By Damian Lawlor in Rieti
It is of course a truism that there is no bad day to run a personal best at any distance but definitely for Arron Whelan (Dunboyne AC) being able to run 53.13 in his 400m Hurdles heat showed that he has peaked perfectly for these European U18 Championships in Rieti, Italy. The time was almost a second faster than his previous best of 54.07.
The Meath man was quick at the start and each time a barrier was reached he was among the first three or four in the heat to jump to clear their hurdles. Arron didn’t seem to suffer from the ill effects of lactic acid as he turned into the finishing straight. Rather as he strode towards the line he was looking repeatedly to see that he was securely in the top four. You would imagine if he had given hard for the line he would have broken the 53 second mark.
Daniel Downey (Portlaoise AC) was out in the fifth and final heat of the 400m Hurdles. Over the years Daniel has amassed impressive performances in events including Shot Put, Long Jump, 800m, 400m, High Jump etc. The young Laois athlete is a tough competitor in all these disciplines and today in Rieti he needed to dig deep. In none of the previous four heats was any athlete assigned lane one with its tight bends which are a significant challenge for any athletes hurdling technique. Daniel though lined out in lane one and was out fast. He was among the leaders for the first three hundred metres and then just as he rounded into the finishing straight he clipped a hurdle. He staggered but stayed upright. However