Athletics:The Irish women's team were run out of the medal positions over the last lap as they came home in fourth position at today's SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Santry.
The race was won by Great Britain’s Hayley Yelling just a month after the 25-year-old came out of retirement to compete.
Yelling, who quit after last year’s championships in Brussels, led from gun to tape in the 8,018-metres race to win in a time of 27;49 to add another gold medal to the success she achieved five years ago.
Second place went to Spain’s Rosa Maria Morato with the Netherlands’ Adrienne Herzog taking bronze.
Best of the Irish was Fionnuala Britton who finished 11th in a time of 28:39 closely followed by Mary Cullen who came 12th in a time of 28:45.
The team gold was taken by Portugal with Great Britain second and Spain pipping Ireland for bronze.
Ireland had been in silver medal spot at the halfway stage, but the home team fell back over the closing stages.
Mo Farah failed to make it a double success in the men’s race and repeat his victory of three years ago as he was soundly beaten by Spain’s Alemayehu Bezabeh.
The 26-year-old collapsed and was taken away on a stretcher after crossing the finish line.
Farah fell behind heading into the final circuit of the 9,997m encounter, but responded well to get alongside the Ethiopia-born athlete.
The pair fought a tight neck-and-neck duel until Bezabeh powered away to win by 17 seconds in 30:45, with defending champion Sergiy Lebid of Ukraine placing third.
Mark Kenneally put in the performance of his life to take eighth spot as he came home in a time of 31:42.
After Kenneally next for the Irish was Martin Fagan who finished 26th with Alistair Cragg and Andrew Ledwith 40th and 41st respectively.
The British squad, led by Farah, clinched second place in the team contest behind Spain with Italy third.
Lisburn AC runner Ciara Mageean came home ninth in the junior women’s race this morning.
Mageean was well placed in fourth early on, before the blistering pace of Norway’s Karoline Grovdal at the front began to stretch the field.
Grovdal led the race home in a time of 14:10 to take the title. She was followed home by Russia’s Gulshat Fazlitdinova, with Great Britain’s Kate Avery taking bronze.
Mageean took ninth spot in 14:40, with Charlotte Ffrench O’Carroll then next best of the Irish in 42nd position.
Russia took the gold in the team event with the Irish team finishing ninth overall.
Ireland came home fifth in the Under-23 women’s race. The best finisher for the home team was Roseanne Galligan who finished 15th in a time of 21:58 with Breffny Twohig two places back in 17th.
A dramatic sprint finish saw Turkey’s Sultan Haydar come home first in a time of 21:14, with Russia’s Irina Sergeyeva one second behind in second place. The bronze medal went to Great Britain’s Jessica Sparke who finished in a time of 21:26.