In the absence of the injured Ava Crean, the women’s Irish title race appears wide open

The absence of last year’s two top Irish finishers has opened fresh possibilities for podium places at Sunday’s Dublin Marathon, with Hiko Tonosa hoping for a return to the form that saw him finish third best overall in 2024.

Dublin has doubled as the national championship marathon since 2003, and with last year’s first-time women’s champion Ava Crean ruled out through injury, that crown appears there for the taking.

Tonosa was with the elite leaders until the 30km mark in last year’s race, before running into some difficulty and then dropping out. The 31-year-old from Dundrum South Dublin AC has shown some signs of returning to his best, winning the Antrim Half Marathon in August, clocking 62:07. He won the Irish title in 2024 when clocking a then national record of 2:09:42.

Last year’s top Irish man, David McGlynn, is also absent, still recovering from injury after dropping out of the European Championships marathon in Birmingham in August. Seán Tobin, who won the Dublin Half Marathon in May, is also targeting his first marathon title, along with Clonmel AC club mate William Maunsell, who finished third best Irish man in 2024.

Among the other contenders for the Irish men’s title are Hugh Armstrong from Ballina AC, who ran 2:13:55 to finish fifth in Düsseldorf in April, and Stephen McAuley of Letterkenny AC, a latecomer to marathon running, who finished fourth best Irish man last year.

Crean made national headlines last October when, still only 19, she finished sixth best woman overall. Her time of 2:34:12 was nine minutes faster than she’d run before. With that the Limerick runner also became the youngest Irish athlete to win a national marathon title.

Crean, however, has been sidelined from competitive running since sustaining a hip injury in February. With two-time previous champion Ann-Marie McGlynn also absent on Sunday, having won the Irish women’s title in 2023 and 2024, Sorcha Nic Dhómhnaill is among the favourites to land her first senior title.

Nic Dhómhnaill returns to the marathon distance with a best time of 2:38:19, set in Berlin in 2022, the 41-year-old winning the Dublin City Half Marathon in May in a course record of 71:25, having run a 10km personal best of 32:20 in Valencia in January. After the birth of her daughter Siún in April last year, Nic Dhómhnaill has also impressed with victories in the Dunshaughlin and Dunboyne 10km, also finishing second at the Women’s Mini Marathon in May.

Although her head and heart are telling her yes, Nichola Sheridan is still undecided on whether to line up on Sunday. The event comes just two weeks after Sheridan produced another breakthrough run to finish third overall in the women’s race at the Melbourne Marathon, her time of 2:29:13 the fastest by an Irish woman this year, moving her to sixth on the Irish all-time list.

Sunday also presents Sheridan with the possibility of a first senior title, having finished third best Irish woman last year behind Crean and McGlynn, but the 29-year-old is said to be keeping her options open as close to Sunday’s start as possible.

Based in Sydney for the last year, Sheridan had already planned a return trip to her home in Meath this week, in part to celebrate her 30th birthday next Thursday, along with her twin sister Gillian.

Meghan Ryan, also of Dundrum South Dublin, is back and eager to improve on her fourth-place finish in the Irish women’s race last year. The 32-year-old has been running into excellent form, winning the half-marathon race series in Phoenix Park last month in 1:16.46, adding to her national five- and 10-mile titles in recent years.

Judith Storm of City of Derry Spartans AC has also been improving again this year at age 39. After running 2:47:07 on her Dublin debut last year, she lowered her best to 2:39:09 in Belfast, and won the Belfast Half Marathon last month in 1:14:14. A mother of four, including triplets, Storm only took up running after moving to Derry in 2022.

With a total prize pot of €120,000, including time bonuses, the expected windy and possibly wet conditions mean Sunday morning may not be conducive to fast times. However, the elite international entries include Ethiopia’s Abay Alemu, whose personal best of 2:06:50, set in 2024, is two seconds inside Dublin Marathon course record of 2:06:52, set by his fellow countryman Kemal Husen in 2023.

Ethiopia’s Askale Alemayehu leads the elite women’s field, her best of 2:22:56, clocked in Dubai earlier this year, more than a minute inside Asmarech Nega’s Dublin course record of 2:24:13, set in 2024. Kenya’s Risper Chebet is another starter with a career best inside the course record, having run 2:23:45 in 2021.

Patrick Monahan is back in search of a ninth Dublin Marathon title in the wheelchair race, the two-time Paralympian from Kildare first off the line on Sunday morning, when that races begins at 8.40am, before the first mass wave starts at 8.45am.

Live coverage begins on TG4 from 8am, with global viewing also available through TG4 Player.