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A Harbour Seal photographed at Dun Laoghaire Marina on Dublin Bay, Ireland. Also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinnipeds, they are found in coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Baltic and North seas. Photo: AfloatA photograph of a Harbour Seal taken at Dun Laoghaire Marina on Dublin Bay, Ireland. Also known as the common seal, this species can be found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines throughout the Northern Hemisphere. They are the most widely distributed species of pinnipeds and can be found in the coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as the Baltic and North Seas. Photo: Afloat

Displaying items by tag: World Under23 Championships

#Rowing: Ireland took fourth in the lightweight women’s double at the World Under-23 Championships in Florida. Aoife Casey and Cliodhna Nolan raced from sixth to fourth in the second half of this A Final, which was won well by Switzerland from the Netherlands and Germany.  

World Rowing Under-23 Championships, Sarasota Bradenton, Florida (Irish interest)

Women

Four – A Final: 1 Britain 6:34.22, 2 Ireland (C Feerick, E Lambe, T Hanlon, E Hegarty) 6:35.68, 3 United States 6:39.89.

Lightweight Double Sculls – A Final: 1 Switzerland 7:03.83, 2 Netherlands 7:09.45, 3 Germany 7:09.56; 4 Ireland (A Casey, C Nolan) 7:15.40.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Ireland took a silver medal at the World Rowing Under-23 Championships today through the women’s four of Claire Feerick, Eimear Lambe, Tara Hanlon and Emily Hegarty, who swapped into the stroke seat for Lambe.

 Britain and Ireland swept into the lead early and were clear of the rest in the final quarter. Britain found just enough to beat Ireland by 1.46 seconds.

World Rowing Under-23 Championships, Sarasota Bradenton, Florida (Irish interest)

Women

Four – A Final: 1 Britain 6:34.22, 2 Ireland (C Feerick, E Lambe, T Hanlon, E Hegarty) 6:35.68, 3 United States 6:39.89.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: The Ireland lightweight men’s quadruple of Eoin Gaffney, Hugh Sutton, Ryan Ballantine and Miles Taylor took a bronze medal today at the World Under-23 Championships in Sarasota Bradenton in Florida.

 Italy made a tremendous start. They pushed clear of the other five crews and led all the way to the finish line. France and Ireland slugged it out behind them, with the French closing on Italy coming to the line. Ireland also finished fast, but while they overlapped France they could not catch them.

World Rowing Under-23 Championships, Sarasota Bradenton, Florida (Irish interest)

Men

Four, coxed – B Final (places 7 and 8): 1 Ireland (B O’Rourke, R Corrigan, D Lynch, J Quinlan; cox: E Finnegan) 6:18.43, 2 Germany 6:22.17.

Lightweight Quadruple Sculls – A Final: 1 Italy 5:59.12, 2 France 6:00.20, 3 Ireland (E Gaffney, H Sutton, R Ballantine, M Taylor) 6:01.98.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: The Ireland men’s coxed four won their B Final and finished seventh overall at the World Under-23 Championships in Sarasota Bradenton in Florida today.

 Germany were the sole other contenders in this race. Ireland’s Brion O’Rourke, Ross Corrigan, Daire Lynch, James Quinlan and cox Eoin Finnegan got ahead of them early and did not yield.

 They extended their advantage to just over a length and held it to the finish line.  

World Rowing Under-23 Championships, Sarasota Bradenton, Florida (Irish interest)

Men

Four, coxed – B Final (places 7 and 8): 1 Ireland (B O’Rourke, R Corrigan, D Lynch, J Quinlan; cox: E Finnegan) 6:18.43, 2 Germany 6:22.17.

Published in Rowing

#Canoeing: Odhran McNally took fifth place in the men’s Under-23 K1 sprint final at the Wildwater World Junior and Under-23 Championships in Banja Luka in Bosnia and Herzegovina today.

 The 22-year-old Irishman finished in 56.54 seconds, just 3.24 seconds behind gold medallist Anze Uranakar of Slovenia.

