TWO County Clare attractions have been shortlisted for the 10th annual 2013 World Responsible Tourism Awards. The Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark and Loop Head Peninsula have been shortlisted alongside six other sustainable tourism destinations and organisations in the Best Destination for Responsible Tourism category. They are the only Irish attractions to make the list. Tourism destinations in Brazil, Bhutan, Austria, Lithuania, Kenya and Wales have also been nominated in that category. Loop Head Tourism chairman Cillian Murphy expressed his delight at the West Clare peninsula’s nomination. “Four years ago, we set out our stall to become one of the pre-eminent responsible tourism destinations in Ireland. We have achieved much since then, with both the EDEN award in 2010 and more recently being awarded the Best Place To Holiday In Ireland by The Irish Times,” the Kilkee businessman said. “The Loop Head Peninsula has made the jump from being relatively unknown to being a nationally recognised holiday destination and …

IN recent weeks, Kilrush Town Councillor Tom Clyne retired from his role as a FÁS job initiative worker in the town. The former town mayor, who was first elected to the local council in 2004, has worked in the position since 1998. As he remembers it, a significant amount of people were employed on the jobs initiative scheme 15 years ago. That figure has since drastically reduced. “There are about 10 people on the scheme in Kilrush at the moment. We have lost a lot of people through retirement or death in the last few years. I think there was 21 on the scheme in 1998,” Mr Clyne said this week. The Westmeath man, whose wife Breda is from Kilrush, worked primarily as a maintenance man on the scheme. “I was one of the people assigned to do the house maintenance for Kilrush Town Council, who were our sponsors. I was a general operative starting off but as we progressed, …

Brother Colm O’Connell is an athletics coach with credentials. He has led five Kenyans to Olympic gold medal glory, most recently David Rudisha at London 2012. A Catholic missionary, he is also a proud Cork man. He spoke to Nicola Corless about bringing the best out of athletes and the Banner’s ambition to beat his native county in the All-Ireland hurling final replay   ACCORDING to Brother Colm, Davy Fitzgerald and his charges already have the hard work done but some last-minute nerves are to be expected. “Getting an athlete ready for the biggest day of their sporting career is a long-term preparation. It is not something you do at the last minute. It is something you do for a couple of months before a big competition. It is the way you prepare your players, or in my case your athlete, for the fact they have to face a pressure situation. Sometimes you have people who can perform fantastic in …

Honda has confirmed launch pricing for their CR-V 1.6 i-DTEC 2WD SUV. Arriving in Honda Dealerships nationwide from October 21st, the CR-V will offer class-leading fuel economy and CO2 emissions from €31,995. The CR-V is powered by the 1.6 litre diesel engine already employed in the Civic. The lightest engine of its type in the world, it offers impressive emissions of just 119 g/km, resulting in annual road tax of €200. Fuel economy is aided by Honda’s stop start system and claimed fuel economy of 4.5 l/100 km means a theoretical range of 1280 km from a full tank of diesel. The CR-V is a proper family sized SUV, with 1,669 litres of luggage available. Standard equipment includes dual-zone climate control, 17″ alloy wheels, cruise control, folding rear seats, electric windows, alarm, usb audio and daytime running lights. The new CR-V brings Honda straight into the family car market with a well priced offering. The full fat 4wd version is …

DAVID Rudisha stands on the Mondo track at London’s Olympic Stadium. The 23-year-old shifts his weight from his left foot to his right and back again, bending his knees as he does so. As he gently sways, his face is nothing but steely focus. “On your mark”. The 6ft 2in figure strides to the white line. His eyes are set with determination. Leaning forward, he stretches his left leg in front of him and he takes his position. Lane four – he’s sandwiched between his countryman Timothy Kitum in three and Botswana’s Nijel Amos in five. There is a delayed response from the crowd as the runners launch their attempts to earn Olympic medals. Rudisha takes the lead. Kaki is on his shoulder. Aman follows. It looks fast. It is fast. The tall man in Kenyan livery completes the first 400m in 49.28 seconds. The battle for second place begins as Rudisha pulls away. Aman is in second, Kaki third …

Don’t forget to buy your Clare Champion tomorrow to read our special supplement in advance of Saturday’s replay. ‘Burning Desire’ will give you everything you need to know about the upcoming clash between Clare and Cork.

A NURSING union has expressed relief that no patients or staff were injured following a fire at Limerick University Hospital (LUH) on Sunday evening. Up to 14 children had to be evacuated from the paediatric unit of LUH after a fire broke out in the building some time about 6.00 pm. All children were back in the Children’s Ark at 10 pm. The waiting room of the emergency department was also emptied while the fire brigade checked out the scene. Irish Nurses and Midwifery Organisation, Mid-West representative, Mary Fogarty expressed relief that none injuries were sustained by patients or staff as a result of the fire. Speaking to the Clare Champion, Ms Fogarty said that none of her members had voiced any concern to date about the cause of the fire. She added that she wasn’t aware what had caused the blaze. The Health Service Executive (HSE) believes the smoke from the fire entered the main building from a plant …

GARDAI are continuing their investigations following a significant seizure of firearms and explosive components in South-East Clare. A substantial amount of what is believed to be dissident explosives, ammunition detonators, a variety of firearms, CS gas containers, magazines and balaclavas were taken from a wooded area in Meelick on Friday evening. An army bomb disposal team was called to examine the area before it could be declared safe. The items, which included recently manufactured devices for detonating explosives were taken away for a Garda forensic and technical examination. Gardai have been investigating links between dissident republicans based in Dublin and Limerick and have had significant successes in the past year since a new group, terming itself the “New Real IRA” and including former leading members of the Provisional IRA, emerged. The Garda Special Detective Unit has been searching for a dissident arms and explosives manufacturing operation for over a year and the indications are this find marked a major breakthrough …