Sun Shines on the 15th Cheetah Run

A Thrilling Event at Fota Wildlife Park

The 15th running Eagle AC Cheetah Run, took place in the picturesque Fota Wildlife Park on May 15th, 2025.  The continued popularity and support for this race saw entries for both the 5k and the juvenile 1 mile race sell out within 27 hours this year.  It’s a real privilege to be the host club for such a prestigious event. This annual race, renowned for its unique setting amidst the wildlife park, on a beautiful summers evening proved to be an extraordinary success, with 833 finishers and wonderful support from so many spectators throughout the park.

The Race

5K Race Start

The Unique Setting of the Cheetah Run

Fota Wildlife Park provides a stunning backdrop for the race. The course is both challenging and beautiful, incorporating both trails and tarmac paths, and enclosed within the grounds of Fota Wildlife Park and Fota House and Gardens. Participants and supporters can enjoy passing giraffes, zebras, penguins, wallabies, and of course, cheetahs, while sharing some km’s with the wallabies and other free-roaming animals within the park.

This year’s event sold out again, attracting both seasoned athletes and first-time 5K runners. The vibrant atmosphere, boosted by the sunny weather, added to the evening's magic. Families, friends, and running clubs from Cork and beyond gathered to support this wonderful event & wildlife park.

Race Highlights

1 Mile Race Start

The enthusiasm of the 1-mile race is certainly a certainly a highlight of the race. This lighting fast race has a thrill of excitement at the start line, captured wonderfully above by Joe Anne Murphy Photos, and the winners come back up the same path within 5 minutes of the whistle blowing. 

1 Mile Race Winners 

Rank	Name	Category	Bib	Time
Top 3 Boys
1	Jack Forde	M13	6012	5:19
2	Conor Twohig	M13	6116	5:31
3	Eoin Herlihy	M14	6016	5:34
Top 3 Girls
1	Alison Brennan	F13	6059	5:43
2	Sophie O'Callaghan	F14	6104	5:53
3	Alicia Phillips	F13	6046	5:57

 

5K Race Winners 

The 5 K race for those 16 years plus brough plenty of excitement also.

Top 5 Men

Mark Walsh edged out Barry Twohig for 1st place in a close race, securing his title as reigning champion for both Eagle AC races in 2025. Barry finished second, just like his son did in the 1-mile race. Andrew Hyland came in third, with all top three men finishing under 16 minutes on a tough course. Aidan Noone and James Grufferty of Leevale rounded out the top five.

Rank	Name	Club	Category	Bib	Time
1	Mark WALSH	Leevale A.C.	MS	1068	15:44
2	Barry TWOHIG	St. Finbarrs A.C.	M45	1056	15:50
3	Andrew HYLAND		MS	826	15:56
4	Aidan NOONE	Leevale A.C.	MS	945	16:13
5	James GRUFFERTY	Leevale A.C.	M40	358	17:44

Top 5 women.

Lizzie Lee claimed her first victory at the Cheetah Run, winning the Anne Lucey Murphy Memorial Cup for 2025. Another talented young Leevale runner Emma Fitzpatrick finished shortly after, while last year's champion, Kealey, secured third place. Michelle, winner of our 5-mile Carrigaline race in February, took fourth place, and Orla Drum rounded out the top five ladies for 2025.

Rank	Name	Club	Category	Bib	Time
1	Lizzie Lee	Leevale A.C.	F40	430	17:52
2	Emma Fitzpatrick	Leevale A.C.	FS	329	18:02
3	Kealey Tideswell	Clonmel A.C.	F40	658	18:41
4	Michelle Kenny	Leevale A.C.	F45	852	18:48
5	Orla Drumm	N/A	F40	762	19:02

Winning Junior Runners

In our junior winners we have one change for the 1st Junior Male.

We would like to congratulation Tiarnan as the winning Junior male. Unfortunately, Tiarnan’s chip did not work on the night, so he was not called out as the first-place finisher,

Congratulations Tiarnan, on the 2025 Junior Race win.

Rank	Name	Club	Gender	Cat.	Bib	Time
1	Tiarnan O'DONOGHUE	Togher A.C.	Male	JM	964	18:37
1	Faye O'RIORDAN	Carraig-Na-Bhfear A.C.	Female	JF	1005	20:29

Winning Visually Impaired Runner. 

We were also delighted to present a prize to our first place visually impaired runner Ross Gallagher, assisted by a sighted guide Grellan McGrath of Eagle AC on the night.

Ross Gallagher finishing the Cheetah 5k 2025

Category	Position	Name	Category	Bib	Time
1st VI Runner	164	Ross Gallagher	MS	345	28:32

Congratulations also to all our category prize winners who are listed below.

Charitable Donations

For the 2025 event we are delighted to donate €5000 to the valuable preservation and conservation work at Fota Wildlife Park. Additionally, this year we are delighted to make a €500 donation to Fota House, Arboretum & Gardens cared for by the Irish Heritage Trust, which is a registered charity. Sections of the 5K race run through the grounds of Fota Gardens and we are very appreciative of their co-operation and facilitation of the Cheetah Run Event.

