Damien Burke, All Ireland Champion 2004
What a year for Damien Burke.
A native of Danganelly, Cooraclare, he first joined the Club in 2001, after finishing 3rd in the under 8, West Clare Schools races.
He won the Boys under 7 Championship that year and was 10th in the Under 8. In the Munster championship under 8 he finished 8th.
In 2002 he was runner up in the under 8, School races beaten by Stephen Heslin. In the under 9 county championships he reversed that position when taking the gold medal.
During the following year he contracted a virus which kept him from all competition for 2003.
His first appearance in 2004 was at the county track championships in Mullagh where he won the under 11, 600m
When the cross country Season started, the west Clare Schools under 10 was his next success followed by the Clare under 11 Championship in Kilmihil on October 10th. The following Sunday saw this next win in Clare Boys under 12 in Kilnaboy.
He then made the long trip to Skibbereen in West Cork where he comfortably took the Munster under 11 on October 31st.
Then on to Piltown in Kilkenny for the Under 12 boys and again there was no stopping him as he added another Munster title.
From the Report of James sexton for the Clare Champion " The Boys U/12’s was a Munster Championship that was fiercely contested by Clare athletes and this Clare Athlete Damian Burke from Kilmihil , is he the next Seamus Power, Munster U/11 Champion, Clare U/11 and U/12 Champion and again right from the start no Munster athlete able to match this boy's stride when once again he showed a clean pair of heels to all in Munster to win by a very big margin with Adrian Kearney Ennis Track Club powering his way up the hill to snatch the bronze medal"
The all Ireland Championships were held in Dungarvan and there he delighted the large Clare support with a magnificent win and became the first Kilmihil juvenile athlete to win a national cross country title since the founding of the AAI. In doing so he helped Clare to a bronze medal and Munster region to the gold medal.
Again From James Sexton's report: "The stage was set for the next race and that was the boys U/11’s and every Clare supporter was watching this Munster Champion, Damian Burke, Kilmihil , how he was going to handle pressure on the big stage and right from the start the Kilmihil man let 150 competitors know that they were in a race when he raced into and early lead and controlled this race from the front and with 300metres remaining he was looking back over his shoulder and looking very comfortable as he crossed the finishing line to take a national title to Kilmihil and the Clare team packed very well with 18th Conor Madigan St. Johns gaining many valuable places over the final 600metres and a mighty finish by Tadhg Lillis Kilmihil in 24th place, Sean Keane St. Cronan’s 35th and Eamon Chesser Ennis Track Club 50th for a total of (168pts) for Clare and Taking the bronze medals with Munster taking the Regional Award on (51pts) and Damian Burke captained that Munster Team to gold medals with Kilmihil beaten by one point in the Inter Club Awards for bronze medals."
In the meantime he had won events at St. Cronan's, Fergus and Kilnaboy races.
Unfortunately he then became ill and was forced to miss the under 12 All Ireland in Mullingar. Until that time he was undefeated in 9 races.
2005
In community games under 13 CC he finished 8th and helped his parish, Cooraclare, to the gold medal.
In the trials for the Clare under 12 relay team for Mosney he won the 600m race.
In the six months since October 1st, this remarkable athlete has been beaten only once in 11 races.