Fiona Everard (born 30 September 1998) is an Irish

cross country runner Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open coun ...

. In November 2023, she became the Irish female national cross-country champion.

Career

From Enniskeane in

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, Everard is a member of Cork-based running club Bandon AC. In December 2022, she won the National Novice Cross-Country Championship, held in

Conna Conna () is a village in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Bride, southeast of the town of Fermoy, on the R628 regional road. The village contains several pubs, a shop, a post office, a Roman Catholic church (built ) and a ne ...

. Everard had not long started to receive the input of her coach Matt Lockett, with whom she began working in October 2022, and who she has since said helped her overcome a succession of bone injuries and stress fractures. In late 2022, she also finished in the top 10 at the 2022 National Senior Cross Country Championships held in Donegal. In February 2023, she made her debut competing internationally for Ireland. She finished 14th at the Cross Cup de Hannut in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, finishing one place and one second behind leading Irish woman on the day Fionnuala Ross. Representing the

University of Galway The University of Galway () is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. The university was founded in 1845 as "Queen's College, Galway". It was known as "University College, Galway" (UCG) () from 1908 to 1997 and as ...

, she won the IUAA cross-country event in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

in March 2023. The following month she won the Irish Universities Championship over

5000m The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stan ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, in what was in only her second-ever 5000m on the track. She was subsequently named Cork City Sports Athlete of the month for April. In October 2023, she finished runner-up to

Lizzie Lee Lizzie Lee (born 22 May 1980) is an Irish marathon runner. She qualified for the 2016 Olympics where she finished 57th. Biography Lizzie Lee was born 22 May 1980 and is from Bishopstown. Lee is married with children, and after the birth of he ...

at the Cork County cross-country championships in

Macroom Macroom (; ) is a market town in County Cork, Ireland, located in the valley of the River Sullane, halfway between Cork (city), Cork city and Killarney. Its population has grown and receded over the centuries as it went through periods of war, ...

. Everard won the 2023 Irish National Cross Country Championships in

Gowran Gowran (; ) is a town on the eastern side of County Kilkenny, Ireland. The historic St. Mary's Collegiate Church is in the centre of Gowran, close to Gowran Castle. Gowran Park race course and Golf Course are one kilometre from the centre of ...

Kilkenny Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...

in November 2023. She finished 37 seconds clear of the field, in a race competed in extreme muddy conditions. Everard credited her experience of conditions training in Bandon which have helped her to favour muddy and hilly courses. The win secured her a place on the Irish team for the 2023 European Cross Country Championships scheduled for December 10, 2023 in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, in which she finished 34th overall. In March 2024, she was selected for the

2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships The 2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships was the 45th edition of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships held on 30 March 2024 in Belgrade, Serbia. It was held in the Park of Friendship, located next to the Danube River. Origi ...

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

. In May 2025, she ran 9:13.38 for the 300 metres at the Belfast Milers event in Northern Ireland.

Personal life

In 2022, Everard began studying for a Masters in Biomedical Science at the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Everard, Fiona 1998 births Living people Irish female middle-distance runners Irish female long-distance runners Place of birth missing (living people) Athletes from County Cork Athletes from the Republic of Ireland Alumni of the University of Galway 21st-century Irish sportswomen