County Derry ultra runner takes on gruelling 75 mile run and lands second place

An athlete from Swatragh has completed a gruelling run from Belfast to Derry in just over 12 hours.

Ultra runner Niall McGuigan was among 32 seasoned runners who took on the mammoth challenge earlier this month.

The race began at 7am on Saturday, March 9 and followed a challenging route over Black Mountain, through Antrim, Randalstown and Toome.

As runners crossed into County Derry, they ran through Castledawson, Tobermore and Draperstown before taking in the scenic route of Moneyneaney and over the Sperrins to Feeny and then Claudy.

After 75 miles and over 4,500ft of elevation, Niall reached the finish line in Derry in a fantastic time of 12 hours and 42 minutes – well within the 24 hours allowed to complete the run.

His brilliant time also landed him second place in the race, something which he is delighted with.

For 51 year-old Niall, a former footballer and hurler with Michael Davitt GAC in Swatragh, he is no stranger to ultra runs.

Last year, he completed the Belfast to Dublin ultra run - 110 miles running back roads, canal paths and bicycle paths – in a time of 18 hours and 38 minutes and coming in first place.

He admits that the Belfast to Derry run was 'definitely as tough if not harder' due to the elevation and cold temperatures.

“When darkness fell it got cold going up the Sperrins with the wind blowing across the road and there was even a time of sleet and rain to contend with.

“Put it this way, I was a happy man running down into Derry getting near the finish line,” laughed Niall.

Ultra running is any race that is longer than the marathon distance of 26.2 miles (42.2km) and is designed to test both runners' physical endurance and mental toughness.

Ahead of his most recent run, Niall had been putting in a lot of training.

“My training doesn't change too much all year round. I kept my miles up but before this run I did a cross-country marathon four weeks out then did a road marathon two weeks out but trained every other day in between up until the week of the Belfast to Derry run where I just ran three days that week,” he explained.

“During the race, the toughest part was running downwards towards Derry, believe it or not. I find running down sharp hills hard on the legs after 65 plus miles. 32 seasoned runners were at the starting line and only 20 finished, so getting to the finish line is a great achievement for all that finished and for me coming second was a great result, it shows I am bringing last year's good form into 2024.”

For Niall, there won't be much time to rest as he plans to get back into training for a number of upcoming runs.

“The Irish 24 hour Championship is on again in Belfast in June, it's always top of the list but I am also looking at Dublin to Belfast in the middle of April.

“I will see how my legs recover and take it from there,” he added.