 

Wildwater Canoeing Under-23 World Championships, Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina (Irish interest)

Men

K1 Sprint Final: 1 A Urankar (Slovenia) 53.30; 5 O McNally (Ireland) 56.54

Published in Canoeing

#Rowing: The Ireland women’s four qualified for the A Final at the World Rowing Under-23 Championships in Florida. The crew of Claire Feerick, Emily Hegarty, Tara Hanlon and Eimear Lambe won their repechage – by far the fastest of two – by leading all down the course.  

 The lightweight men’s quadruple also won their preliminary race for lanes. They were ahead through all the four quadrants of the race and won by a length from France.

 The men’s coxed four finished fifth in their repechage. They lost out on the fourth and final qualifying place in the A Final by .49 of a second. Britain and New Zealand passed early leaders South Africa to take first and second, with the South Africans taking third.

 Aoife Casey and Cliodhna Nolan had finished fourth in their heat of the lightweight double sculls.

World Rowing Under-23 Championships, Sarasota Bradenton, United States (Irish interest)

Men

Four, coxed – Repechage (First Four to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Britain 6:12.79, 2 New Zealand 6:13.53, 3 South Africa 6:14.32, 4 United States 6:15.07; 5 Ireland (B O’Rourke, R Corrigan, D Lynch, J Quinlan; cox: E Finnegan) 6:15.56.

Lightweight Quadruple – Preliminary Race: 1 Ireland (E Gaffney, H Sutton, R Ballantine, M Taylor) 6:02.20

Women

Four – Repechage (First Two to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Ireland (C Feerick, E Hegarty, T Hanlon, E Lambe) 6:37.88, 2 China 6:41.23.

Lightweight Double Sculls – Heat One (First two to A Final; rest to Repechage) 1 Switzerland 6:59.78, 2 Germany 7:02.65; 4 Ireland (A Casey, C Nolan) 7:07.28, 5 Britain (1 F Chestnutt) 7:13.48.

Published in Rowing

#Canoeing: Ireland’s Liam Jegou took bronze at the canoe slalom World Championships in Krakow, Poland.

 Liam Jegou looked well on course in the final of the C1 – only to touch gate 14. This pushed him out of gold medal place, but his raw time was so good that he finished third behind two France paddlers, Nicolas Gestin and Lucas Roisin.

Canoe Slalom Under-23 World Championships, Krakow (Irish interest)

Men, C1 Semi-Final: 4 L Jegou 93.79

Final: 3 Jegou 91.97.

Published in Canoeing

#Rowing: Ireland took gold and silver at the World Under-23 Rowing Championships in Poznan, Poland, today. The Ireland lightweight pair of David O’Malley and Shane Mulvaney showed tremendous self-belief to take the gold. Italy seemed set to dominate their final, but Ireland and Greece moved on them before the 1500 metre mark. Italy could not deal with the speed of their opponents and fell back to third. Greece would not give in easily, but Ireland, who took bronze last year, would only settle for the gold and won by two-thirds of a length.

The lightweight quadruple of Miles Taylor, Niall Beggan, Ryan Ballantine and stroke Andrew Goff produced quite a turn of speed to take their silver.

They looked well off the main action in the first half – they were sixth at 1,000 metres. But in the third quarter they charged – and continued that charge to the finish, where only Italy could hold them off.

The women’s pair of Emily Hegarty and Tara Hanlon were out of contention in their B Final. The lightweight double of Lydia Heaphy and Margaret Cremen looked very good in the early stages of their race but faded to fifth and will compete in a B Final.

Ireland have two A Finals to look forward to on Sunday. Ronan Byrne, in the single sculls, and the lightweight double of Fintan and Jake McCarthy both finished second in their semi-finals.

World Under-23 Rowing Championships, Day Four, Poznan, Poland

Men

Lightweight Pair – A Final: 1 Ireland (S Mulvaney, D O’Malley) 6:54.48, 2 Greece 6:56.24, 3 Italy 7:00.07.

