The first national championships were organised in College Park on July 7th 1873 and have been held every year since.
This was 39 years before the IAAF was established in 1912 and 23 years before the first modern Olympic Games took place in Athens in 1896.
The first ever international athletics match took place in Lansdowne Road, Dublin on June 5th 1876. The match took place between Ireland and England with Maurice Davin receiving the honour of the first Irish athlete ever to represent his country in an international athletics meeting.
When the IAAF was founded in 1912, one of the 17 founding members was the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as it was then known.
In the IAAF centenary history published in 2012, it is confirmed that the Irish national Championships are the longest running national Championships in the world today.
Athletics Ireland is the National Governing Body for track & field, cross country, race walking and road running in Ireland. It is accepted that the organisation was formed in 1873 and adopted the trading name of Athletics Ireland in 1999.
On the track, Ireland had produced numerous World and Olympic champions across all disciplines of the sport and is one of the most active contributors to the sport at international level.
Three Irish athletes have received the ultimate honour of being crowned Olympic Champion – Pat O’Callaghan, Bob Tisdell and Ronnie Delany while John Treacy, Eamonn Coghlan, Marcus O’Sullivan, Frank O’Mara, Sonia O’Sullivan, Derval O’Rourke, and Robert Heffernan have all been crowned World Champions.
Alongside this numerous Irish athletes have won World and European Championship medals and Ireland has hosted a number of IAAF and European Championship events in track & field and cross country.
In 2024 Athletics Ireland had over 67,000 registered members and 365 clubs spread throughout the 32 counties of Ireland.
1857 First recorded athletics meeting of the modern era held at Trinity College, Dublin.
1873 Irish Champions Athletics Club established as a means towards putting on national athletics championships. Hard track established at Lansdowne Road.
1881 Amateur Athletic Association of Ireland set up but failed. The First Irish Cross County Championship was held in Dunboyne.
1884 Gaelic Athletic Association established in Thurles, November 1st 1884.
1885 Irish Amateur Athletic Association (IAAA) set up in Dublin, February 21st 1885.
1886 Cross County Association of Ireland (CCAI) established. It later became a subsidiary of the IAAA.
1896 First modern Olympic Games in Athens.
1903 First International Cross County Championship between England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales held in Hamilton Racecourse in Scotland, March 28th 1903.
1913 The International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) founded as a follow up to the Stockholm Olympics of 1912. Great War disrupted sports activity
1914 – 1918 Ireland’s political status changed as a result of the December 1921 Treaty.
1923 A new body, the National Athletic and Cycling Association (NACA) was set up as a result of the merging of the IAAA and CCAI and the Athletics Council of the GAA, which since the turn of the Century had become more preoccupied with fi eld games rather than athletics. Ireland admitted to membership of the IAAF.
1924 Ireland took part as a separate team in the Paris Olympic Games. Tailteann Games held in Ireland 1924, 1928 and 1932. The last of these was not, for a number of reasons, very successful and the idea was then dropped.
1924 Following the escalation of a dispute over an Easter Monday Athletics meeting in Celtic Park, Belfast, a number of Northern Ireland clubs resigned from the NACA and, in July, the Northern Ireland Amateur Athletic, Cycling and Cross Country Association (NIAAA) was formed.
1928 Dr. Pat O’Callaghan won the hammer title at the Amsterdam Olympic Games.
1929 Exhaustive discussions at Crewe failed to resolve the dispute in the North.
1930 The Amateur Athletic Association (AAA) accepted the Northern Ireland section in dispute with the NACA under its jurisdiction. A branch of the AAA was set up in Northern Ireland.
1931 General Eoin O’Duffy became the President of the NACA. Tim Smyth became the fi rst Irishman to win the International Cross Country Championship at Baldoyle Racecourse.
1932 Dr. Pat O’Callaghan (hammer) and Robert Tisdall (400m Hurdles) won Olympic Gold in Los Angeles.
1933 The IAAF Congress in Stockholm adopted an amendment to its constitution which defined members as political entities. Prior to this membership eligibility had not been defined.
