FORMER CORK SENIOR hurler Paul Tierney has today won the Lakeland 100 race in England’s Lake District.
Tierney, who was a member of the Cork panel that defeated Kilkenny in the All-Ireland senior hurling final in 2004, was first across the line in a 100-mile race billed as the ‘Ultra Tour of the Lake District’.
The Lakeland 100 is a trail race which includes approximately 6,300 metres of ascent and consists almost entirely of public bridleways and footpaths. The event is continuous in nature so competitors don’t have to stop or sleep on the route.
According to the Lakeland 100 website, ‘the winners are generally expected to finish close to the 23-hour mark. The overall time available for the route is 40 hours so sleep at intermediate checkpoints is possible, but time is not on your side.’
However, Tierney — who’s now based in the UK and represents Ambleside AC — took just 20 hours, 42 minutes and seven seconds to complete the race, which began last night at 6pm in Coniston.
Tierney finished over an hour ahead of last year’s winner Marco Consani. Over 300 competitors entered the race.
The 32-year-old quit hurling in favour of triathlons in 2005, before eventually turning to trail running. Tierney also won three Cork senior hurling championship medals with Blackrock during his GAA career.
