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Displaying items by tag: Irish Underwater Search and Recovery Unit

#Rowing: The second annual All-in-a-Row charity event on the River Liffey will be held this Saturday, December 9th.  Rowers, kayakers and canoeists will take part in a row or paddle to raise money for the RNLI and The Irish Underwater Search and Recovery Unit. The course runs from the Tom Clarke Bridge (formerly the East Link) to Grattan Bridge, and the event will start at 8 am and end at 3.30. There will be a base at St Patrick’s Rowing Club.

 There is a link for those who wish to donate on allinarow.ie.

 The RNLI provides a rescue service at sea, along with education and supervision on beaches. It sets out to influence other organisations, policy-makers and regulators, throughout Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales. The RNLI provides a 24-hour search and rescue service to 100 nautical miles out from the coast of Ireland and the UK.

 Ninety five per cent of RNLI people are volunteers. RNLI crews and lifeguards have saved over 142,000 lives since the institution was formed in 1824. They have 46 Lifeboat stations around the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and four inland lifeboat stations, at Lough Derg, Lough Ree, Lough Erne and Strangford Lough.

 RNLI statistics (2016): 1,136 launches; 1,649 people rescued; 37 lives saved; on average 28 people rescued per week.

 The Irish Underwater Search and Recovery Unit (IUSRU) is a charity registered in the Republic of Ireland.

When persons go missing in rivers, canals, lakes or around our coasts they require specialist equipment and personnel to bring them home. The IUSRU is made up of a dedicated team of volunteers who search for missing people underwater and recover them so they can be given a dignified resting place.

 The IUSRU was formed in January 2012 to provide a professional, dedicated and highly trained service that could carry out the task of recovering missing persons with compassion and sensitivity.

 In 2014 there were 114 recorded deaths through drowning in Ireland.  

Published in Rowing

#InlandWaterways - The Irish Underwater Search and Recovery Unit (IUSRU) has announced details of its Raft Race as part of the Waterways Ireland Docklands Summer Festival.

Entry is €25 per person with four persons per raft for the day of wackiness on the water at Grand Canal Basin on 19 May.

And for those who can't build their own raft in time, prebuilt rafts can be supplied by the organisers.

More details of the event can be had from the IUSRU at 087 975 8656 or [email protected].

The complete programme of events for the Docklands Summer Festival will be posted on the official website shortly.

Published in Inland Waterways

Ireland's Sailor of the Year Awards

Created in 1996, the Afloat Sailor of the Year Awards represent all that is praiseworthy, innovative and groundbreaking in the Irish sailing scene.

Since it began 25 years ago, the awards have recognised over 500 monthly award winners in the pages of Ireland's sailing magazine Afloat, and these have been made to both amateur and professional sailors. The first-ever Sailor of the Year was dinghy sailor Mark Lyttle, a race winner at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

And since then it's gone on to read like a who's who of Irish sailing.

The national award is specially designed to salute the achievements of Ireland's sailing's elite. After two decades the awards has developed into a premier awards ceremony for water sports.

The overall national award will be announced each January to the person who, in the judges' opinion, achieved the most notable results in, or made the most significant contribution to, Irish sailing in the previous year.

A review of the first 25 years of the Irish Sailor the Year Awards is here

Irish Sailor of the Year Award FAQs

The Irish Sailor of the Year Awards is a scheme designed by Afloat magazine to represent all that is praiseworthy, innovative and groundbreaking in the Irish sailing scene..

The Irish Sailor of the Year Awards began in 1996.

The awards are administered by Afloat, Ireland's boating magazine.

  • 1996 Mark Lyttle
  • 1997 Tom Roche
  • 1998 Tom Fitzpatrick & David McHugh
  • 1999 Mark Mansfield
  • 2000 David Burrows
  • 2001 Maria Coleman
  • 2002 Eric Lisson
  • 2003 Noel Butler & Stephen Campion
  • 2004 Eamonn Crosbie
  • 2005 Paddy Barry & Jarlath Cunnane
  • 2006 Justin Slattery
  • 2007 Ger O'Rourke
  • 2008 Damian Foxall
  • 2009 Mark Mills
  • 2010 Anthony O'Leary
  • 2011 George Kenefick
  • 2012 Annalise Murphy
  • 2013 David Kenefick
  • 2014 Anthony O'Leary
  • 2015 Liam Shanahan
  • 2016 Annalise Murphy
  • 2017 Conor Fogerty
  • 2018 Robert Dickson & Sean Waddilove
  • 2019 Paul O'Higgins

Yes. The boating public and maritime community can have their say to help guide judges in deciding who should be crowned Ireland's Sailor of the Year by using an Afloat online poll). The judges welcome the traditional huge level of public interest in helping them make their decision but firmly retain their right to make the ultimate decision for the final choice while taking voting trends into account. By voting for your favourite nominee, you are creating additional awareness of their nomination and highlighting their success.

Anthony O'Leary of Crosshaven and Annalise Murphy of Dun Laoghaire are the only contenders to be Afloat.ie "Sailors of the Year" twice – himself in 2010 and 2014, and herself in 2012 and 2016.

In its 25 year history, there have been wins for 15, offshore or IRC achievements, nine dinghy and one designs accomplishments and one for adventure sailing.

Annually, generally in January or February of the following year.

In 2003 Her Royal Highness Princess Anne presented the Awards.

©Afloat 2020