Athenry News & Views Spring 2026

Spring 2026

National Senior 400m Indoor Title for Sean Doggett

Going into the Senior Indoor National Championships he was one of the favourites on paper but didn’t have it all his own way. He faced tough competition from Fintan Dewhirst from Tir Chonaill in the semi-final resulting in a poor lane draw for the final. Seán rose to the challenge in the final and from lane 3 he put down a commanding first lap to lead at the bell, Dewhirst came back and Seán had to bide his time to make his move in the final 50 metres, taking the win and his first National senior title. This is the first National Senior title on the track for Athenry since Olympian Paul Hession in 2012.

Seán Doggett launched his 2026 indoor campaign with an impressive set of early‑season performances, signalling another year of progression for him. He ran his first 400m of the season on the 7th of February at the Cosma Indoor Cup, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Challenger event in Kaunas, Lithuania, where he clocked a new indoor personal best of 47.30 seconds against a strong international field. The performance re-affirmed his growing consistency on the international stage. Ahead of the National Indoor Championships, Sean ran at the Track and Field live event at the NIA and again bettered his indoor PB winning the elite mens race in 46.99 seconds.

Sean on his way to winning the men’s 400m Final as Fintan Dewhirst of Tir Chonaill AC falls just before the finish line at the Sport Ireland Campus in Dublin.

Sean on the winners podium after receiving his medal with Fintan Dewhirst (left) 2nd and Hugo Magee 3rd.

77