The 3000m events at 66th Cork City Sports should prove to be a tactical affair.

 

In the mens John Buckley Sports sponsored race Collis Bermingham AUS will be one of the main contenders. Bermingham has had a stunning career littered with great performances including finishing in the top 8 in the World Cross Country Championships. He has personal bests that are simply world class. In the 1500m he has run 3.35.5, in 3000m he has a best of 7.35.45, in the 5000m he has rum 13.09.57 and 10,000m he has run 27.29.73. There are only a few athletes in the world that have this kind of range.

 

Last year Bermingham was attempting to win his third 3000m title at the Cork City Sports which is a feat never before achieved. Collis won in 2012 and 2013. In 2013 Collis’s time was 7.47.97, which is one of the fastest times ever in Cork, and less that 10 seconds short of the meet record set by his countryman Craig Mottram in 2005 at the Mardyke. However he was denied his third title by an up and coming University Of Portland athlete called Reid Buchannan. Buchannan ran a personal best time last year of 7.52.49 and gained the accolade of Athlete of the Meeting for his performance in winning that race.

 

On July 18th both competitors will renew their rivalry when Bermingham will be coming again to Cork in search of that illusive third 3000m title. Can Buchannan stop him again or  is it possible that several other athletes in the field will have a say in that race such as Brandon Doughty and Joe Stilin from the stable of Ray Flynn, Irish Mile and 1500m record holder and CEO of Flynn Sports Management. Doughty has run 7.47.47 just a few weeks ago and Stillin has a best of 7.49.64. The main Irish challenge will be coming from John Travers, Dave Flynn and Matt Bergin. It should make for an interesting race.

 

In the womens race, Sponsored by Sport Ireland/ AAI, we see the return Of Marielle Hall, a winner in 2014 and favoured to take her second 3000m title at Cork. This is a very evenly matched race with athletes from Japan, Canada, USA, New Zealand, Ireland, England, Australia and Denmark in the field and all with a chance of taking the title.

 

The athlete from Denmark, Maja Alm, is an interesting addition to the field. She is is a Danish orienteering competitor who has won six World Championships. She is a superstar in Orienteering circles. She is especially known for her three gold medals on the sprint distance, where she has won the title three years in a row: 2015, 2016, and 2017. She is also a medalist from the Junior World Championships. Since 2006 she has been coached by Danish national coach Lars Lindstrøm. Alm is remarkable for her dominant running speed, which gives her a great advantage over other competitors at the sprint distance.