ATHLETICS Paralympian hoping to make history at European Cross Country Championships

Ireland's Michael McKillop will take to the starting line in Santry for the SPAR European Cross Country Championships on December 13th full of confidence after his stunning victory at the Woodie's DIY Inter County Cross Country Championships in Kilbeggan two weeks ago.

While McKillop has never experienced a cross country championships as part of an Irish team, what many in Santry may not realise is that McKillop has dealt with the pressure of sport at the highest level before, and excelled. The St. Malachy's clubman won gold in the 800m at last year's Paralympics in front of 91,000 people at the Bird's Nest Stadium in Beijing and set a new world record in the process. He didn't just set a world record he smashed the old one, taking a full 2.74 seconds off the existing record set two years previously, by himself of course.

The 19-year-old has dominated the 800m at paralympic level for the past three years. After that victory in Beijing Michael said he hoped that this performance would drive home the message that "paralympic athletes are on the same level as able bodied champions". This may have registered with many but the Antrim native hammered this message home two weeks ago in Kilbeggan, County Westmeath. In what were miserable conditions, McKillop finished first in the Junior men's race against his "able-bodied" peers, a victory that guaranteed him a spot on the Irish team for Ireland's first home European Cross Country Championships.

McKillop, who suffers from a mild form of cerebral palsy, is studying Sport and Leisure Management at Belfast Metropolitan College and can't wait to represent Ireland in Santry. "It will be a very proud moment for me to represent my country again on Sunday week. The Paralympics were a fantastic experience but I've been competing in able bodied races for the last five or six years and, more often and not, I have managed to compete pretty well so I won't be over awed at all. Cross Country is the bread and butter of athletics; track is just what you do in the summer so I really enjoy being out doing this.

The St. Malachy's athlete knew that the Irish championships would be a good chance for him to gain automatic qualification for Santry, despite the unfavourable conditions. "Kilbeggan was a seriously tough race, the conditions were very bad but I ran a very smart race. I knew it wasn't going to be easy but if I could stay in the top 6 the whole way though, I'd have a chance. I went down on the Saturday with my father to plan the race and have a look at the course. It was well planned out, we knew the areas that I had to push in and the areas that I had to hold back in so preparations were great to be honest. I had a good performance at the Gerry Farnan but then I didn't do so well in Belgium so I knew I had to pick it up a lot to make it into the reckoning for the Irish team.

Despite compete with ablebodied athletes for several years McKillop knows this will be a new test for him. "This will be my first able bodies international event and I'm under illusions as to how difficult it's going to be. There are lads who have been Youth Olympics, Junior World Championships and have been competing for a long time so I have to have to same goal as I did for the Inter- Counties. I have to be the first Irish person to cross the line and hope that's enough. The race is only 6K so regardless of the conditions it's going to b a very fast paced raced. I'm very much looking forward to it."

The SPAR European Cross Country Championships will take place in Ireland for the first time on the 13th December in Santry Park, Dublin. For more information and regular updates on the event and to sign up to the mailing list for the SPAR European Cross Country Championships then log on to www.dublin2009.ie

Athletics Ireland is supported nationally in running this event by the Irish Sports Council, Dublin City Council, Fingal County Council, RTة, Failte Ireland and Clonliffe Harriers. Tickets for the event can be purchased from www.dublin2009.ie