Not only is Catherina McKiernan rightly regarded as one of Ireland’s best ever athletes, she is considered by many to be one of the greatest ever cross-country runners.
By Declan Whooley
The 43-year-old Cavan native had a distinguished career as a long distance runner, though injury undoubtedly prevented her from adding to her collection of medals.
Showing a keen interest in all sports while growing up, athletics was obviously her area of strength and began concentrating seriously on running following her victory in the 1988 schools cross-country title.
Her career began to bloom on the cross-country circuit and in the early ’90s she began to demonstrate her class. Between 1992 and 1995 she won four successive silver medals in the World Cross Country Championships, while also winning the inaugural 1994 European Cross Country title.
In 1992 she appeared in the first of her two Olympic Games, whith injury ruling out her participation in Sydney at the turn of the millennium.
Not just adept at cross-country, she demonstrated her pedigree when she decided to start running marathons, and she made an incredible debut in Berlin in 1997. She ran the fastest debut ever by a woman at the time, when she won in a new Irish record of 2.23.44. She would go on to win in London (she became the first Irish person to win the event) and Amsterdam the following year, while winning numerous mini-marathons.
Celebrating the London victory
By the time she finally decided to hang up her runners in 2004, she also had a whole host of national titles in 3000m, 5000m and cross-country titles as well as national records.
Now a qualified ChiRunning instructor, it could be a long time before Ireland ever produces a runner of the international quality of Catherina McKiernan.
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