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Council ramps up its gum litter campaignFingal mayor atPavilions to back Bin It Your Way

� NATALIE BURKE

SWORDS residents are being asked to help keep Fingal clean this August, after Fingal County Council has ramped up its campaign against litter-ing.

The council is asking the local community to help pre-

vent littering in their town, as part of the Bin It Your Way campaign.

Co-ordinated by the Gum Litter Taskforce in association with local authorities through-out Ireland, the national gum litter awareness campaign aims to reduce gum litter by discouraging littering general-

ly, the root cause of the issue. The scheme was promot-

ed recently at the Pavilions Shopping Centre by Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Cian O’Callaghan (Lab), who said: “It’s in all our interests and I’d ask people to please Bin It Your Way. It’s the responsible thing to do.”

Full Story on Page 6

Tickled pink:Fundraising for cancer awarenessGRAINNE Kelliher of Aramark Ireland and Linda Keating of the Marie Keating Foundation certain-ly weren’t bottling up their enthusi-asm for a new partnership between Aramark and Ballygowan to raise funds for the Marie Keating foun-dation. The company is calling on customers across their food servic-es operations to purchase a bottle of Ballygowan water and to donate the bottle tops in designated bins situated at till points. For every bottle top collected, a donation will be made to the Marie Keating foundation.

First Fingal Flavours proves to be a tasty triumph

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Sport awards: July’s winning sporting stars announcedPage 37

4 SWORDS GAZETTE 2 Aug - 16 Aug 2012

Council cuts leadto €50m savingsFINGAL County Council has made sav-ings of more than €50m since 2008, as a result of changed work practices, reduc-tion in overtime and better procurement by the council, it was announced last week.

According to a report released by the County and City Manager’s Association (CCMA), a total of €830m in savings has already been achieved nationally, and FCC is among the local authorities now leading the reform agenda.

Since 2008, the payroll costs of FCC alone have been reduced by 20%, while according to FCC manager David O’Connor the council has reduced its staffing numbers by more than 250.

“We have had to re-organise how we deliver our services to focus on maxim-ising efficiencies while minimising the impact on front line services and sup-porting local enterprise.

“The majority of citizens in Fingal have also played their part in contributing to the funding of local services through pay-ment of the household charge, but unless compliance rates improve substantially, funding sources will be reduced further.

“We are currently facing a €2m cut in our Local Government Fund allocation for 2012. This cut will affect our frontline services and we are therefore appealing once again to all householders to pay the household charge.”

FUNDING: HOUSEHOLD TAX APPEAL

Heritage Week offers fun for all the family� LAURA WEBB

RESIDENTS of Fin-gal are being urged to take part in this year’s National Heritage Week, with events taking place throughout the county.

From Folktales of Dub-lin at Blanchardstown Library to Pirates in Por-trane, there is something for the whole family to enjoy while they learn about the heritage of their local area.

National Heritage Week 2012 takes place nationwide from August 18 to 26, with the Herit-age Council focusing on Ireland’s built heritage this year.

Over 600 built her-itage events will take place, with many sites and houses being made accessible to the public for the first time.

National Heritage Week is co-ordinated by the Heritage Council, the agency tasked with identifying, protecting, preserving and enhanc-ing Ireland’s national heritage.

Speaking at the launch, Michael Starrett, CEO of the Heritage Council said: “The diversity of events taking place dur-ing National Heritage Week is what makes it unique.

“Each year we are see-ing a huge increase in the number of individu-als and groups getting involved. Seven years ago, just 500 events took place as part of National Heritage Week; this year, the number of events in the week has hit a record high, with over 1,400 events already registered.

“Based on last year’s

experience, by the time Heritage Week comes around, that figure will have risen to well over 1,500. We expect over 600,000 people to attend events across the country, meaning a huge knock-on economic effect for local communities.”

Some of the events available in North Dub-lin include The Jewel in Fingal’s Crown, which gives free guided tours of St Doulagh’s Church, Ire-land’s oldest stone-roofed church still in continu-ous use, and a centre of Christian worship from circa 6th C.