Lightweight Quadruple Sculls – A Final: 1 Italy 6:10.13, 2 Ireland 6:11.45, 3 United States 6:12.55.

Lightweight Double Sculls – Semi-Finals (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final) 1 Spain 6:41.66, 2 Ireland (F McCarthy, J McCarthy) 6:42.45, 3 New Zealand 6:44.17.

Single Sculls – Semi-Final (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 United States (B Davison) 7: 14.65, 2 Ireland (R Byrne) 7:17.88, 3 Germany (M Weber) 7:24.24.

Lightweight Single Sculls – D Final (Places 19 to 24): 2 Ireland (H Sutton) 7:21.95.

Women

Pair – B Final (Places 7 to 12): 6 Ireland (E Hegarty, T Hanlon) 7:51.20.

Lightweight Double Sculls – Semi-Finals (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Italy 7:24.69, 2 Australia 7:30.08, 3 Greece 7:31.23; 5 Ireland (L Heaphy, M Cremen) 7:47.66.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Ireland qualified two more boats at the World Under-23 Rowing Championships in Poznan, Poland.

 Ronan Byrne won his heat of the single sculls. The UCC man led by two seconds after 500 metres and extended his lead through the race – he won by 7.31 seconds from Germany’s Marc Weber. The top four qualified for the quarter-finals.

 The Ireland women’s pair of Emily Hegarty and Tara Hanlon took their place in the semi-finals with a solid third place in their heat. Britain – with ex-Ireland rower Hannah Scott in the stroke seat – took the race on early, but the United States had other ideas. They took over the lead and held it. Ireland won a battle with Spain for the third qualification place.    

 Earlier, the Ireland lightweight pair of David O’Malley and Shane Mulvaney had won their heat.

Under-23 World Championships, Poznan, Poland

Men

Lightweight Pair – Heat Two (Winner to A Final; rest to Repechage): 1 Ireland (S Mulvaney, D O’Malley) 6:50.92.

Lightweight Quadruple – Heat One (Winner to A Final; rest to Repechage): 1 United States 6:00.18; 3 Ireland (M Taylor, N Beggan, R Ballantine, A Goff) 6:04.62.

Single Sculls – Heat Five (First Four to Quarter-Finals; rest to Repechage): 1 Ireland (R Byrne) 7:07.77

Lightweight Single Sculls (First Four to Quarter-Finals; rest to Repechage): 5 Ireland (H Sutton) 7:24.38.

Women

Pair – Heat Three (First Three to A/B Semi-Finals; rest to Repechage): 1 United States 7:30.57, 2 Britain (2 H Scott) 7:35.93, 3 Ireland (E Hegarty, T Hanlon) 7:46.45.  

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: David O’Malley and Shane Mulvaney produced an outstanding display to win their heat of the lightweight pair at the World Under-23 Championships at Poznan in Poland today. Germany led the race from the start, but the UCD men had grabbed a firm hold of it by 1,000 metres. They went on to win by 6.69 seconds from Chile, who pipped the Germans for second – a rank that mattered much less than the first place which put Ireland straight through to the final on Saturday.

 The Ireland lightweight quadruple had to settle for third in a heat where only the top crew qualified for the A Final. The Ireland crew of Miles Taylor, Niall Beggan, Ryan Ballantine and Andrew Goff looked very good and led early on. The United States moved decisively in the second quarter, when they took a slight lead. They took control in the third. They won well from France, who beat Ireland in a sprint to the line.  

 Hugh Sutton finished fifth in his heat of the lightweight single sculls and is set for a repechage.   

World Under-23 Championships, Poznan, Poland

Men

Lightweight Pair – Heat Two (Winner to A Final; rest to Repechage): 1 Ireland (S Mulvaney, D O’Malley) 6:50.92.

