Question 1

How long has Ireland been sailing at the Olympics?

Accepted Answer

Ireland’s representation in sailing at the Olympics dates back to 1948, when a team consisting of Jimmy Mooney (Firefly), Alf Delany and Hugh Allen (Swallow) competed in that year’s Summer Games in London (sailing off Torquay). Except for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Ireland has sent at least one sailor to every Summer Games since then.

Question 2

Who has sailed for Ireland at the Olympics, and when?

Accepted Answer

* 1948 – London (Torquay) — Firefly: Jimmy Mooney; Swallow: Alf Delany, Hugh Allen * 1952 – Helsinki — Finn: Alf Delany * 1956 – Melbourne — Finn: J Somers Payne * 1960 – Rome — Flying Dutchman: Johnny Hooper, Peter Gray; Dragon: Jimmy Mooney, David Ryder, Robin Benson; Finn: J Somers Payne * 1964 – Tokyo — Dragon: Eddie Kelliher, Harry Maguire, Rob Dalton; Finn: Johnny Hooper * 1972 – Munich (Kiel) — Tempest: David Wilkins, Sean Whitaker; Dragon: Robin Hennessy, Harry Byrne, Owen Delany; Finn: Kevin McLaverty; Flying Dutchman: Harold Cudmore, Richard O’Shea * 1976 – Montreal (Kingston) — 470: Robert Dix, Peter Dix; Flying Dutchman: Barry O’Neill, Jamie Wilkinson; Tempest: David Wilkins, Derek Jago * 1980 – Moscow (Tallinn) — Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson (Silver medalists) * 1984 – Los Angeles — Finn: Bill O’Hara * 1988 – Seoul (Pusan) — Finn: Bill O’Hara; Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Peter Kennedy; 470 (Women): Cathy MacAleavy, Aisling Byrne * 1992 – Barcelona — Europe: Denise Lyttle; Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Peter Kennedy; Star: Mark Mansfield, Tom McWilliam * 1996 – Atlanta (Savannah) — Laser: Mark Lyttle; Europe: Aisling Bowman (Byrne); Finn: John Driscoll; Star: Mark Mansfield, David Burrows; 470 (Women): Denise Lyttle, Louise Cole; Soling: Marshall King, Dan O’Grady, Garrett Connolly * 2000 – Sydney — Europe: Maria Coleman; Finn: David Burrows; Star: Mark Mansfield, David O'Brien * 2004 – Athens — Europe: Maria Coleman; Finn: David Burrows; Star: Mark Mansfield, Killian Collins; 49er: Tom Fitzpatrick, Fraser Brown; 470: Gerald Owens, Ross Killian; Laser: Rory Fitzpatrick * 2008 – Beijing (Qingdao) — Star: Peter O’Leary, Stephen Milne; Finn: Tim Goodbody; Laser Radial: Ciara Peelo; 470: Gerald Owens, Phil Lawton * 2012 – London (Weymouth) — Star: Peter O’Leary, David Burrows; 49er: Ryan Seaton, Matt McGovern; Laser Radial: Annalise Murphy; Laser: James Espey; 470: Gerald Owens, Scott Flanigan * 2016 – Rio — Laser Radial (Women): Annalise Murphy (Silver medalist); 49er: Ryan Seaton, Matt McGovern; 49erFX: Andrea Brewster, Saskia Tidey; Laser: Finn Lynch; Paralympic Sonar: John Twomey, Ian Costello & Austin O’Carroll

Question 3

How many Olympic medals has Ireland won in sailing?

Accepted Answer

Ireland has won two Olympics medals in sailing events, both silver: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson in the Flying Dutchman at Moscow 1980, and Annalise Murphy in the Laser Radial at Rio 2016.

Question 4

Who is on the current Irish Sailing Olympic team?

Accepted Answer

The current team, as of December 2020, consists of Laser sailors Finn Lynch, Liam Glynn and Ewan McMahon, 49er pairs Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle, and Sean Waddilove and Robert Dickson, as well as Laser Radial sailors Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins.

Question 5

What is the National Governing Body for sailing in Ireland?

Accepted Answer

Irish Sailing is the National Governing Body for sailing in Ireland.

Question 6

Who is responsible for selecting Ireland’s Olympic sailors?

Accepted Answer

Irish Sailing’s Performance division is responsible for selecting and nurturing Olympic contenders as part of its Performance Pathway.

Question 7

What is the Performance Pathway?