Tours of the church take place on August 18 from 12 noon to 6pm, August 19 and 21 from 2 to 6pm, August 22 from 2 to 10pm and August 26 from 2 to 6pm.Around The Block from

Kinsealy Court is a 6km family walk from Kin-sealy Court to Malahide Castle with a strong his-torical flavour. This free event takes place on August 19 from 11am to 2pm, starting at Aspen Road/Birchdale Road junction at Kinsealy Court, Swords.

In addition, there is Pirates of Portrane, a fun event with treasure to be found as part of the games and activities along Portrane beach.

The event takes place on August 25 from 1 to 3pm at Portrane Beach, and booking is essential.

For more information, contact the organisers, OWLS, the children’s nature club, at [email protected] or on 087 329 9936.

A full events listing is available at www.herit-ageweek.ie

EVENT Focusing on Ireland’s built heritage

Hector O’hEochagain is captured in the stocks by Luca O’Shea and Elisha Stanley as he launches National

Heritage Week 2012. Picture: Gary O’ Neill

2 Aug - 16 Aug 2012 SWORDS GAZETTE 5

6 SWORDS GAZETTE 2 Aug - Aug 16 2012

Rush lose as AIB cut backTHE LOCAL Allied I r i sh Banks (AIB) branch in Rush is set to be relocated to Balbrig-gan before the end of the year, as part of the review of the bailed-out bank’s retail opera-tions.

The bank announced a large number of clo-sures across the country in an effort to reduce costs.

While local Rush residents will now have to travel outside their village to avail of the bank’s services, AIB have said their recent review identified that changes in population and customer banking usage have led to a fall in demand for tradition-al branch services.

AIB will close 45 sub-offices across the coun-try and will amalgamate six branches from Octo-ber 12; while a further 16 branches will close during 2013.

BANKS

Council hopes gum bid sticks� NATALIE BURKE

[email protected]

FINGAL County Council is calling on members of the local community to help increase awareness of the Bin It Your Way lit-ter prevention campaign, after Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Cian O’Callaghan (Lab), promoted the scheme at the Pavilions Shopping Centre in Swords last week.

Fingal County Coun-cil took the opportunity last week to distribute gum wrappers and other campaign material to visitors at the shopping centre, in the presence of Cllr O’Callaghan, Pavil-ions Centre director Ian Hunter and volunteers from Swords Tidy Towns committee.

Coordinated by the Gum Litter Taskforce (GLT), in association with

local authorities through-out Ireland, the national gum litter awareness cam-paign aims to reduce gum litter in the easiest way possible: by discouraging littering (the root cause of the issue) and encour-aging the public to Bin It Your Way.

As an active participant in the high-profile cam-paign, Cllr O’Callaghan highlighted the need for Fingal to continue increasing awareness of gum litter and its respon-sible disposal, and said this year’s campaign has been “fun and engaging” so far.

“There’s an incred-ible level of imagination, momentum and creativ-ity brought to this year’s campaign. I’ve seen young people perform all sorts of cool moves to bin their gum,” he said. “I’m really impressed and will con-

tinue to spread the word to family, friends and colleagues. It’s in all our interests and I’d ask peo-ple to please Bin It Your Way. It’s the responsible and the right thing to do.”

Paul Kelly, chairman of the GLT, was on hand at the event to help explain the so-called moves and the overall theme of the 2012 campaign. “We’ve engaged with a team of professional dancers who have come up with a series of moves. The dance crew have travelled to all 23 local authority areas which are taking part in the campaign.

“We’re appealing to people to dispose of their gum in a fun and creative way, just don’t throw it on the ground. We would encourage everyone to come up with a unique move of their own,” he said.

Medical attention: New scheme gives access to two facilitiesLEINSTER rugby captain Leo Cullen receives medical attention from Allie Madden at the launch of Laya healthcare’s new, unique scheme, Aspire, developed specifically with Dublin-based consumers in mind. Laya healthcare’s new scheme provides access to two of Dublin’s premium medical facilities, the Beacon Hospital and the Sports Surgery Clinic, as well as all public hospitals in Ireland.