Lightweight Quadruple – Heat One (Winner to A Final; rest to Repechage): 1 United States 6:00.18; 3 Ireland (M Taylor, N Beggan, R Ballantine, A Goff) 6:04.62.

Lightweight Single Sculls (First Four to Quarter-Finals; rest to Repechage): 5 Ireland (H Sutton) 7:24.38.

Published in Rowing
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For all you need on the Marine Environment - covering the latest news and updates on marine science and wildlife, weather and climate, power from the sea and Ireland's coastal regions and communities - the place to be is Afloat.ie.

Coastal Notes

The Coastal Notes category covers a broad range of stories, events and developments that have an impact on Ireland's coastal regions and communities, whose lives and livelihoods are directly linked with the sea and Ireland's coastal waters.

Topics covered in Coastal Notes can be as varied as the rare finding of sea-life creatures, an historic shipwreck with secrets to tell, or even a trawler's net caught hauling much more than just fish.

Other angles focusing the attention of Coastal Notes are Ireland's maritime museums, which are of national importance to maintaining access and knowledge of our nautical heritage, and those who harvest the sea using small boats based in harbours where infrastructure and safety pose an issue, plying their trade along the rugged wild western seaboard.

Coastal Notes tells the stories that are arguably as varied as the environment they come from, and which shape people's interaction with the natural world and our relationship with the sea.

Marine Wildlife

One of the greatest memories of any day spent boating around the Irish coast is an encounter with Marine Wildlife. It's a thrill for young and old to witness seabirds, seals, dolphins and whales right there in their own habitat. And as boaters fortunate enough to have experienced it will testify, even spotting a distant dorsal fin can be the highlight of any day afloat. Was that a porpoise? Was it a whale? No matter how brief the glimpse, it's a privilege to share the seas with Irish marine wildlife.

Thanks to our location in the North Atlantic, there appears to be no shortage of marine life to observe. From whales to dolphins, seals, sharks and other ocean animals, the Marine Wildlife category documents the most interesting accounts around our shores. And we're keen to receive your observations, your photos, links and video clips, too!

Also valuable is the unique perspective of all those who go afloat, from coastal sailing to sea angling to inshore kayaking to offshore yacht racing, as what they encounter can be of great importance to organisations such as the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG). Thanks to their work we now know we share the seas with dozens of species who also call Ireland home. But as impressive as the list is, the experts believe there are still gaps in our knowledge. Next time you are out on the ocean waves, keep a sharp look out!

Weather

As an island in the North Atlantic, Ireland's fate is decided by Weather more so than many other European countries. When storm-force winds race across the Irish Sea, ferry and shipping services are cut off, disrupting our economy. When swollen waves crash on our shores, communities are flooded and fishermen brace for impact - both to their vessels and to their livelihoods.

Keeping abreast of the weather, therefore, is as important to leisure cruisers and fishing crews alike - for whom a small craft warning can mean the difference between life and death - as it is to the communities lining the coast, where timely weather alerts can help protect homes and lives.

Weather affects us all, and Afloat.ie will keep you informed on the hows and the whys.

Marine Science

Perhaps it's the work of the Irish research vessels RV Celtic Explorer and RV Celtic Voyager out in the Atlantic Ocean that best highlights the essential nature of Marine Science for the future growth of Ireland's emerging 'blue economy'.

From marine research to development and sustainable management, Ireland is developing a strong and well-deserved reputation as an emerging centre of excellence. Whether it's Wavebob ocean energy technology to aquaculture to weather buoys and oil exploration, the Marine Science category documents the work of Irish marine scientists and researchers and how they have secured prominent roles in many European and international marine science bodies.

Power From The Sea

The message from the experts is clear: offshore wind and wave energy is the future. And as Ireland looks towards the potential of the renewable energy sector, generating Power From The Sea will become a greater priority in the State's 'blue growth' strategy.

Developments and activities in existing and planned projects in the pipeline from the wind and wave renewables sector, and those of the energy exploration industry, point to the future of energy requirements for the whole world, not just in Ireland. And that's not to mention the supplementary industries that sea power projects can support in coastal communities.