Accepted Answer

The Performance Pathway is Irish Sailing’s Olympic talent pipeline. The Performance Pathway counts over 70 sailors from 11 years up in its programme. The Performance Pathway is made up of Junior, Youth, Academy, Development and Olympic squads. It provides young, talented and ambitious Irish sailors with opportunities to move up through the ranks from an early age. With up to 100 young athletes training with the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway, every aspect of their performance is planned and closely monitored while strong relationships are simultaneously built with the sailors and their families

Question 8

Who is Irish Sailing’s Performance Director?

Accepted Answer

The Performance Director of Irish Sailing is James O’Callaghan. Since 2006 James has been responsible for the development and delivery of athlete-focused, coach-led, performance-measured programmes across the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway. A Business & Economics graduate of Trinity College Dublin, he is a Level 3 Qualified Coach and Level 2 Coach Tutor. He has coached at five Olympic Games and numerous European and World Championship events across multiple Olympic classes. He is also a member of the Irish Sailing Foundation board.

Question 9

Who is the Irish Sailing Performance head coach?

Accepted Answer

Rory Fitzpatrick is the head coach of Irish Sailing Performance. He is a graduate of University College Dublin and was an Athens 2004 Olympian in the Laser class.

Question 10

Who are the Irish Sailing Performance coaching staff?

Accepted Answer

Under head coach Rory Fitzpatrick, the coaching staff consists of Laser Radial Academy coach Sean Evans, Olympic Laser coach Vasilij Zbogar and 49er team coach Matt McGovern.

Question 11

How is performance sailing in Ireland funded?

Accepted Answer

The Irish Government provides funding to Irish Sailing. These funds are exclusively for the benefit of the Performance Pathway. However, this falls short of the amount required to fund the Performance Pathway in order to allow Ireland compete at the highest level. As a result the Performance Pathway programme currently receives around €850,000 per annum from Sport Ireland and €150,000 from sponsorship. A further €2 million per annum is needed to have a major impact at the highest level. The Irish Sailing Foundation was established to bridge the financial gap through securing philanthropic donations, corporate giving and sponsorship.

Question 12

What is the Irish Sailing Foundation?

Accepted Answer

The vision of the Irish Sailing Foundation is to generate the required financial resources for Ireland to scale-up and execute its world-class sailing programme Irish Sailing works tirelessly to promote sailing in Ireland and abroad and has been successful in securing funding of 1 million euro from Sport Ireland. However, to compete on a par with other nations, a further €2 million is required annually to realise the ambitions of our talented sailors. For this reason, the Irish Sailing Foundation was formed to seek philanthropic donations. Led by a Board of Directors and Head of Development Kathryn Grace, the foundation lads a campaign to bridge the financial gap to provide the Performance Pathway with the funds necessary to increase coaching hours, upgrade equipment and provide world class sport science support to a greater number of high-potential Irish sailors.

Question 13

How are the funds raised for the Performance Pathway spent?

Accepted Answer

The Senior and Academy teams of the Performance Pathway are supported with the provision of a coach, vehicle, coach boat and boats. Even with this level of subsidy there is still a large financial burden on individual families due to travel costs, entry fees and accommodation. There are often compromises made on the amount of days a coach can be hired for and on many occasions it is necessary to opt out of major competitions outside Europe due to cost. Money raised by the Irish Sailing Foundation will go towards increased quality coaching time, world-class equipment, and subsiding entry fees and travel-related costs. It also goes towards broadening the base of talented sailors that can consider campaigning by removing financial hurdles, and the Performance HQ in Dublin to increase efficiency and reduce logistical issues.

Question 14

What is the organisation structure of the Performance Pathway?

Accepted Answer

The ethos of the Performance Pathway is progression. At each stage international performance benchmarks are utilised to ensure the sailors are meeting expectations set. The size of a sailor will generally dictate which boat they sail. The classes selected on the pathway have been identified as the best feeder classes for progression. Currently the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway consists of the following groups: * Pathway (U15) Optimist and Topper * Youth Academy (U19) Laser 4.7, Laser Radial and 420 * Development Academy (U23) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX * Team IRL (direct-funded athletes) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX

Question 15

What is the governance structure for performance sailing?