1934 The NACA decided at a Special Congress not to accept the IAAF Ruling in respect of Ireland.
1935 This position was confi rmed at the Annual Congress in February. This was followed by suspension from the IAAF.
1936 Ireland was not represented at the Berlin Olympic Games.
1937 A number of clubs seceded from the NACA and set up the Irish Amateur Athletic Union (IAAU) at a Meeting in Moran’s Hotel, Dublin on April 22nd
1937 It was based on the acceptance of the IAAF ruling.
1938 IAAU elected to full membership of IAAF. NACA suspension was now made permanent. The Second World War disrupted International Sport 1939 – 1945.
1945 Delegates from the IAAU (now called Amateur Athletic Union of Eire AAUE) and the NIAAA met in Dublin and set up the Irish Amateur Athletic Board to organise All Ireland Championships and All Ireland Teams in the International Cross Country Championships as well as friendly international matches.
1946 Attempts to settle the dispute now involving three distinctive parties in Ireland failed. 1948 Ireland represented by AAUE Athletics in London Olympic Games.
1952 Ireland represented similarly in Helsinki.
1954 Another major attempt to bring a settlement, this time involving the Olympic Council of Ireland, proved a failure.
1956 Ronnie Delany won the 1500m in the Melbourne Olympic Games. Another effort at resolution of the dispute was set up by AAUE secretary Louis Vendendries but proved unsuccessful.
1958 Ireland’s first modern athletics stadium at Santry, the brainchild of Billy Morton of Clonliffe Harriers, was opened. Herb Elliott sets a new world record for the mile at Santry.
1967 Following discussions between various parties over the previous two years, both NACAI and AAUE agreed to dissolve and form a new association, Bord Luthchleas na hEireann (BLE). The advisor who helped to bring this about was Judge J C Conroy. A section of the NACAI refused to dissolve and continued in existence until 1999.
1968 The budget provided £100,000 which the following year saw the introduction of Government grants for sports bodies.
1973 The International Cross Country Championship was replaced by an annual World Cross Country Championship, the fi rst of which was held in Belgium that year. 1978 John Treacy won the World Senior Cross Country Championship in Glasgow.
1979 Ireland successfully hosted the World Cross Country Championship in Limerick and around 20,000 people saw John Treacy retain his title.
1982 BLE purchases new headquarters at 11 Prospect Road , Glasnevin, from profit from the World Cross Country in Limerick 1979
1983 Eamonn Coghlan wins gold in the 5000m at the Inaugural World Track and Field Championship in Helsinki.
1984 John Treacy won the silver medal in his marathon debut at the Los Angeles Olympics
1987 A working agreement was signed between BLE and NACAI. With North South Athletics relations much improved, all athletes who wished to represent Ireland in international competition could now do so.
1987 Marcus O’Sullivan (1500m) and Frank O’Mara (3000m) win Gold Medals for Ireland in the inaugural World Indoor Championships in Indianopolis
1990 Ireland’s first and only permanent indoor IAAF certified track opens in Nenagh
1991 Frank O’Mara wins his 2nd World Indoor 3000 metres title in a record 7.41.14
1992 Catherina McKiernan won her first of 4 consecutive ( ‘92-’95 ) silver medals at the World Cross Country in Boston. Catherina also won the inaugural European Cross Country in 1994 and dominated world marathon running for a few years with wins in Berlin, London and Amsterdam.
1993 Marcus O’Sullivan won his 3rd gold medal at 1500 metres in the World Indoor Championships in Toronto. Sonia O’Sullivan wins silver in the 1,500m at the IAAF World Championships in 4.03.48
1994 Sonia O’Sullivan wins Gold in the 3,000m at the European Track and Field Championships in 8.31.84
1995 Sonia O’Sullivan wins the IAAF World Championships in the 5,000m in 14.46.47
1998 Sonia O’Sullivan takes the Long and Short Course Cross Country Championships in Marrakesh
1999/2000 BLE and NACAI dissolve (this time completely) and form Athletics Association of Ireland (Athletics Ireland) with provision for Northern Ireland Association representation on the Council.