Our Thanks

We extend our heartfelt thanks to Fota Wildlife Park for their incredible support during the 2025 Eagle AC Cheetah Run. The park looked stunning, the staff who helped were a pleasure to work with, with smiles everywhere and lots of people working very hard to make the evening a safe and successful one. The overall experience that the runners and their guests had was hugely positive and we’ve had terrific feedback since.

Very warm thanks to all our Eagle members who gave up their evening to volunteer in the various areas, and the many families and friends brought along to lend extra pairs of hands. It was a night to be proud of our club once again.

Finally, but equally importantly we would like to thank our sponsors. John Buckley Sports & Brooks running, who have been supporting this event for many years and without their support these events would not be possible. Thank you for your ongoing support and always being a pleasure to work with.

We look eagerly look forward to welcoming you all back to Fota Wildlife Park for our 2026 Cheetah Run next year and we already have some ideas on how to make this memorable evening even better!

Thank you all for your support, messages of thanks, and for creating an amazing atmosphere for the 2025 Cheetah Run.

Age Category Prize Winners

 

Female Category Prize Winners
F35	Pl.	Name	Club	Cat	Sub Cat	#	Net	Gross
F35
1	114	Evelyn KEEGAN		F	F35	835	23:04	23:25
2	117	Claire STONE	Togher A.C.	F	F35	1047	23:17	23:30
3	149	Maura FITZGERALD		F	F35	773	24:11	24:18
F40
1	23	Olive MCCARTY	St. Nicholas A.C.	F	F40	896	19:01	19:04
2	45	Lisa JEFFERS		F	F40	827	20:13	20:18
3	66	Rhona DEMPSEY	St. Finbarrs A.C.	F	F40	746	21:20	21:23
F45
1	41	Niamh CRONIN	St. Finbarrs A.C.	F	F45	732	20:08	20:10
2	43	Fiona MCCARTHY	Leevale A.C.	F	F45	890	20:14	20:18
3	63	Jo-Anne COSGROVE	Watergrasshill A.C.	F	F45	270	21:15	21:20
F50
1	32	Linda KELLY	Watergrasshill A.C.	F	F50	843	19:38	19:40
2	127	Lisa CROWLEY	Watergrasshill A.C.	F	F50	735	23:28	23:45
3	140	Brigid RYAN	Midleton A.C.	F	F50	629	23:56	24:06
F55
1	241	Anne O'KEEFFE		F	F55	988	26:40	27:10
2	264	Caroline O'DONNELL		F	F55	553	26:35	27:47
3	292	Margaret MURPHY	Togher A.C.	F	F55	922	27:57	28:26
F60
1	100	Mary SWEENEY	St. Finbarrs A.C.	F	F60	1049	23:01	23:01
2	224	Melanie KELLY	West Waterford A.C.	F	F60	844	26:28	26:52
3	256	Catriona MCGREGOR	Midleton A.C.	F	F60	472	27:24	27:34
F65
1	580	Deirdre BARRY		F	F65	680	33:53	34:43
Male Category Prize Winners
M40
1	26	Mark KELLY		M	M40	847	19:07	19:09
2	31	Patrick FOLEY	Watergrasshill A.C.	M	M40	335	19:32	19:37
3	35	Jay BATEMAN	Ballintotis Fit4Life A.C.	M	M40	214	19:44	19:48
M45
1	14	Con MARSHALL	St. Finbarrs A.C.	M	M45	886	18:35	18:36
2	17	Tim TWOMEY	Leevale A.C.	M	M45	1059	18:43	18:44
3	34	Trevor MOORE	Togher A.C.	M	M45	911	19:41	19:46
M50
1	59	Brendan MURPHY		M	M50	501	20:49	20:52
2	62	Darren CASEY	Bandon A.C.	M	M50	704	21:04	21:07
3	75	Brian MURPHY		M	M50	509	21:41	221:49
M55
1	50	Sean MURPHY	Ballintotis Fit4Life A.C.	M	M55	218	20:25	20:28
2	60	John KISSANE	St. Finbarrs A.C.	M	M55	860	20:35	21:00
3	68	John O'CONNELL	Carrigaline A.C.	M	M55	957	21:35	21:38
M60
1	98	Fraser MACGILP	Ballintotis Fit4Life A.C.	M	M60	878	22:47	22:53
2	113	Sean O'BRIEN		M	M60	952	23:13	23:23
3	195	Martin BUTLER		M	M60	695	25:31	26:02
M65
1	329	Andrew GEANEY		M	M65	825	28:16	29:03
2	345	Pj HOLMES	Dundrum A.C.	M	M65	388	29:11	29:25
M70
1	386	Denis O'SULLIVAN	Carrigaline A.C.	M	M70	608	30:01	30:26
M75
1	711	Jimmy MURRAY		M	M75	517	42:19	43:15
2	718	Billy CABALL	St. Finbarrs A.C.	M	M75	233	43:17	44:14

Full results can be found on myrunresults.ie

Photo credits with thanks to Joe Murphy Photos, Mick Dooley Photos, Gearoid O' Laoi Photos & Maressa Mills on social media.