Meetings of influencers looking to contribute ideas on the next stage of development for Women in Sport in Ireland have been taking place across the country over the past few weeks.
The National Indoor Arena at the National Sports Campus was the first venue for around 50 leaders from the wider world of sport at NGB, local authority, sport Ireland and media level to talk, listen, share and perhaps inspire ‘what next’.
This was followed by events in Limerick and Sligo and one for younger girls to contribute their thoughts back at Abbottstown this week.
Sport Ireland has commissioned Clansult and SOS Sports, led respectively by Lisa Clancy and Sarah O’Shea to produce a report looking at what can be done.
There is an online survey which has now gone live and we would urge you to engage and have your say. You can access the survey here.
They are taking in information from best practice around the world and looking at how advances can be made in terms of governance, leadership, performance, coaching, influencing and other key areas ahead of a report to be published in the Autumn.
There will be no magic bullet solution. A quick shout out of positives and negatives at the start of the first session showed that we have a good understanding of the landscape in its broadest sense but it is in drilling down through specifics that trends will emerge.
In order to make progress, you have to be fully aware of where you are at any given moment.
This new initiative, under the heading of #WeAreSport promises to discover that and to draw a map of where we go to next. It’s important to do it, and important to get it right.
It was a triumphant week for Transplant Team Ireland at the 10th European Transplant & Dialysis Championships in Cagliari as they won a staggering 54 medals including 11 Gold, 20 silver, 23 Bronze. A large turnout of family friends and supporters turned out to meet the team when they come through the Arrivals’ Hall at Dublin airport’s Terminal One yesterday (Sunday 24th June).
Twenty three members of Team Ireland, including 10 women and 13 men, who range in age from 31 to 80, competed in intense heat and against strong competition this week on the sun drenched picturesque Italian island of Sardinia. The positive spirit of the Irish shone through among the 25 competing nations. At the Games athletes acknowledged their gratitude to their donors. The Games are a celebration of life and showcase the value of sport and regular physical activity for people on dialysis and transplant recipients.
Team Ireland put in strong performances at several sporting events including Mini Marathon, Swimming, Golf, Bowling, Pétanque, Darts, Track & Field and many more.
The Irish Golf Team of five swept the decks winning 3 Gold and 2 Silver medals. Eldest Team Ireland member and eldest competitor overall at this year’s Championships, John Mc Aleer (from Newtownabbey, Antrim) was one of these successful Golfers, taking the Silver for his net score. A day before the retired university lecturer won a Bronze medal in Petanque event. John, a retired university lecturer, was also given a special recognition award at the closing ceremony gala dinner for his most senior competitor status.
At the closing ceremony Gala dinner last night (Saturday) Chikoyo White from Balbriggan, Dublin was awarded with a trophy for being the best athlete in the Female Dialysis category. Chikoyo, a long term dialysis patient, won two silver medals in Petanque and 10-pin bowling.
Following the games closing ceremony Team Manager Colin White reflected on the week saying, “I’m so proud of Team Ireland for all of their successes but most importantly I am tremendously proud of the team spirit that I have witnessed here. The bonds that have been made here will endure the years. I also would like to give special mention to Team Captain Harry Ward, he has played a blinder, he is so well recognised by everyone and a friend to all. Heather Gunning, the team doctor, has ensured everyone remained hydrated, safe from the sun and generally well throughout the week. We can now look forward to Dublin hosting of the next European Games in August 2020.”
Team Ireland Swimmers, Deirdre Faul (Dalkey, Dublin), Shelia Gregan and Orla Hogan Ryan (both from Nenagh), and Peter Heffernan (Skerries, Dublin) saw huge success in the Pool on Wednesday with each Irish athlete securing medals. The total medals haul from the swimming event was 3 Gold, 4 Silver and 3 Bronze. Champion Swimmer Deirdre Faul (age 50), a liver transplant recipient from Dublin, kept up her stellar success record scooping three Gold and two Silver medals in her five races at the swimming event.
The youngest member of the team Rachel Eagleton (31), from (Bettystown, Co. Meath) won a Silver medal in her Tennis Singles event.
Retired urologist Ron Grainger, aka The Flying Doctor, from Castleknock, Dublin proved to be unbeatable winning Gold medals in three events – the 200m sprint, 100m sprint and the Golf Event for his gross score. Ron said, “I feel blessed to have been able to compete at this level and with this achievement. I think if my donor and how this would not have been possible without them.”
