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Possible Sports Hub in Limerick

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  • Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 30,909 Mod ✭✭✭✭Insect Overlord


    RTÉ news ran a story about this last week, I think. The facilities and the talent are there. All we need is someone with enough cop-on and vision to maximize the potential... *holds breath*


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 51,279 ✭✭✭✭bazz26


    We are fecked so. :(


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 4,552 ✭✭✭bigpink


    Is the pool a olmypic size one?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 8,048 ✭✭✭Amazotheamazing


    RTÉ news ran a story about this last week, I think. The facilities and the talent are there. All we need is someone with enough cop-on and vision to maximize the potential... *holds breath*

    I think UL have the vision, tbf, but do they necessarily want that tag.

    A huge mistake was not letting Limerick FC play Barcelona. Not just in a midwest context, but in an Irish context. Following on from Real Madrid basing themselves in Ireland for some training, it'd really have strengthened Ireland's rep in the area. The FAI really ****ed it up.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 4,552 ✭✭✭bigpink


    Barcelona yes forgot about that,bad bad mistake

    What annoys me is that Limerick is promoted as a sports city,yet it seems its all Munster Rugby
    It needs to be all sports


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 8,048 ✭✭✭Amazotheamazing


    bigpink wrote: »
    Barcelona yes forgot about that,bad bad mistake

    What annoys me is that Limerick is promoted as a sports city,yet it seems its all Munster Rugby
    It needs to be all sports

    You need to find more important things to annoy you.

    We've world class rowers coming through our clubs, there's an 18 year old from Limerick playing in the premiership, we've dominated schools hurling in Munster for the past few years, think LIT and UL have done well in college hurling etc. Na Piarsaigh are Munster hurling champions. Sexton street won 2 All Ireland soccer cups in the last few years, a limerick sprinter ran 10.68 for the 100ms in the world youth Olympics etc. There's loads and loads of sports happening. For swimmers the Shannon swim is back, for runners there's a host of events, there's triathlons in Killaloe and Castleconnell every summer etc.

    At the elite end and the amateur end, Limerick is getting it's act together in sports, if you can't see it I suspect you simply aren't looking.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 236 ✭✭swim2


    bigpink wrote: »
    Is the pool a olmypic size one?

    yes it is a 50m pool, Officially measured etc. Built before the one in Dublin :)

    At least one qualified olympian, Grainne Murphy in swimming and maybe a second Chris Bryan for open water swimming
    Also paralympic athletes train in the gym- Shane Ryan is one I think who is aiming to qualify for Olympic rowing or has done so already

    its not all just Munster rugby.

    Everything from Badminton to Volleyball, as there are so many student clubs that do all of these sports

    It would be fantastic if Limerick became a hub, but I would imagine politics will play a big part, as in the powers that be not wanting to have anything outside of Dublin


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 4,552 ✭✭✭bigpink


    You need to find more important things to annoy you.

    We've world class rowers coming through our clubs, there's an 18 year old from Limerick playing in the premiership, we've dominated schools hurling in Munster for the past few years, think LIT and UL have done well in college hurling etc. Na Piarsaigh are Munster hurling champions. Sexton street won 2 All Ireland soccer cups in the last few years, a limerick sprinter ran 10.68 for the 100ms in the world youth Olympics etc. There's loads and loads of sports happening. For swimmers the Shannon swim is back, for runners there's a host of events, there's triathlons in Killaloe and Castleconnell every summer etc.

    At the elite end and the amateur end, Limerick is getting it's act together in sports, if you can't see it I suspect you simply aren't looking.

    i am very aware of the other sports,im still saying that Munster Rugby seems to be the lazy marketing tool


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,730 ✭✭✭europa11


    :D Marketing people in Ireland usually are lazy tools.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 4,552 ✭✭✭bigpink


    This would surely be the year for a sports hub with the London Olmypics


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,361 ✭✭✭Itsdacraic


    Limerick City has in it's environs:

    - UL with all the sporting facilities that go with it (50m pool, athletics track, all weather pitches etc)
    - The National Coaching and Training Center
    - The newest and arguably best greyhound stadium in Ireland
    - The newest turf race course in Ireland
    - Munster Rugby / Thomond Park
    - 50,000 capacity Gaelic Grounds
    - One of the top basketball teams in the country
    - Two of Irelands best known boxers
    - Top Class Rowers
    - Top national Tennis players (and international with Conor Niland)
    - Top junior soccer teams in Ireland and great plans for the senior soccer side
    - GAA teams on the up again

