A very competitive team to represent Ireland at the Para-Athletics European Championships which will take place in Grosseto, Italy from June 10th to June 17th, was announced this morning.
The team, which is sponsored by Allianz Ireland, is made up of World Champion silver medallist Noelle Lenihan, who made a sensational debut in Doha 2015, along with London 2012 Paralympic Games bronze medallist and 2015 IPC World Championship bronze medallist (F57 Discus) Orla Barry.
Five more female athletes also feature on the team including Niamh McCarthy (Discus) and Deirdre Mongan (Shot Put), who both securedbronze at the 2015 IPC World Championships in Doha, Qatar, along with Lorraine Regan (Javelin), Heather Jameson (Long Jump) and newcomer Greta Streimikyte who will compete in the T13 1500m.
Completing the team and also making their debut for the Irish senior para-athletics squad are Paul Keogan (T37 400m) and middle distance runner Conor McIlveen who will compete in the T38 800m & 1500m.
Speaking at the announcement, Irish athletics team manager and Head of Athletics at Paralympics Ireland, James Nolan said: “This is a strong team that we are sending to European Championships. It’s great to see a mixture of experienced and development athletes on the squad. It’s a great opportunity for them to get used to the pressurised environment of major championships prior to Rio, with the added bonus of both Rio and Grosseto having similar weather conditions.”
“Recent elite performances by the athletes show that they are close to peak and they are in a position to achieve success at this level. For some, that will be podium positions, while for others Personal Bests are the target.”
The Irish athletics team is proudly sponsored by Allianz, an official sponsor of Paralympics Ireland.
All heats and finals from the event will be streamed live on here .
Irish Team for 2016 IPC Athletics European Championships:
Noelle Lenihan (Charleville, Co. Cork), F38 class. Event: Discus F37/38
Orla Barry (Ladysbridge, Co. Cork), F57 class. Event: Discus F57/58
Niamh McCarthy (Carrigaline, Co. Cork), F41 class. Event: Discus F40/41
Greta Streimikyte (Swords, Co. Dublin), T13 class. Event: 1500m T12/13
Deirdre Mongan (originally from Milltown, Co. Galway now living in Newcastle, Co. Down), F53 class. Event: Shot put F53/54
Paul Keogan T37 class. Event: 400m T37
Lorraine Regan (Kilcormac, Co. Offaly), F56 class. Event: Javelin F55/56
Conor McIlveen (Derry, Co. Derry), F38 class. Events: 800m T37/38 and the 1,500m T37/38
Heather Jameson (Garristown, Co. Dublin), F37 class. Event: Long Jump F37
