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Ireland’s Sarah Healy claims 1,500m gold at European Youth Olympics Festival

Girls take bronze in 4x100m to bring medal haul to six in Hungary

Sat Jul 29 2017 - 17:58

Sarah Healy secured Team Ireland’s first gold medal at the 2017 European Youth Olympics Festival in Gyor, Hungary running a personal best of 4:19.85 in the 1500m final on the last day of he championships.

Healy, from Monkstown, was a clear winner with Kazimierska Klaudia of Poland second in 4:23.17 and Austria’s Anna Baumgartner third with 4:23.28. Louis O’Loughlin finished seventh in the 800m final with a run of 1:56.98.

Ireland claimed bronze in the girls’ 4x100 metres final, the third relay gold won by the country since the championships inception in 1991.

Patience Jumbo Gula, who won bronze in the individual event, brought home the Irish four following legs from Niamh Foley, 200m silver medallist Rhasidat Adekele and Miriam Daly.

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The Ireland 100m relay team of Niamh Foley, Miriam Daly, Rhasidat Adeleke and Patience Jumbo Gula with their bronze medals at the European Youth Olympic Festival at Olympic Park in Gyor, Hungary. Photograph: Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

Ireland had won their heat in 46.31 to qualify for the final as the second fastest.

Belgium turned the tables on the Netherlands to take the gold medal, reversing the placings in the first round.

Belgium won in a personal best time of 46.01, with the Dutch four coming in four hundredths of a second behind.

Ireland came home in 46.38, marginally slower than their qualifying time of 46.31 .

Team Ireland ended up winning six medals at the championships. Earlier in the week Lara Gillespie took a silver in Cycling Time Trial and Cavan’s Jade Williams secured a bronze for Ireland in the Hammer.

Team Ireland’s 40 athletes return home to Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport on Sunday at 1pm on Aer Lingus flight EI 673.

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