Accepted Answer

The Irish Sailing performance director produces a detailed annual budget for the programme which is presented to Sport Ireland, Irish Sailing and the Foundation for detailed discussion and analysis of the programme, where each item of expenditure is reviewed and approved. Each year, the performance director drafts a Performance Plan and Budget designed to meet the objectives of Irish Performance Sailing based on an annual review of the Pathway Programmes from Junior to Olympic level. The plan is then presented to the Olympic Steering Group (OSG) where it is independently assessed and the budget is agreed. The OSG closely monitors the delivery of the plan ensuring it meets the agreed strategy, is within budget and in line with operational plans. The performance director communicates on an ongoing basis with the OSG throughout the year, reporting formally on a quarterly basis.

Question 16

What is the Olympic Steering Group?

Accepted Answer

Due to the specialised nature of Performance Sport, Irish Sailing established an expert sub-committee which is referred to as the Olympic Steering Group (OSG). The OSG is chaired by Patrick Coveney and its objective is centred around winning Olympic medals so it oversees the delivery of the Irish Sailing’s Performance plan.

Question 17

How is progress monitored on the Performance Pathway? Who decides when sailors are selected or dropped?

Accepted Answer

At Junior level (U15) sailors learn not only to be a sailor but also an athlete. They develop the discipline required to keep a training log while undertaking fitness programmes, attending coaching sessions and travelling to competitions. During the winter Regional Squads take place and then in spring the National Squads are selected for Summer Competitions. As sailors move into Youth level (U19) there is an exhaustive selection matrix used when considering a sailor for entry into the Performance Academy. Completion of club training programmes, attendance at the performance seminars, physical suitability and also progress at Junior and Youth competitions are assessed and reviewed. Once invited in to the Performance Academy, sailors are given a six-month trial before a final decision is made on their selection. Sailors in the Academy are very closely monitored and engage in a very well planned out sailing, training and competition programme. There are also defined international benchmarks which these sailors are required to meet by a certain age. Biannual reviews are conducted transparently with the sailors so they know exactly where they are performing well and they are made aware of where they may need to improve before the next review.


Overall Club Points	After Skibbereen Regatta
1	U.C.D. BC	187
2	Skibbereen RC	119
3	Shandon BC	107
4	St. Michaels Rowing Club	103
5	Dublin University Ladies BC	94
6	Cork BC	92
7	NUI Galway BC	82
8	Commercial RC	72
9	Neptune RC	71
10	Dublin University BC	55
11	Muckross RC	53
12	U.C.C. RC	49
13	University of Limerick RC	47.5
14	Carlow RC	46
15	St. Josephs College RC	43
16	Shannon RC	41
17	Fermoy RC	40
18	Clonmel RC	32
19	Athlunkard BC	29
20	Lee RC	29
21	Galway RC	20
22	Killorglin RC	18.5
23	Cappoquin	17
24	Tralee RC	17
25	Three Castles Rowing Club	15
26	Garda Siochana BC	14
27	Colaiste Chiarain RC	12
28	Lee Valley RC	12
29	Workmens RC	12
30	Old Collegians BC (Walshe)	10
31	Presentation College RC	10
32	Graiguenamanagh BC	9
33	Fossa RC	7
34	Grainne Mhaol RC	4
35	Castleconnell BC	1


Mens Division 1	After Skibbereen Regatta
1	U.C.D. BC	74
2	Skibbereen RC	65
3	Neptune RC	39
4	Dublin University BC	30
5	Carlow RC	28
6	Commercial RC	28
7	Lee RC	24
8	Cork BC	22
9	NUI Galway BC	22
10	Muckross RC	21
11	St. Josephs College RC	17
12	University of Limerick RC	17
13	St. Michaels Rowing Club	15
14	Lee Valley RC	12
15	Shandon BC	12
16	Presentation College RC	10
17	Fossa RC	7
18	Garda Siochana BC	6
19	U.C.C. RC	6
20	Workmens RC	5
21	Grainne Mhaol RC	4
22	Three Castles Rowing Club	3
23	Clonmel RC	1


Mens Division 2	After Skibbereen Regatta
1	St. Michaels Rowing Club	38
2	Cork BC	33
3	Neptune RC	32
4	U.C.D. BC A	27
5	St. Josephs College RC	26
6	Dublin University BC	25
7	Shannon RC	24
8	Shandon BC	23
9	U.C.C. RC	23
10	Fermoy RC	21
11	Athlunkard BC	17
12	Carlow RC	12
13	Cappoquin RC	11
14	University of Limerick RC	11
15	Commercial RC	9
16	Skibbereen RC	9
17	Tralee RC	9
18	Workmens RC	7
19	Clonmel RC	6
20	Graiguenamanagh BC	6
21	NUI Galway BC	6
22	Lee RC	5
23	Colaiste Chiarain RC	4
24	Muckross RC	1


