Seymour clearly a class apart

Robin Seymour made it nine wins in a row in the cyclo-cross championship in Lurgan Park on Saturday. At the end of eight laps of a circuit making a total of almost six miles he was a minute and 50 seconds ahead of Alastair Martin with Robert Lamont third at 4:27.

Three dismounts were required on each circuit with short spells of running necessary and Seymour made light of all obstacles as he left his 16 rivals trailing.

He went to the front from the start and at the end of the first lap led by 11 seconds from Lamont with Martin another six seconds adrift. Next time around, the medal positions were taking shape as Martin had moved into second place at 21 seconds with Lamont at 26 seconds but after them there was a gap to a minute and five seconds with Don Travers involved in a tussle with Myles McCorry for fourth place followed by Kirk Sloan, Andy Lay and Aidan McDonald.

Seymour started to lap the tail-enders on the third time around and at halfway, Martin was 55 seconds down with Lamont at 1:48. While the gaps continued to widen, Martin's deficit for the second half was exactly the same as the first four laps, another 55 seconds, but at the finish Seymour was again out on his own with Martin clearly second best and then Lamont.

The 28-year-old said afterwards that he intended going for 10 in a row in 2000 after he contests the Olympic mountain bike race in Sydney.

There was a very tight fight for team honours and the promoters, Apollo snatched it with 20 points to 21 for Ards - McCorry and McDonald were supported by Lay in ninth place and the club also had the 10th man, Robin Uprichard.

Rowing: A turnout of over 1,400 competitors and over 350 crews made St Michael's head of the river at O'Brien's Bridge a fitting end to the rowing year. The host club's eight negotiated the course fastest in good rowing conditions, with one of the few surprising results being Sean Jacob's victory over Neptune club-mate and rival Albert Maher in the single sculls. Maher finished third, with Offaly's Padraig Hussey second.

The last crew to set off in the last on-the-water event of the Irish Amateur Rowing Union's centenary were the Commercial women's double scull.

Awards: The 10 Texaco sports awards for 1999 will be chosen from the following sports: athletics, equestrian sport, Gaelic football, golf, horse racing, hurling, motor sport, rowing, rugby, sailing, snooker, soccer and women's Gaelic football.