The European Cross-Country Championships were held recently in Lisbon and it was great to see two Clonmel AC athletes, Sean Tobin and Kevin Maunsell wearing the Irish Singlet. The course was a demanding one with short stiff hills coupled with a lot of downhill running on steep slopes. The race started and the pace was fast from the gun with everyone trying to get out fast and get a good position while still keeping something in reserve for the rest of the race. The first lap over 500m saw the field well bunched together with Sean in the mid-twenties and Kevin back in the middle of the race. As the race unfolded Kevin had to withdraw midway through the 2nd lap due to a leg injury, we wish him a speedy recovery. Midway through the race Sean was making great progress as he was passing a number of athletes on each lap and had moved into the top 15 places with two laps to go. He maintained this position going out on the last lap and in a hectic run to the finish line he finished a very creditable 18th in 31 mins 11 secs. This was a phenomenal performance by Sean who only started back running at the end of September after a lengthy lay off due to injury. Looking back on the past decade of Irish performances at these Championships Sean is the most consistent Irish male athlete at these Championships, finishing 15th, 10th, and 18th respectively in the past three years, brilliant.