Womens Division 1	After Skibbereen Regatta
1	U.C.D. BC	61
2	Dublin University Ladies BC	47
3	Skibbereen RC	45
4	Shandon BC	40
5	St. Michaels Rowing Club	38
6	NUI Galway BC	29
7	Muckross RC	23
8	Killorglin RC	14.5
9	Three Castles Rowing Club	12
10	Old Collegians BC	10
11	University of Limerick RC	9.5
12	Clonmel RC	9
13	Cork BC	9
14	U.C.C. RC	9
15	Athlunkard BC	1


Womens Division 2	After Skibbereen Regatta
1	Dublin University Ladies BC	47
2	Commercial	35
3	Shandon BC	33
4	Cork BC	28
5	NUI Galway BC	25
6	U.C.D. BC	25
7	Galway RC	20
8	Fermoy RC	19
9	Shannon RC	17
10	Clonmel RC	16
11	St. Michaels Rowing Club	12
12	Athlunkard BC	11
13	U.C.C. RC	11
14	University of Limerick RC	10
15	Colaiste Chiarain	8
16	Garda Siochana BC	8
17	Muckross RC	8
18	Tralee RC	8
19	Cappoquin	6
20	Carlow RC	6
21	Killorglin RC	4
22	Graiguenamanagh	3
23	Castleconnell BC	1

Grand League Series Final Points Table 2011
Position	Overall Final Points Table after Skibbereen, Queens, Metro and Cork Regattas 2011	Points
1	Skibbereen RC	664
2	U.C.D. BC	350
3	St. Michaels Rowing Club	329
4	Commercial RC	325
5	Neptune RC	319
6	Cork Boat Club	195
7	Bann RC	175
8	Dublin University BC	165
9	Shandon BC	164
10	Dublin University Ladies BC	151
11	Lee RC	150
12	NUI Galway BC	128
13	Queens University Belfast BC	118
14	Muckross RC	117
15	Shannon RC	116
16	Castleconnell BC	104
17	Portora Boat Club	102
18	Methodist College RC	91
19	Queens University Belfast Ladies BC	89
20	Fermoy RC	86
21	Carrick-on-Shannon RC	80
22	University of Limerick RC	77
23	Clonmel RC	75
24	Carlow RC	74
25	U.C.C. RC	68
26	Galway RC	66
27	Killorglin RC	62.5
28	Garda Siochana BC	54.5
29	Three Castles Rowing Club	53
30	Old Collegians BC	49
31	Cappoquin BC	47
32	St. Josephs College RC	43
33	Presentation College RC	37
34	Lee Valley RC	32
35	Coleraine Academical Institution Boat Club	30
36	Athlunkard BC	29
37	R.B.A.I. Rowing Club	28
38	Tralee RC	26
39	Fossa RC	23
40	Colaiste Chiarain RC	20
41	Grainne Mhaol RC	16
42	Belfast RC	12
42	Workmens RC	12
44	Lagan Scullers Club	11
45	Lady Elizabeth BC	10
46	Graiguenamanagh BC	9
47	Tribesmen RC	8
48	Bantry BC	6
48	Offaly RC	6
50	Blackrock College RC	5
51	Portadown BC	2



Position	Universities in the Grand League: Final Points Table
1	UCD	350
2	Trinity	315
3	Queens	207
4	NUIG	128
5	UL	77
6	UCC	68


Position	Top Provincial Clubs in Final Grand League Points Table
1	Skibbereen RC	664
2	U.C.D. BC	350
7	Bann RC	175
12	NUI Galway BC	128


