Location:
Basketball Arena, Tallaght, Dublin 24.
DATE:
13-14 April, 2013
PARTICIPATING TEAMS/ATHLETES:
Athletes and teams from all over Ireland will participate
Host:
Baton Twirling Sport Association of Ireland (BTSAI)
About BTSAI Sport:
The BTSAI is the National governing Body for the sport of baton twirling in Ireland, and has been in existence since the 1970’s
EVENT HISTORY:
The first national championships were held in Balrothery in 1979, since then, the association has continued to grow at a steady pace. We also host the Munster Championships in the Neptune Stadium in Cork each year in late October early November. Two of our member clubs run two open competitions in February and July.
EVENT PREPARATION:
This is a very big event with approximately 500 athletes competing in at least five events giving it a total of 2,500 performances over the two days. During this weekend we will also host trials for international cup and European championships. We are also showcasing our “Roadshow” which we will use in the future to travel around the country with a view to increasing our membership.
There are two committees and sixty volunteers involved in bringing this event to the floor. There will be fourteen judges and clerks, eighteen to twenty runners and an administration team who looks after the entries, running orders, score sheets and results.
There is a team to control the music for all the different events as there is a constant change in the music required and we have two contest directors, one for nationals and one for trials. There is approximately 2,000 trophies and medals.
THE EVENT:
Venue
The Basketball arena in Tallaght is the perfect venue for this event. Initially it can be devided in eight sections for judging, and then transformed into as many areas as deemed necessary until will get to the final segment of the competition where the whole floor is used.
Spectators/Attendees
We are expecting 500 athletes and 200 supporters, who tend to drift in and out during the two days depending on the events that are running at a particular time.
Volunteers
We will have sixty volunteers over the two days who will serve in shifts to help keep the event running smoothly. These act as runners for the judges, tabulators for the scores, ensuring that all working personell have tea, coffee etc.
What next for BTSAI in 2013?
There’s a busy year ahead for us. After Nationals we are hoping to take the Road Show to Mayo and Galway to try and set up new clubs or encourage participation from clubs that might exist there already. We also have had an expression of interest from two other counties and are in the process of setting up two new clubs in Dublin. All of this is possible because of the Women in Sport grant that we receive from the Irish Sports Council.
….and for the Irish Team?
All athletes who qualify at trials on the Sunday of Nationals will then go forward to represent Ireland at International Cup in Holland , and/or European Championships in Sweden.
For more information on the event see the BTSAI website and facebook page
How the event went, Bernadette Doyne, President, BTSAI:
After many months of planning and preparation the BTSAI Roadshow appeared in public at the finale of the National Championships held in the Basketball Arena. Using a story line of love/hate and eventually love conquers all, the best part for some was when all the younger athletes got a chance to come out on the floor and do a short performance with some of their twirling idols.
It was beyond our greatest expectations, looking back on all the problems we had to surmount to bring it to fruition, but it was worth it all. This was a dream of David Doyne, who for the past three years has worked tirelessly to showcase it, and to the dedicated twirlers who gave so generously of their time, sometimes with great personal sacrifice to their families and children to make it all a reality. To Alex and Natasha our wonderful coaches, who brought it all to what it was.
Last but not least to the Irish Sports Council, who part funded this through the WIS grant for the past three years, and had the faith in us to pull it off. It will be used as a tool to attract new clubs to our sport, and will soon be travelling to Portlaise and Cavan, and then eventually on to Mayo and Galway to help increase our membership. Anyone interested in starting a baton twirling club should contact the BTSAI