Catherina McKiernan, who marked her first appearance in a marathon with a splendid win at Berlin over the weekend, is likely to miss the Cross Border Road Race on October 12th.

McKiernan had been billed to meet the South African, Elana Meyer, the silver medallist in the Olympic 10,000 metres at Barcelona, in the women's race which starts at Carlingford and ends at Newry.

Now, after winning the Berlin race in 2 hours 23 minutes and 44 seconds, she is likely to take a break from competition before returning for the cross-country season.

The line-up for the men's event at Carlingford is still intact however, with England's Eamonn Martin headed for a return meeting with the double world champion, Ismael Kirui of Kenya.