2000 Sonia O’Sullivan wins the silver medal in the 5000 metres at the Sydney Olympics. Mark Carroll wins the European Indoor 3000 metres to add to his outdoor bronze medal for 5000 metres in 1998
2002 Ireland hosts the World Cross Country in Leopardstown, having been postponed from the previous year due to Foot and Mouth disease. The women’s team take the bronze medals in the short course.
2003 Gillian O’Sullivan wins the silver medal in the 20K walk at the Paris World Championships
2005 David Gillick and Alistair Cragg win gold medals in the 400 metres and 3000 metres respectively on the same evening at the European Indoor Championships in Madrid.
2006 Derval O’Rourke wins the World Indoor 60 metres hurdles in Moscow and follows that up with a 2nd place in the 100 metres hurdles at the European championships in Gothenburg.
2007 Athletics Ireland move into a new modern purpose-built headquarters in Santry David Gillick wins the European Indoor 400 metres for the second time in Birmingham
2008 David Gillick breaks Irish 400m record. Paul Hession makes Olympic semi-final.
2009 Derval O’Rourke (60m Hurdles) and Mary Cullen (3,000m) win Bronze Medals at the European Indoor Championships in Turin.
2010 Derval ’Rourke wins silver medal in the Women’s 100m hurdles at the European Athletics Championships, Barcelona improving her Irish Record to 12.65 seconds. Rob Herffernan finished 4th in the 20K Walk at the same championships before claiming an identical position in the 50K Walk just three days later smashing the Irish record in the process with a time of 3:45:30.
(Full listing Coming soon)
2011
2012 Olympic 50km Walk Bronze medal for Robert Heffernan (3:37.54).
2013 World Championship 50km Walk Gold medal for Robert Heffernan (3.37.58)
European Indoors 3,000m Ciarán Ó Lionáird BRONZE 7.50.26
European Indoors 3,000m Fionnuala Britton BRONZE 9.00.54
European Indoors 60m Hurdles Derval O’Rourke BRONZE 7.95
2014 European 800m Bronze Mark English (1.45.03)
2015 European Indoors 2015 800m Mark English SILVER 1.47.20
2016 European 1500m Bronze Ciara Mageean (4.33.78)
2017
2018 European 400mH Bronze Thomas Barr (48.31)
2019 European Indoors 800m Mark English BRONZE 1.47.39
European Indoors 1500m Ciara Mageean BRONZE 4.09.43
Euro Cross Junior Efrem Gidey BRONZE 19.01 & U23 Stephanie Cotter BRONZE 21.15
2020
2021 World Athletics Relays Silver: 4x200m Aoife Lynch, Kate Doherty, Sarah Quinn, Sophie Becker.
13th December 2021 Fingal-Dublin hosts European Cross Country Championships
Euro Cross 2021 U23 Darragh McElhinney SILVER 24.33
2022 European 1500m Silver Ciara Mageean (4.02.56)
Euro Cross U20 Nicholas Griggs SILVER
Euro Cross U20 Dean Casey BRONZE 17.46
2023 150th Anniversary of the National Senior Track and Field Championships took place in Morton Stadium on July 29th & 30th 2023.
European Games 2023 100m Hurdles Sarah Lavin BRONZE 12.82 (+0.8)
Euro Cross 2023 U20 Nicholas Griggs BRONZE 16.24
2024 World Athletics Relays Bronze: 4x400m Mixed Cillin Greene, Rhasidat Adeleke, Thomas Barr, Sharlene Mawdsley
European Athletics Championships 1500m Gold Ciara Mageean
European Athletics Championships 400m Silver Rhasidat Adeleke
European Athletics Championships 4x400m Mixed Gold Chris O’Donnell, Rhasidat Adeleke, Thomas Barr, Sharlene Mawdsley
European Athletics Championships 4x400m Women Silver Phil Healy, Sophie Becker, Rhasidat Adeleke, Sharlene Mawdsley, Lauren Cadden
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