Sligo athlete Mary Cullen is looking forward with renewed confidence to the 2010 track season after a blistering performance in the Antrim international cross-country race at Greenmount Campus on Saturday.

Twenty-five years old Cullen put the disappointment of her below-par run in the European cross country championships in Dublin last month behind her as she stormed to a highly impressive victory, leaving a top class field in her wake.

‘I was thrilled with my performance and it certainly restored my confidence after what happened in Dublin’, the North Sligo runner told THE SLIGO CHAMPION.

Cullen begins two months warm weather training in Melbourne this week as she prepares for what could be one of the most exciting years in her career.

She won a bronze medal in the European Indoor Championships in Turin in 2009 but will be concentrating on track events this year, with the European championships in Barcelona in July and the cross-country championships in Portugal in December among her targets. She will also be taking part in the Great Ireland Run at the Phoenix Park, Dublin, in April.

Last Saturday’s comprehensive victory in Antrim was just the tonic Cullen needed after failing to get among the medals at the European cross country championships in December.

‘That was a huge disappointment and it took me a while to get over it’, she admitted. ‘I probably overcooked things as far as my preparations were concerned and there was a niggling doubt at the back of my mind going into last Saturday’s race. ‘In those circumstances, it was great to produce such a good performance. It was the perfect start to the year and now it’s all about looking forward. The European championships in Barcelona and the cross-country championships in Portugal are two big targets’

Last Saturday’s stunning run was all the more satisfying as a number of runners who finished ahead of Cullen in Dublin were well down the field on this occasion. Britain’s Hayley Yelling, who won the European title at Santry, was a distanced fifth, while Ireland’s Fionnuala Britton, who also finished ahead of Cullen in the Europeans, was fourth.

The Sligo runner set a hot pace right from the start and was never in danger of relinquishing her lead. She stormed home in a time of 18 minutes, 45 seconds, over half a minute clear of Hungary international, Aniko Kalovics. England’s Jess Sparke took third place.

Cullen will run in a 5k race in Melbourne on March 4th before returning home for the Great Ireland run on April 18th.

- LEO GRAY