ATHLETICS:Looking through the Irish teams competing in tomorrow's European cross country championships in Portugal is a rude reminder of an upcoming 40th birthday, writes IAN O'RIORDAN

SOME OF us are counting down the days to Christmas, and some of us have other dates on our mind. Believe me, it can be both a blessing and a curse to celebrate your birthday on or around December 25th, although the older you get, the more it becomes a blessing. In the sudden rush on Christmas shopping, how many people are going to remember to buy me that dreaded 40th birthday card?

“Men may steal my chickens. Men may steal my sheep. But no man can steal my age.” Miruts Yifter said that – and he knew what he was talking about. The wily Ethiopian – better known as “Yifter the Shifter” – won an Olympic distance-running double in 1980, aged at least 40. Or at least allegedly so, because Yifter never once revealed his actual age. He probably didn’t know anyway – but what difference did it make? If Yifter proved anything it’s that age is indeed a mere number.

That’s what I always thought too until I sat down this week to look through the Irish teams competing at tomorrow’s European Cross Country down in the Algarve. Suddenly the horror set in – and I felt old, very old. There, in front of me, were so many recognisable names, and not because I’m brilliantly up to date with the new generation of Irish distance runners, but rather the old generation. Here were the sons and daughters of the runners I grew up with, as in watched or admired on the track or cross country, and in some cases even ran against. Where HAVE the years gone?

There are a couple of obvious ones; John Coghlan is part of a very strong men’s under-23 team, and no prizes for guessing his father’s name. (Hint: he’s a former world champion and world indoor mile record holder.) Indeed it might be all in the genes, but the young Coghlan has been progressing nicely and gradually revealing the classic distance running traits that once earned his father the nickname “Chairman of the Boards”.

The women’s under-23 team is lead by Sara Louise Treacy, and both her father AND her mother were distance runners: Liam Treacy was an 800 metres international and Siobhán Lonergan was an Irish cross country international – and so the young Sara Louise clearly comes from good stock.

The junior men’s team is particularly frightening in the generational sense: I know the fathers or mothers of Shane Quinn, Emmet Jennings and Kevin Dooney – but then again they were all either famous or accomplished distance runners.

Shane Quinn is the son of Brendan, who competed for Ireland in the 3,000 metres steeplechase in Seoul, 1988 – and who in fact still holds the Irish steeplechase record with his 8:24.09, set back in 1985. He was part of the successful Providence College team in the US in the early 1980s, and I remember sharing a couple of long runs with him towards the end of his career – during which he taught me everything I needed to know about Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

Brendan has since moved back to his native Waterford, and Shane – who runs with the successful Ferrybank Athletic Club – even runs just like his father. (How fitting it would be if he finally breaks his steeplechase record.)

Emmet Jennings also has double-barrelled running genes: his mother Mary Jennings was a former Irish cross country international and still runs marathons more regularly than anyone I know, and his father, Brian Jennings, was an accomplished 400- and 800-metre runner – and that should be the perfect combination of DNA for the young athlete from Dundrum South Dublin.

Likewise with Kevin Dooney: his father Roy was very fine marathon runner, and is still ranked ninth fastest Irishman of all-time with his 2:13.25, run back in 1992. Roy also ran for Ireland in the World Cross Country an incredible nine times in succession, between 1983 and 1991.

I should quickly add that his wife, Greta Hickey — and Kevin’s mother — also ran for Ireland in the World Cross Country three times, between 1983 and 1986. There are obviously some excellent athletic genes in the Dooney household, proven already in the fact that another of their sons, Conor, is currently on a running scholarship at Yale University – where they take their academics every bit as seriously as their running.

The family ties don’t end there: David Rooney from Raheny, also on the men’s under-23 team and running very well on scholarship at McNeese State University, can thank his father, Séamus, for at least part of his running talents. Although slow to admit it, Séamus is an accomplished marathon runner in his own right, and still runs regularly with the other old-timers at Raheny Shamrock.

Then there’s Amy O’Donoghue from the Emerald Athletic Club in Limerick, who is running the junior women’s race tomorrow. Amy has already displayed considerable potential as a schoolgirl athlete on the track, which should be no great surprise either given her uncle is Frank O’Mara, the former two-time World Indoor champion over 3,000 metres. Frank actually has an input into her training schedules, and if she can develop the finishing speed he had then there is much to look forward to there as well.

It’s been said that the trick to being successful in any sport is choosing the right parents, and maybe it is. But it’s not that simple either. Nothing will undo the so-called genetic advantage quicker than a pushy parent.

I remember talking with Eamonn Coghlan a few years ago, and discussing the prospect of him seeing his son John following in his famous footsteps. Clearly, Eamonn had gone out of his way NOT to push his son into the sport, so much so than when John starting running, Eamonn would constantly remind him, “You don’t have to do this, you don’t have to do this”. Eventually, John turned around and told him to stop saying it, that “I want to do this!”

It’s easier said than done, but Coghlan does deserve great credit for allowing his son to develop his athletic potential on his own terms.

Surely it’s only a matter of time before one of these new generation of athletes goes on to represent Ireland at the highest level, possibly even the Olympics – although hopefully later rather than sooner, for my sake anyway.

In the meantime I’d like to think I know a little bit about what it’s like to grow up the son of a famous runner, and trying to follow in those footsteps (and I assume the same goes for daughter/mother, etc).

Just like having a birthday around Christmas, it can be both a blessing and a curse. I would never deny it, although I did feel a little sorry for my mother at times. Whenever the subject of being “Tom’s son” came up she would usually bite her lip for a few minutes, before casually interrupting with a little reminder to us all: “He has a mother too, you know.”

“It’s been said that the trick to being successful in any sport is choosing the right parents, and maybe it is. But it’s not that simple either. Nothing will undo the so-called genetic advantage quicker than a pushy parent.