Tag Archives: Keith Wood

KILLALOE bats will be afforded special protection, as part of the green light to develop new sports facilities on the grounds of a €2.5 million local recreational park. An automatic timing system will have to be installed on the proposed floodlights for new rugby and athletic training facilities in Clarisford Park, to ensure they do not operate between April 1 and September 14 every year. This is one of seven planning conditions attached to the planning permission secured by Ballina Killaloe Sports and Community Facilities Development Company, in the interests of ecology and to avoid disturbance to bat species. Clarisford Park is a popular location for recreational activities and currently has a weekly estimated usage of 2,500. Spearheaded by former Munster, Ireland and Lions hooker Keith Wood, the park is very popular with both locals and visitors and is the venue for weekly 5km runs on Saturday mornings. The planning authority has also ruled that all mitigation measures, as outlined …

Ireland is underachieving in its sport tourism potential despite having the capacity to be a major global player, the Shannon Group European Sport Tourism Summit in Limerick, heard this week. According to one of the world’s leading experts on sport market intelligence, Mike Laflin of Sportcal, Ireland ranks just 60th in the world, behind Barbados and Andorra, in terms of attracting major global sport events over the past six years and he recommends the establishment of an agency to devise a ten-year strategy and head-up bidding for major global events. Sport tourism is estimated to be worth €450bn globally and growing at a rate of 14% per annum, compared to wider tourism growth of 5%. Mr Laflin was one of a host of leading international experts who addressed the summit, which is one of the leading global think-tanks on the industry annually. He was joined on the podium by Commonwealth Games CEO, David Grevemberg; Ryder Cup director, Richard Hills, director …

THE enterprise and vision that transformed unused farmland into a state-of-the-art €2 million recreational park in Killaloe has been officially recognised with a national award. Clarisford Limited scooped a runner-up award in the national Pride of Place Community Innovation category at a function in Treacy’s West County Hotel, Ennis on Saturday night. Members of the group from Killaloe and Ballina were presented with a statuette and a €500 cheque for displaying great community innovation. Spearheaded by former Lions and Irish rugby star, Keith Wood, Clarisford Park was set up to provide a home for Lough Derg FC, Killaloe Ballina RFC and the local scouts group. The dream of providing a new recreational area for the local community became a reality due to funding from the Keith Wood Foundation, Clare LEADER, sports capital grants and the three anchor tenants clubs, who contributed about 10% of the overall cost. In fact, it has totally exceeded initial plans and expectations, with more than …

Clare’s role in sport tourism development will be central to a global discussion at World Travel Market (WTM) to be held in London next week. Killaloe based W2 Consulting will deliver the sports tourism elements in association with Eurosport at London’s EXCEL Centre on Wednesday and Thursday next. The event attracts 50,000 international delegates annually with 3,000 overseas media in attendance. The sport tourism discussions will include speakers from England 2015 Rugby World Cup, Tour de France and the Commonwealth Games. The first sport tourism at WTM session will focus on England’s hosting of the Rugby World Cup and be facilitated by W2 Consulting director, Keith Wood from Killaloe. The panel will include Brett Gosper, CEO of the International Rugby Board (IRB), Maggie Alphonsi who was part of the successful English ladies rugby team and global ambassador for 2015 and Paul Smith, England 2015. Future trends in sport tourism will be the main topic for the seminar on Wednesday and …

Former Ireland and Munster rugby star, Keith Wood is the first chairperson of the Healthy Ireland Council. His appointment will be formally announced by Minister for Health Dr James Reilly at the inaugural meeting of the council in Dublin Castle on Thursday morning. Mr Wood is a  founding Director of W2 Consulting. Minister Reilly will also announce the names of the 37 members of the council. Healthy Ireland involves a whole-of-government and whole-of-society response to improving the health and wellbeing of Irish people over the coming generation. The establishment of the Healthy Ireland Council is the most significant action within Healthy Ireland to leverage engagement with whole-of-society. The council will provide the platform to connect and mobilise communities, families and individuals into a national movement with one aim: supporting everyone to enjoy the best possible health and wellbeing.

Shannon Airport is set to make history again on Friday, July 4, when up to 1,200  runners line up for the first ever night-run on an Irish airport runway, in an event to raise fund for the Samaritans. Teaming up with Bank of Ireland the Runway Night Run will take place at 11pm when participants set off on the 5km run along what is one of Europe’s longest runways. The Samaritans is a designated Shannon Airport charity and the initiative has been boosted by the support of Bank of Ireland as lead sponsors. Lions, Irish and Munster rugby legend Keith Wood has also come on board as an ambassador for the event and will lead out the runners, limited to 1,200 people, on one of the most novel courses ever in Ireland for an organised run. Neil Pakey, Shanon Airport chief executive,said,” “There are runway runs at a small number of airports across the world every year, but this will certainly …

  IRISH rugby legends, Killaloe duo Anthony Foley and Keith Wood have put their shoulder to the wheel so to speak by endorsing the forthcoming Cycle Against Suicide. Both are happy to spread the message that ‘it’s ok not to feel ok and it’s absolutely ok to ask for help.’ The duo will be on home ground this Friday night at 8.30pm to lend their support to the Cycle Against Suicide at a press event in Wood Brothers, Main Street, Killaloe. This year’s cycle will take in the entire island of Ireland over the course of two weeks, stopping in Newcastle West, Limerick and Ennis on May 2 and 3. A large group of cyclists from Killaloe, led by locals Pádraig Egan, Timothy and Joss Lowry, will make their own mini-Cycle Against Suicide starting from Killaloe to Limerick on May 3.  There, they will link up with the rest of the pelethon at Crescent College Comprehensive in Dooradoyle.  At that point, up to …

TWO Clare sporting heroes are challenging the entire nation to play their part in selling Ireland to foreign companies expanding into Europe. Three-time hurling All Star and All-Ireland winning manager with Clare, Davy Fitzgerald, has teamed up with Ireland and Lions rugby legend Keith Wood in a new ConnectIreland campaign which launches shortly at Shannon Airport. The duo are the latest high-profile ConnectIreland ambassadors to spur parishes, clubs and communities to link up with family, friends and contacts abroad to sell Ireland, boost job creation and create a future in Ireland for our brightest and best. The sporting legends have also joined in the growing YouTube campaign, alongside Martin Sheen, Michael Flatley, Saoirse Ronan and others, to spur the 70 million Irish at home and abroad to get Ireland back to work. Davy Fitzgerald said ConnectIreland is a brilliant initiative and urged the public to register, to play their part and create a future here for our smart, educated workforce. …