the cruellest paradox in all of this is we promised that athletes would be fairly and quickly compensated. Yet, here we are struggling with our ability to compensate them. "We were devastated when we learned we would not receive the funding committed to us. We worked tirelessly alongside our investors and board to find a quick solution to the problem. "Up until and even after the LA postponement, we were getting positive signs that a solution was close." Johnson said Grand Slam was now working to put new systems in place with the aim to ensure this did not happen again in the future. He added: "While I am no stranger to setbacks and overcoming obstacles, as an athlete, professionally and personally, this current situation of not being able to pay our athletes and partners has been one of the most difficult challenges I've ever experienced. "The 2026 season will not happen until these obligations are met - and that is my number one priority." Irish Olympians Andrew Coscoran and Sharleen Mawdsley are among those who who prizemoney over the course of the three meetings which did take place. Coscoran hit what was supposed to have been the biggest pay day of his career in the Florida meeting, awarded $50,000 as the runner-up in the combined long-distance category. He followed that up by winning $12,500 in Philadelphia for a fourth-place finish in the 3000m. Sprinter Mawdlsey won $15,000 for her sixth-place finish in the sprints category at the same event.