Irish ports are already in a good position to capitalise on investments in offshore renewable energy services. And Power From The Sea can even be good for marine wildlife if done properly.

Aside from the green sector, our coastal waters also hold a wealth of oil and gas resources that numerous prospectors are hoping to exploit, even if people in coastal and island areas are as yet unsure of the potential benefits or pitfalls for their communities.

Changing Ocean Climate

Our ocean and climate are inextricably linked - the ocean plays a crucial role in the global climate system in a number of ways. These include absorbing excess heat from the atmosphere and absorbing 30 per cent of the carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere by human activity. But our marine ecosystems are coming under increasing pressure due to climate change.

The Marine Institute, with its national and international partners, works to observe and understand how our ocean is changing and analyses, models and projects the impacts of our changing oceans. Advice and forecasting projections of our changing oceans and climate are essential to create effective policies and management decisions to safeguard our ocean.

Dr Paul Connolly, CEO of the Marine Institute, said, “Our ocean is fundamental to life on earth and affects so many facets of our everyday activities. One of the greatest challenges we face as a society is that of our changing climate. The strong international collaborations that the Marine Institute has built up over decades facilitates a shared focusing on our changing ocean climate and developing new and enhanced ways of monitoring it and tracking changes over time.

“Our knowledge and services help us to observe these patterns of change and identify the steps to safeguard our marine ecosystems for future generations.”

The Marine Institute’s annual ocean climate research survey, which has been running since 2004, facilitates long term monitoring of the deep water environment to the west of Ireland. This repeat survey, which takes place on board RV Celtic Explorer, enables scientists to establish baseline oceanic conditions in Irish waters that can be used as a benchmark for future changes.

Scientists collect data on temperature, salinity, water currents, oxygen and carbon dioxide in the Atlantic Ocean. This high quality oceanographic data contributes to the Atlantic Ocean Observing System. Physical oceanographic data from the survey is submitted to the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) and, in addition, the survey contributes to national research such as the VOCAB ocean acidification and biogeochemistry project, the ‘Clean Atlantic’ project on marine litter and the A4 marine climate change project.

Dr Caroline Cusack, who co-ordinates scientific activities on board the RV Celtic Explorer for the annual survey, said, “The generation of long-term series to monitor ocean climate is vital to allow us understand the likely impact of future changes in ocean climate on ecosystems and other marine resources.”

Other activities during the survey in 2019 included the deployment of oceanographic gliders, two Argo floats (Ireland’s contribution to EuroArgo) and four surface drifters (Interreg Atlantic Area Clean Atlantic project). The new Argo floats have the capacity to measure dissolved ocean and biogeochemical parameters from the ocean surface down to a depth of 2,000 metres continuously for up to four years, providing important information as to the health of our oceans.

During the 2019 survey, the RV Celtic Explorer retrieved a string of oceanographic sensors from the deep ocean at an adjacent subsurface moored station and deployed a replacement M6 weather buoy, as part of the Irish Marine Data Buoy Observation Network (IMDBON).

Funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the IMDBON is managed by the Marine Institute in collaboration with Met Éireann and is designed to improve weather forecasts and safety at sea around Ireland. The data buoys have instruments which collect weather and ocean data including wind speed and direction, pressure, air and sea surface temperature and wave statistics. This data provides vital information for weather forecasts, shipping bulletins, gale and swell warnings as well as data for general public information and research.

“It is only in the last 20 years, meteorologists and climatologists have really began to understood the pivotal role the ocean plays in determining our climate and weather,” said Evelyn Cusack, Head of Forecasting at Met Éireann. “The real-time information provided by the Irish data buoy network is particularly important for our mariners and rescue services. The M6 data buoy in the Atlantic provides vital information on swell waves generated by Atlantic storms. Even though the weather and winds may be calm around our shores, there could be some very high swells coming in from Atlantic storms.”