The organizers of the Dublin City Marathon and Dublin City Council have agreed on a new start and finish location for this year’s race on Sunday next. The Council were concerned about what they described as the disproportionate adverse impact the race had on the public transport service. The Marathon will now start on Leeson Street Lower and finish on Mount Street Upper, remaining within the Dublin 2 area and ensuring the runners will still go through city centre streets.
Race Director Jim Aughney says he is confident that they have done all they can to ensure that the elite section of the marathon will be a clean race after two recent winners were later banned after testing positive for EPO. Aughney said he expects around 22,000 to line up at the start on Sunday. When the race was launched in 1980 it was run on the Bank Holiday Monday, but in 2016 it was switched to Sunday so that visitors to Ireland could sample what our capital city has to offer on the Bank Holiday Monday.
Among the runners will be Irish film star Colin Farrell who is running to raise funds for the Debra charity. Emma Fogarty, from County Laois, is Ireland’s longest-surviving person battling epidermolysis bullosa (EB), a rare skin condition that causes extremely painful blistering of the skin in response to the slightest movements. When Fogarty was born, doctors said she would not live longer than a week. However, the inspirational woman marked her 40th birthday in June and celebrated the occasion with a reception in a local hotel. Farrell described her as the strongest person that he had ever met, adding that she is a true warrior. He said: ‘‘For years now, I have been fortunate enough to bear witness not only to Emma’s courage and her vulnerability but her humour, her stubbornness, and her great, great heart too.’’ Fogarty plans to join the Irish Oscar nominee in a wheelchair for the final stages of the 42km race. The Dublin-born Hollywood A-lister is hoping that, with the public’s help, he can raise €400,000 for Debra, the national charity helping 300 people living in Ireland with EB.
Former rugby international Ronnie Dawson pictured in 2017. [Inpho/Dan Sheridan]
MID-GAME INTERVIEWS
PLAN FOR PREMIER L.
The Premier League could have mid-game or half-time interviews as part of its broadcast coverage next season. It’s expected that managers and players who have been substituted will be interviewed in the half-time slot. The concept has been used successfully in other sports, including cricket and rugby, and there is a possibility it will became part of top-flight football in England in the 2025-26 season. At present, clubs conduct pre and post-match interviews as part of their broadcast obligations, but that could now be increased. Any changes to broadcast coverage, however, would need to be approved by clubs ahead of the next television rights cycle, which begins next season. The EPL agreed a new deal with Sky and TNT Sports for their domestic television rights in Dec. 2023. The deal, which runs for four years from the 2025-26 season, was reportedly worth £6.7billion. As part of the package, for the first time in history, all games outside of the Saturday 3pm kick-offs will be broadcast live in the UK.
EX-PREZ BACKS BURNS
RAISING BOSSES’ PAY
Former GAA president Liam O’Neill believes the payment of expenses to inter-county management teams should be handled centrally rather than via individual county boards. And he slammed the “inherent unfairness” of the status quo where some counties spend “outrageous” money on extended backroom teams, sums that smaller counties could never afford. The Laois-born official was reacting to comments from current president Jarlath Burns, raising the future possibility of contracts for county managers given the workload and scrutiny involved. O’Neill praised Burns for raising this vexed issue, suggesting only good can come out of opening up the debate, but he was not overly optimistic about a successful resolution. He recalled a famous quote from former president Peter Quinn who once chaired a committee delving into managerial payment. At that time there was talk about envelopes under the table and Quinn said, ‘‘Not only did we fail to find the envelopes, we failed to find the tables.’’ Managers were the difficulty back then, but the payments issue has mushroomed out of all proportion,” O’Neill added.
BALLYMACARBRY’S
RUN ENDS AT 42
Comeragh Rangers recently ended the remarkable dominance of Ballymacarbry in the Waterford Ladies senior football championship. After winning the championship for the last 42 years, Ballymacarbry’s incredible reign ended in the final at Fraher Field, Dungarvan. Katie Murray scored four goals as Comeragh Rangers won the title for the first time by a score of 5-3 to 1-6. Coupled with the exit of Mourneabbey in the Cork senior championship, the Munster club landscape will have a much different look this season.
AGE AGAINST BEGGAN’S
AMERICAN DREAM
Monaghan goalkeeper Rory Beggan says he has parked his dreams of a professional American football career, adding that his age was ultimately against him. The 32-year-old was one of several Gaelic footballers given a chance to try out under the NFL’s International Player Pathway (IPP) earlier this year. Down ’keeper Charlie Smyth was signed by the New Orleans Saints and Wicklow’s Mark Jackson also took part, but didn’t get a contract either. Beggan said: ‘I wouldn’t say age was the only factor, but it was a big issue. I have probably never been out of Ireland any longer than two weeks on holiday. So to be away for six weeks, training and living in the sun and training every day. It felt too different to what you are used to.’’
IRELAND HOCKEY
STARS FOR INDIA
Two Irish international hockey players have joined Indian club Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers ahead of the inaugural women’s Hockey India League. Irish captain Katie Mullan and Róisin Upton, who were in the Ireland’s 2018 World Cup squad will be part of the squad for the franchise team representing Kolkate after being bought via auction for fees of 10 lakh each. The four-team women’s league starts in December and ends in February, while the men’s league has also been revived for 2024-25. Irish goalkeeper David Hart will be involved after being sold to Tamil Nadu Dragons from the southern city of Chennai by auction for a fee of 32 lakh.