	Grand League Series Final Points Mens Division 1
Mens Division 1	Final Points After Skibbereen, Queens, Metro and Cork Regattas 2011	Points
1	Skibbereen RC	287
2	U.C.D. BC	125
3	Neptune RC	122
4	Commercial RC	91
5	St. Michaels Rowing Club	84
6	Dublin University BC	83
6	Queens University Belfast BC	83
8	Lee RC	64
9	Carlow RC	56
10	NUI Galway BC	56
11	Castleconnell BC	51
12	Bann RC	50
13	Muckross RC	43
14	Portora Boat Club	37
15	Presentation College RC	31
16	University of Limerick RC	28.5
17	Methodist College RC	25
18	Lee Valley RC	24
19	Fossa RC	23
19	Three Castles Rowing Club	23
21	Cork BC	22
22	Garda Siochana BC	17.5
23	St. Josephs College RC	17
24	Grainne Mhaol RC	16
24	R.B.A.I. Rowing Club	16
26	U.C.C. RC	15
27	Coleraine Academical Institution Boat Club	14
28	Shandon BC	12
29	Carrick-on-Shannon RC	10
29	Lady Elizabeth BC	10
31	Belfast RC	8
32	Clonmel RC	7
33	Workmens RC	5
34	Galway RC	2

	Grand League Series Final Points Mens Division 2
Mens Division 2	Final Points After Skibbereen, Queens, Metro and Cork Regattas 2011	Points
1	St. Michaels Rowing Club	137
2	Neptune RC	120
3	Skibbereen RC	98
4	Dublin University BC	82
5	U.C.D. BC	74
6	Cork BC	73
7	Bann RC	61
8	Shandon BC	54
9	Castleconnell BC	52
10	Commercial RC	49
11	Methodist College RC	48
12	Lee RC	47
13	Fermoy RC	38
14	Queens University Belfast BC	35
15	Cappoquin RC	33
15	U.C.C. RC	33
17	Shannon RC	28
18	Portora Boat Club	27
19	St. Josephs College RC	26
20	Clonmel RC	25
21	University of Limerick RC	21
22	Galway RC	20
23	Carrick-on-Shannon RC	18
23	NUI Galway BC	18
25	Athlunkard BC	17
26	Coleraine Academical Institution Boat Club	16
27	Carlow RC	12
27	R.B.A.I. Rowing Club	12
29	Lagan Scullers Club	11
29	Tralee RC	11
31	Garda Siochana BC	8
31	Lee Valley BC	8
31	Tribesmen RC	8
34	Workmens RC	7
35	Graiguenamanagh BC	6
35	Presentation College Cork	6
37	Blackrock College RC	5
38	Colaiste Chiarain RC	4
39	Muckross RC	1

	Grand League Series Final Points Womens Division 1
Womens Division 1	Final Points After Skibbereen, Queens, Metro and Cork Regattas 2011	Points
1	Skibbereen RC	255
2	U.C.D. BC	123
3	St. Michaels Rowing Club	96
4	Dublin University Ladies BC	93
5	Neptune RC	65
6	Killorglin RC	58.5
7	Shandon BC	47
8	Muckross RC	46
9	Queens University Belfast Ladies BC	44
10	Bann RC	42
11	Commercial RC	36
12	Cork BC	32
13	Old Collegians BC	30
14	Three Castles Rowing Club	30
15	NUI Galway BC	29
16	Portora Boat Club	29
17	Carrick-on-Shannon RC	19
18	OCBC	19
19	Clonmel RC	18
20	University of Limerick RC	17.5
21	Shannon RC	9
22	Methodist College RC	8
23	Fermoy Boat Club	7
24	Offaly RC	6
25	Belfast RC	4
26	Portadown BC	2
27	Athlunkard BC	1

	Grand League Series Final Points Womens Division 2
Womens Division 2	Final Points After Skibbereen, Queens, Metro and Cork Regattas 2011	Points
1	Commercial RC	149
2	Shannon RC	79
3	Cork BC	68
4	Dublin University Ladies BC	58
5	Shandon BC	52
6	Queens University Belfast Ladies BC	45
7	Galway RC	44
8	Fermoy RC	41
9	Lee RC	39
10	U.C.D. BC	37
11	Carrick-on-Shannon RC	33
12	Garda Siochana BC	29
13	Muckross RC	27
14	Clonmel RC	25
14	NUI Galway BC	25
16	Skibbereen RC	24
17	Bann RC	22
18	Colaiste Chiarain RC	16
19	Tralee RC	15
20	Cappoquin RC	14
21	Neptune RC	12
21	St. Michaels Rowing Club	12
23	Athlunkard BC	11
23	U.C.C. RC	11
25	Methodist College RC	10
25	University of Limerick RC	10
27	Portora Boat Club	9
28	Bantry BC	6
28	Carlow RC	6
30	Killorglin RC	4
31	Graiguenamanagh BC	3
32	Castleconnell BC	1

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