Mother Kudirat Oyedele, athlete Bernard Ibirogba and father Abiodun Ibirogba at the Park Central Hotel before the Millrose Games.
For the second year in a row, the fastest eight-year-old girl and boy in Ireland are in New York for the Millrose Games.
Emily Kelly and Bernard Ibirogba will race in the NYRR Fastest Kid on the Block 55m dash tomorrow at the Armory vs. a full field of New York City's most fleet-footed youth athletes from all five boroughs. The two promising speedsters were selected for the all-expenses-paid trip by winning Ireland's Fastest Feet, a three-month contest between September and November of this past fall wherein seven- and eight-year-old children raced for time across the country. In December, the top 24 athletes were invited to Athlone IT, where the winners were crowned. Dermot McDermott is the organizer. Believe and Achieve sponsored the prize.
Kelly runs with Finn Valley AC in Donegal, while Ibirogba runs with the Killcullen AC in Kildare.
Emily Kelly (Nike sweatshirt) and her family at the Park Central Hotel on Friday night before the Millrose Games.
We chatted with Kelly, Ibirogba and their families on Friday evening at the Park Central Hotel, where they are staying along with Olympians like Matthew Centrowitz and Natasha Hastings.
Check out the interviews with these rising Irish stars below!
Bernard Ibirogpa:
Emily Kelly:
The Ibirogba family:
The Kelly family: