Harry McNulty: The 75-Year-Old Honoured After 75th Half Marathon

By: Gyang Dakwo

Legendary runner Harry McNulty has been recognised for his remarkable lifetime of distance running participation with the Danny Sheerin Memorial Award for 2024.

Mr McNulty, who celebrated his 75th birthday earlier this summer, received the award at the end of the Waterside Half Marathon from members of the Sheerin family and Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council Lilian Seenoi-Barr.

A founder member of the Foyle Valley club, he has completed over 60 marathons and 75 half marathons in a career that dates back to the early 80s.

He introduced several of the city’s best runners to the sport and is known as the city’s ultimate pacer, having guided countless marathon first timers aiming for a four hour time around the course.

A sub three hour marathon runner in his prime, he continues to win titles in his age category and was the M70 category winner at the Waterside Half Marathon in recent years.

Harry told BBC Radio Foyle’s North West Today programme that he was honoured to have been given the prestigious award.

“I was shocked because I was totally unaware of it,” Harry said.

“To be honoured in the name of Danny Sheerin, I thought was unreal, he that gave so much to mass participation and to the enjoyment of participation,” he said.

Danny, Harry said, was “such a nice man”, who embodied the “joy of participation”.

Harry started running in 1981, competing in his first Waterside Half marathon two years later.