Kieran Murray from Ramelton in Donegal, was victorious at the track and field events. On the final day of competition, Kieran won a Bronze in the 800m race, the kidney transplant recipient’s fourth medal at the Games. During the course of the week-long games Kieran also won a Gold medal for Golf, a Silver in the 1500m sprint and Bronze in the 5km walk. Kieransaid, “I am delighted with my medal and indeed the medal haul I achieved throughout the week. I would like to thank my donor who is always in my thoughts. My main aim at the Games is to promote organ donation and show how it transforms and save lives.”.
Games Veteran Charlie Ryan, a liver transplant recipient from Cobh, Co. Cork retained his decade-long title as European Transplant & Dialysis Champion in Darts, winning Gold. Charlie, a retired skipper, who competed in the 70+ age category defended and won his six in a row Champion Darts title having won Gold at every biennial European games since 2008.
Another Team Ireland athlete who also successfully defended a European title was Marie O’Connor (Lahinch, Clare). Marie remained the undefeated European champion in the female golf event securing the Gold in the Golf Gross category. Marie has won Gold in Golf at every World and European Championships since she began competing with Team Ireland with the exception of the World Games when they were held in Argentina which she didn’t attend. Marie also enjoyed success off the golf course by winning a Silver in the 100m sprint, Bronze in the Darts triples event and Bronze in the Petanque Singles event. Marie reflected that her donor is her true “gold prize”.
Team Captain Harry Ward, from Baldoyle, also commented on the team spirit that he witnessed amongst Team Ireland, he said, “I am very proud of how the team has gelled this year. Everyone has supported everyone else and the Team has been like one big family. It’s been a truly fantastic week.”
Jamaican Champion sprinter Travane Morrison, who is understood to be one of the fastest 100m sprinters in Ireland, attended the Championships this year with Team Ireland to observe the Irish team for his Masters Research at IT Tralee. At the end of the week, Travane said, “the European Transplant Games is no different from regular sporting events. It is governed by the same rules and the standard is very high despite the health challenges that the athletes have faced. It’s been a really fun week, the team are great people to be around, the way they appreciate life and have fun is inspirational.”
The Irish Kidney Association is the charity organisation which manages Transplant Team Ireland’s participation at British, European and World Transplant Games events.
The Irish Kidney Association is looking forward to bringing the biennial European Games back to Ireland in 2020 after it successfully hosted the 6th European Transplant & Dialysis Games in Dublin in 2010 which attracted over 500 participants and supporters from 23 countries. The Irish Kidney Association is looking forward to welcoming new members to Transplant Team Ireland for the Games which will be held in August 2020 and securing the support of sports’s national governing bodies, recruiting volunteers and offering excellent sponsorship opportunities for businesses.
The Government has published the specific elements relating to Sport as part of the Project Ireland 2040 review of Capital Spending Projects.
The programme outlines an expected spend of €200 Million between 2018 and 2021 with further expansion over the period of 2022 to 2027.
€100 Million has been pledged towards maintaining the Sports Capital Programme with a further €100 Million being set aside for the establishment of the Large Scale Sports Infrastructure Fund.
The Government has also committed to the continued development of the National Sports Campus with investment being made to complete the National Indoor Arena and a new National Velodrome and Badminton Centre.
“Across the country, both tourism and sport have an important role to play in developing, and sustaining economic and social progress,” said Minister of State for Tourism and Sport speaking at the launch of ‘Linking People and Places’.
“‘Linking people and places’ will see almost €108million invested in tourism between now and 2021 and around €200million in sport over the same period.”
“This investment will benefit all regions of the country and deliver jobs and improve sports facilities in every county and we’re committed to maintaining or improving, that level of investment out to 2027.”
This document and the commitments within are related only to capital as opposed to current spending. It is the strong view of the Federation of Irish Sport that increased spending on people and programmes will be required in order to maximise the value of this welcome investment in infrastructure.
Teamer, the leading sports technology company for amateur sport, has today announced a 3 year partnership with the Federation of Irish Sport as the preferred supplier of team, club and league management software to National Governing Bodies in Ireland.
