The Federation of Irish Sport announce shortlist for Irish Sport Industry Awards 2019
4th April 2019: The Federation of Irish Sport has announced the shortlist of finalists for the 2019 Sport Industry Awards. The awards were set up in 2015 to highlight the contribution that sport makes to Ireland’s economy both directly and indirectly. The winners will be announced at a ceremony on Monday 15th of April in the Crown Plaza Blanchardstown, Dublin 15. The Awards recognise and reward excellence in the business of sport, whilst simultaneously highlighting the contribution of sport to Ireland.
A women in sport award, under the banner of 20×20, will be a new addition to the award ceremony this year in a move towards showcasing the increasing contribution and value of women in sport in Ireland. In all a total of 14 awards will be distributed on the night, reflecting the diverse nature of Irish sport.
Speaking at the announcement of the short-list, Mary O’Connor, CEO, Federation of Irish Sport, said “The awards were set up to highlight the importance of the business of sport in Ireland and the value of sport to the Irish economy. Today sport supports almost 40,000 jobs, represents almost €2.4 billion in household expenditure and has been estimated to contribute almost €1.9 billion in tourism revenue. And that is beyond all of the other contributions sport makes in areas such as health, inclusivity, diversity and reputation both at home and abroad.”
The winners will be determined by a judging panel drawn from both the business and sporting community. The panel is Cliona O’Leary, RTE Sport, Athlete Fiona Coghlan, Carol Andrews, BNY Mellon & 30& Club Founder, Amanda Harton, JLT Insurance, Sinead Galvin, Galvin Sports Management, David McHugh, Line Up Sports, Gerry McDermott, Fingal County Council, Miriam Malone, Paralympics Ireland and Jill Downey, Core. The panel is chaired by Sport for Business founder and past Irish Sport Industry Award winner Rob Hartnett.
Shortlists:
1. Best Sporting event of the year:
World Para Swimming Allianz European Championships
Ladies Gaelic Football TG4 All Ireland final
All Ireland Hurling Final
Guinness Series – Ireland v New Zealand
Airtricity Dublin Marathon
2. Best Sports Sponsorship of the year:
Vodafone & IRFU
LIDL & Ladies Gaelic Football
Liberty & Camogie
SoftCo & Hockey
Allianz & Paralympics
3. Best Sports Business of the year:
Orrecco
Sport for Business
Croke Park Stadium
Kitman labs
Line Up Sports
4. Best New Sports Business of the year:
Galvin Sports Management
Leading Sport
ND Sports Performance
Uppercut
Profile 90
5. Best use of Social media by an organisation:
Basketball Ireland
Gymnastics Ireland
AIG
Horse Sport Ireland
LIDL
6. Best Sports Media outlet of the year:
The 42.ie
Sport for Business
GAA Now
Irish Independent
Pundit Arena
7. Jimmy Magee Sports Journalist of the year:
Keith Duggan
Kieran Shannon
Ian O’Riordan
Cliona Foley
Mary Hannigan
8. Best sporting innovation of the year:
FAI Walking Football
South Dublin/FAI Frame Football
Munster Rugby High performance leadership programme
Park Run
20×20
9. Best programme or campaign to increase participation:
Athletics Ireland – Daily Mile
LIDL Ireland and LGFA
Cork Sports Partnership – School sports programme
Basketball Ireland – Junior NBA
Badminton Ireland – Shuttle time schools programme
10. Inclusivity:
Louth County Council Sports Unit – Sports Inclusion Disability Programme
Gymnastics Ireland – GYMable
Irish Sailing – Watersports Inclusion Games
#GameOn Autism Golf Programme Ireland
Irish Wheelchair Association
11. 20×20
Basketball Ireland – Women’s Coaching Forum
Volleyball Ireland – Transition Year Women in Sport programme
Dublin City Sports and Wellbeing Partnership – GAGA Programme
Sara McFadden
Waterford Sports Partnership & FAI – Soccer for Girls
12. LSP initiative of the year
Wexford Local Sports Partnership – Experiencing Success
Wicklow Local Sports Partnership – Wicklow Warriors
Cork Local Sports Partnership – Staying Fit for the Future
Limerick Local Sports Partnership – Sports Talk
Fingal Local Sports Partnership – Athletics League
13. NGB of the year
Horse Sport Ireland
Gymnastics Ireland
Cricket Ireland
Basketball Ireland
Special Olympics Ireland
Outstanding Achievement award will be announced on the night.
For further information please contact sinead.conroy@irishsport.ie