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Displaying items by tag: North West Angling Fair

The North West Angling Fair will host to some of the world’s finest fly casters at this year’s event, taking place at the Melvin Sport Complex in Strabane, Co Tyrone on the weekend of 1-2 April with free admission.

Names such as Mark Patterson, Scott MacKenzie and Pauline McClenaghan will be present to offer their expert tips and advice for angling enthusiasts of all skill levels.

Free demonstrations will be taking place both in the River Mourne and on the Felix McCrossan sports field.

The event promises to be a fantastic occasion for anglers and fishing enthusiasts from across Northern Ireland and beyond.

They will have the opportunity to watch the best international fly-fishing tackle producers, fly-tying brands, fishing outfitters, professional casting demonstrations and expert fly fishing tuition.

Free fly-tying lessons with instruction tailored to the specific needs of from beginner through to advanced will also be offered.

Timees and locations for the fly-casting demonstrations can be found below. For more about what to expect at the show, see the Derry City & Strabane District Council website HERE.

North West Angling Fair 2023 Fly Casting Programme, Saturday 1 April

North West Angling Fair 2023 Fly Casting Programme, Sunday 2 April

Published in Angling

#angling - Next weekend sees the biggest event on the local angling calendar that looks set to attract hundreds of visitors when the North West Angling Fair is hosted in and around the spectacular setting of Castlederg Castle in Co. Tyrone.

The family friendly event hosted by Derry City and Strabane District Council is free admission and is set to bring together a host of the UK and Ireland’s top fly dressers, casters and top angling specialists.

The fair will be open from 10am – 5pm each day of Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th April and will feature appearances and demonstrations as well as interactive opportunities for the public to get involved.The fair will host stalls from retailers and fly tying demonstrations while outside on the Derg River some of the best casters in the world will impart their wisdom through demonstrations.

A special youth element entitled CATCH (Community Angling Training and Coaching Hub) will be hosted by the Loughs Agency where experienced and professional coaches will be on-hand to train new, novice and experienced young anglers in game, coarse and sea angling.

Looking ahead to the event, Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Councillor John Boyle, encouraged local people to take advantage of the world class event on their doorstep and noted that it will attract thousands of visitors to the Council area.“I’d like to congratulate the Festival and Events team at Council for assembling a stellar line-up of special guests and an exciting programme of activities for the 2019 North West Angling Fair,” he said.

“This is the first time the fair has come to Castlederg which will allow us to showcase our angling offering not only to visitors to our Council area but also to local people who may be considering taking up fishing as a hobby.“The programme is family orientated and allows people of all ages to get involved and learn more about the art of angling and I’d encourage as many people as possible to come along and sample what it has to offer.”

Festival and Events Manager at Derry City and Strabane District Council, Jacqueline Whoriskey, noted the Fair has something to suit all levels and tastes.

“We are delighted to once again host the North West Angling Fair and bring it to the spectacular surroundings of Castlederg Castle, using the grounds of the St Eugene’s GAC and the Derg River,” she said. “Some of the biggest names in the angling world will be in attendance and there is a wide range of activities and demonstrations to choose from. “The event is free of charge but people can buy the best equipment and supplies for their fishing needs at the trade stands.

“We are particularly excited about the CATCH Hub, hosted by the Loughs Agency, that will help inspire the next generation of anglers through short workshops covering casting, netting, fish identification, rover invertebrates, bait, lures, fly tying and safety and enable participants to achieve the CAST Angling Starter certificate.”

Among the high calibre lineup in attendance at the fair will be well-known multiple world fly casting champions Hywel Morgan who will be demonstrating angling techniques and giving expert advice along with the likes of Robert Gillespie, Michael O’Kane and Stevie Munn.

The exhibition area will offer the public the chance to browse and shop around for equipment from a wide range of local traders including Rodgers Fishing Tackle, The Bridge Gun and Tackle, River Mourne Gun and Tackle and The Great Outdoors.

The ever popular Fly Tyers Row area will afford visitors the opportunity to watch fly dressers practice their craft and will include demonstrations from acclaimed tier Arthur Greenwood and local youngster Laoi Coyle.The full lineup for the North West Angling Fair is available by using this website link

Published in Angling

#Angling - Pauline McClenaghan and Gordon Armstrong are among the celebrity anglers lined up for the inaugural North West Angling Fair in Strabane, Co Tyrone later this month.

As the Londonderry Sentinel reports, the festival will take over the Melvin Sports Complex on the River Mourne on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 May and give visitors an opportunity to see some of the world's best fly-casters and fly-dressers in action.

Also in attendance will be world champion fly-caster Andrew Toft from Glasgow, Mooney Goes Wild contributor Ken Whelan and Scottish casting instructor and ghillie Scott Mackenzie. The Sentinel has more HERE.

In other angling news, anglers taking part in the Waterways Ireland-sponsored Classic Fishing Festival in Fermanagh last weekend were forced to abandon a fishing stand due to an overflow of sewage into Lower Lough Erne, according to the Fermanagh Herald.

While organisers moved to accommodate competitors elsewhere, it has since emerged that the overflow near Killadeas was one of several discharged permitted by NI Water, though none affected the festival's other fishing sections.

Published in Angling

Irish Olympic Sailing Team

Ireland has a proud representation in sailing at the Olympics dating back to 1948. Today there is a modern governing structure surrounding the selection of sailors the Olympic Regatta

Irish Olympic Sailing FAQs

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.

  • 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

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.

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.

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

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

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

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.

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.

Annalise Murphy is by far and away the biggest Irish sailing star. Her fourth in London 2012 when she came so agonisingly close to a bronze medal followed by her superb silver medal performance four years later at Rio won the hearts of Ireland. Murphy is aiming to go one better in Tokyo 2021. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

©Afloat 2020