The partnership follow’s the recent launch of Teamer’s new integrated club and team application, launched in February 2018. The company now has over 10,000 sports clubs using it’s products including the recently acquired competition management platforms, League Website and FixturesLive.
Robert Mattar, CEO of Teamer, said “Teamer has rapidly been expanding it’s product set to simplify how sports teams, clubs and leagues of all sizes manage themselves. Increasingly we are now working directly with National Governing Bodies to provide support to their members and work with them on how they can grow participation in their sports. We’re excited to be working with, and supporting, the Federation of Irish Sport and their NGB and Local Sports Partnership members.”
Mary O’Connor, CEO of the Federation of Irish Sport, said “Sport and Physical activity plays a vital role in the vibrancy of communities all over Ireland. We believe that our partnership with Teamer will provide the over 12,000 clubs involved in Sport with the tools they need to manage and organise their activities in an effective way. We are delighted to welcome Teamer as a partner to the Federation of Irish Sport”
Sport Ireland has published the 11th annual Sport Ireland Strategic, Planning, Evaluation and Knowledge (SPEAK) Report on the national network of Local Sports Partnerships (LSPs).
The publication was preceded by meetings in Athlone and Portlaoise this week where representatives of the Local Sports partnerships and Local Authorities were gathered for Q and A sessions with Sport Ireland’s team.
The SPEAK report provides an overview of the work of the 29 LSPs across the country, and highlights the innovative good practice projects and programmes that are being operated locally.
Almost €20 million was invested in the LSP network, including benefit in kind funding.
Commenting on the Report, Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Brendan Griffin TD said: “The Local Sports Partnership Network carries out vital work in increasing participation, particularly among those sectors of society which are underrepresented in sport. This work is making a substantial contribution to the health and wellbeing of individuals, communities and the nation. Today’s report puts a spotlight on the many innovative local projects which are being undertaken by the Local Sports Partnerships across the country which provide an opportunity for all members of society, young and old, to take part in a wide range of sport and physical activities.”
Chief Executive of Sport Ireland, John Treacy, said: “One of Sport Ireland’s key priorities for the LSP network is the sustainable development within the local sports infrastructure; this report shows that LSPs are doing vital work with clubs and groups ensuring that structures are in place to allow people across the LSP target groups to participate in sport. I would like to thank all of the agencies, groups and individuals who have contributed to this report, and to those who were involved in the delivery of the programmes and projects at local level.”
Sport Ireland Director of Participation and Ethics, Dr. Una May, added: “Increasing participation across every age group and from all social backgrounds throughout Ireland is one of the key aims of Sport Ireland. The SPEAK report highlights the great work by the LSPs in removing barriers that hinder participation in sport and physical activity. Sport Ireland, through the Local Sports Partnership network, will continue to take a strategic approach with regard to programme delivery, continuing to place a strong emphasis on monitoring and evaluation of the programmes delivered.”
It is great to see our member organisations not only putting on great events but also sharing them for others to see.
Gymnastics Ireland’s headline participation event – ‘The Floor’, took place for the third consecutive year on Sunday 3rd June in the National Indoor Arena.
The flagship display event comprised of 22 teams from 15 Clubs with over 400 gymnasts participating and a great crowd of spectators out in force to support.
For this event, Gymnastics Ireland brought the X-Factor to ‘The Floor’ and created a show with increased investment in stage lighting, video recording, sound production and a fantastic MC in the shape of Shay Byrne from RTE.
Four main Merit Awards were presented on the day by Gymnastics Ireland Chairman Ger Rellis. The awards showed special appreciation for some performances that stood out and celebrate participation, personal achievement, fun, friendship and teamwork. The awarded display teams were as follows…
Best Costume: Gymstars GC
Best Theme/Concept: Finesse GC & Carrigaline GC
Best Choreography/Content: Douglas GC & the Display Squad from Arabian GC
Best Entertainment: Cork Acro GC
Gymnastics Ireland has a resident media company Hello Deer Media who capture the events in memorable fashion without having to rely on parenbts iPhones.
The Floor was a proper show in every way and saw a wide variety of performances from some of the best display teams in the country.
A video playlist of all the individual team performances from this year will be released in the coming days in the Gymnastics Ireland website and YouTube Channel.
Attention now shifts to the flagship competitive event the ‘National Series Super Championships’ that will be held on 30th June & 1st July in the National Indoor Arena.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