    Along with the other stuff mentioned already you'd be hard pressed to find anywhere in Ireland with so many top facilities in such close proximity.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 8,048 ✭✭✭Amazotheamazing


    Itsdacraic wrote: »
    Limerick City has in it's environs:

    - UL with all the sporting facilities that go with it (50m pool, athletics track, all weather pitches etc)
    - The National Coaching and Training Center
    - The newest and arguably best greyhound stadium in Ireland
    - The newest turf race course in Ireland
    - Munster Rugby / Thomond Park
    - 50,000 capacity Gaelic Grounds
    - One of the top basketball teams in the country
    - Two of Irelands best known boxers
    - Top Class Rowers
    - Top national Tennis players (and international with Conor Niland)
    - Top junior soccer teams in Ireland and great plans for the senior soccer side
    - GAA teams on the up again

    Along with the other stuff mentioned already you'd be hard pressed to find anywhere in Ireland with so many top facilities in such close proximity.

    In addition, there's the cycle trails in Ballyhoura, the kayaking on the Curragower falls and Clare glens, top class golf courses (Adare, Lahinch, Doonbeg, etc), the surfing in Clare etc.

    The midwest needs to forget about the Limerick/Clare/North Tipp divide and promote itself as a region in itself. Galway and Cork are massive counties, the ones in the midwest aren't. Give us back the Kingdom of Thomond!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,912 ✭✭✭kilburn


    Markets fields has massive potential in the city if someone with a bit of cop on takes initiative.
    It still has the dog track skirting it so they should trasform it into a running track and try and get one of the IAAF events in the city that would be class


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,506 ✭✭✭sioda


    In addition, there's the cycle trails in Ballyhoura, the kayaking on the Curragower falls and Clare glens, top class golf courses (Adare, Lahinch, Doonbeg, etc), the surfing in Clare etc.

    The midwest needs to forget about the Limerick/Clare/North Tipp divide and promote itself as a region in itself. Galway and Cork are massive counties, the ones in the midwest aren't. Give us back the Kingdom of Thomond!

    Correct me but this is marketed as the shannon region


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 8,048 ✭✭✭Amazotheamazing


    sioda wrote: »
    Correct me but this is marketed as the shannon region

    Is it really though? Is there much effort put into making people think of the Shannon region as an actual region? One that compares to say, Cork.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 25,560 ✭✭✭✭Kess73


    Itsdacraic wrote: »
    Limerick City has in it's environs:

    - UL with all the sporting facilities that go with it (50m pool, athletics track, all weather pitches etc)
    - The National Coaching and Training Center
    - The newest and arguably best greyhound stadium in Ireland
    - The newest turf race course in Ireland
    - Munster Rugby / Thomond Park
    - 50,000 capacity Gaelic Grounds
    - One of the top basketball teams in the country
    - Two of Irelands best known boxers
    - Top Class Rowers
    - Top national Tennis players (and international with Conor Niland)
    - Top junior soccer teams in Ireland and great plans for the senior soccer side
    - GAA teams on the up again

    Along with the other stuff mentioned already you'd be hard pressed to find anywhere in Ireland with so many top facilities in such close proximity.


    Andy Lee moved to America on a full time basis six years ago.


    But I agree with the general thrust of your post. Limerick has a hell of a lot to shout about in sporting terms especially for such a small city, but given that the city was the European City of Sport last year, more could have been done by way of major once off events, and/or pushing some of the maybe lesser knowns into the spotlight in a big way.


  • Registered Users Posts: 272 ✭✭Goofy


    Swim Ireland, our elite swim squad are based in UL. As are a group of our top young track sprinters, including a 16 year old who ran 10:88 last year and another who has the B standard for London.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,210 ✭✭✭gaf1983


    I only found out last weekend that one of the houses in Kilmurray Student Village has nitrogen pumped into it so athletes training at UL can live at a simulated high altitude. (whatever happened to a couple of laps of the pitch...) I agree completely that it's top-class facilities like these, rather than bums on Thomond Park's seats and money in Diageo's coffers, that could promote Limerick as the National Sports Hub.


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