Cathir Doyle (Carn Wheelers) and Shay Donley (Ballymoney CC) will represent Ireland at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Hungary later this month. Ulster will also be present on the coaching staff in the form of Nicola McKiverigan. Cycling Ulster wish all of the Irish team the best of luck.
Please see press release below.
Irish Team of 40 named to compete at European Youth Olympic Festival in Hungary
The Olympic Council of Ireland today announced a team of 40 to compete at the 2017 European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) in Gyor, Hungary from July 24th to 30th. The multi-sport event will see Irish athletes (aged 13-17) compete against the best youth athletes in Europe. The six sports represented by Ireland are Athletics, Cycling, Gymnastics, Judo, Swimming, and Tennis. The female athletes lead the way with 25 selected to compete for their respective sport.
Team Ireland has a strong heritage at these Games securing 57 medals since the inaugural Games in 1991, 37 in Athletics, 15 in Swimming and three in Football and two in Hockey. The team’s most successful Games was Tbilisi in 2015 with 10 medals secured.
After a first taste of major multi-sport competition at the EYOF, many athletes have gone on to compete in the European Games and Olympic Games.18 Irish athletes who have competed at the EYOF’s have gone onto compete at the Summer Olympic Games. Katie Taylor competed in the EYOF’s 2003 in Paris in football and then nine years later won the Gold in boxing at the 2012 London Olympics. In 2015 Taylor followed this by winning the lightweight title in Azerbaijan at the inaugural European Games.
President of the Olympic Council of Ireland, Sarah Keane said: “EYOFs are a key step in the development of Ireland’s aspiring stars. It provides these talented young athletes with their first experience of a multi-sport event allowing them to immerse in different sporting cultures. This will be of great benefit as the move towards realising their own Olympic dreams”
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Full Team Selection
Cycling (6):
Shay Donley
Cathir Doyle
Maeve Gallagher
Lara Gillespie
Caoimhe O’Brien
Mark Smith
Nicola McKiverigan Coach
Adrian Delaney Mechanic / Coach
Martin O’Loughlin Team Leader
