Northern Ireland’s largest athletics competition, the firmus energy Fab 5 welcomed a record 386 athletes to the Mary Peters Track in its first outing since the pandemic. The event also welcomed more than 250 spectators who cheered on athletes who came from throughout Northern Ireland and Ireland to compete in a range of track and field events.
Among the standout performers, a record-breaking performance from City of Lisburn Athletics Club participant Arnor Brynjarson broke the Icelandic Under 15 100 metres record in 11.27 seconds. With competitors coming from as far as Donore harriers in Dublin to City of Derry athletics the series welcomed some bright new stars to the Mary Peters Track.
The final race of the night saw the emergence of a potential new track star in the form of Annadale’s Brhane Gebrehane. The Eritrean refugee produced an impressive last lap in the men’s 800m senior men’s race to win comfortably in 1:56.77 with the promise of much better to come later in the season.
The series, organised by Lagan Valley Athletics Club, which lists Olympian Ciara Mageean and Paralympian gold medalist Michael McKillop among their alumni returned for its 30th year and will run from April through to September.
Ciara Magill, firmus energy, attended the opening event and said:
“The record number of both participants and spectators at the first event in this series demonstrates just how popular it is amongst aspiring athletes across Northern Ireland and Ireland. Athletes of all ages and abilities took part for the first time since the pandemic.
“This series is a key event in the sporting calendar for many local ambitious athletes who have been impacted by the lack of events due to Covid-19 in the last two years. The return of the Fab Five Series is great to see, not only for our athletes but for those who come along and take part as a hobby or just for fun”.
The highly competitive series, which is sponsored by natural gas company, firmus energy, attracts athletes from across Northern Ireland and Ireland and offers disciplines suitable for all abilities and ages.
Lagan Valley Athletics Club Chairman, Stephen Edgar added,
“We witnessed some great performances from local athletes across a number of track and field disciplines, including a record-breaking performance from Arnor Brynjarson.
“The record number of participants sets the tone for the rest of this series and for anyone interested in taking part, whether competitively or just for fun you can register online for the next event which takes place on 12th May. We really couldn’t have asked for a better way to kick-off the series”.
Since its debut in April 1991, the series has provided a platform for many local aspiring athletes who have gone on to represent Northern Ireland, Ireland and Great Britain and NI at international level across a range of disciplines.
Online registration for the next event in the firmus energy Fab 5 Series, which will take place on Thursday 12th May, is now open. For more information and to register for the event, visit www.athleticsni.org/Fixtures/Firmus-Fab-5-Meets