LITTER: ‘BIN IT YOUR WAY’ IS IN ALL OUR INTERESTS, SAYS O’CALLAGHAN

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SUCCESS 20,000 attend Newbridge House event

First Fingal Flavours is a tasty triumph� NATALIE BURKE

[email protected]

THE inaugural Flavours of Fingal show, held recently at Newbridge Demesne in Donabate, proved to be a massive success, with 20,000 people descending on the grounds over the July weekend.

The show was the first of its kind to be coordi-nated by Fingal County Council (FCC), Fingal Tourism and Fingal Farmers, with visitors having the opportunity to enjoy exhibitions of agriculture, horticulture, food, crafts and cook-ery demonstrations, along with an extensive

programme of family fun including livestock competitions, dog trials, vintage machinery, live music and biodiversity demonstrations.

The Flavours of Fin-gal show offered FCC an opportunity to showcase Fingal as one of the fore-most market gardening areas in the country and for those taking part, offered local businesses and entrepreneurs the chance to meet the local community and encour-age people to buy Irish.

Eight of Fingal’s Finest, a selection of local craft companies featured at the show, offered a plat-form for the companies to meet their customers

and present their wares.“It was brilliant to get

an opportunity to go out and see people, as my business is online and sometimes peo-ple need to see and feel what we’re doing,” said Pauline Hiney, owner of the Swords-based Gift-centre (www.giftcentre.ie), which designs a full range of clocks featuring Irish county colours and crests.

“Not everyone is com-fortable buying online, so it was great to get out and show people what it is I do. It was my first big event but I was delighted with the feedback and sales from the weekend, and that’s why I think it’s

Megan and Ewan Dale from Donabate enjoying the event

so important to get out to events like this.”

According to Noeleen McHugh, event organ-iser with FCC Economic Development Depart-ment, the show would not have been possible with-out the “tireless work” of Council staff and volun-teers and their partners Teagasc, Fingal Farm-ers and Fingal Tourism,

Rural Dublin Leader, and the support of the main sponsors FBD, Keelings, Bank of Ireland, Dublin Airport Authority, Coun-try Crest and Irish Coun-try Meats.

“We’ve learned so much from the experi-ence of running this show for the first time and the invaluable feedback from those who attended, the

organisers, sponsors and exhibitors will help us to make next years show even better”, Noeleen said.

“ We h ave g r e a t momentum behind us now, so roll on Flavours of Fingal 2013.”

For more information on Fingal’s Finest, log on to www.fingalceleb.ie/fingal’s-finest

Second levelfor LuskLUSK is set to see its first secondary school open next year, after it was announced the proposed school would be run by County Dublin VEC.

The news is the cul-mination of the proc-ess which began in 2011 when Minister for Edu-cation Ruairi Quinn said that 20 new post-primary schools would be estab-lished.

Local TD Brendan Ryan (Lab) welcomed the news, saying he was delighted to see Lusk receiving the school it “desperately needs”.

“The primary concern for the people of Lusk is that they have a second-ary school which places primacy on the enrol-ment of children from Lusk. For too long, Lusk children have been scat-tered [around the local area], attending second-ary school in Rush, Sker-ries, Swords, Balbriggan and beyond.”

EDUCATION

8 SWORDS GAZETTE 2 Aug – 16 Aug 2012

Fingal’sfare whets appetite for more FOR the first time in Dublin the Flavours

of Fingal Show combined the sights and sounds of a traditional agricultural show

with an unforgettable food and family fun expe-rience.

The inaugural Flavours of Fingal show proved to be a huge success last week, when 20,000 visitors descended on Newbridge Demesne in Donabate.

The Farm section of the show featured live-stock competitions, equestrian and dog trials, and vintage farm machinery.

Meanwhile the food village, based in the Walled Garden of Newbridge House, offered an array of favourite local foods, crafts and musical entertainment along with cooking demonstra-tions and expert classes and tastings. John and Annette Lawlor from Donabate. Picture: Derek O’Mara

FESTIVAL First Flavours of Fingal show proves an irresistible

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2 Aug – 16 Aug 2012 SWORDS GAZETTE 9

Equestrian competitors from Scar Foxhounds County Wexford are Paddy Sinnott, Louise Walsh, TJ Foley

and Hugh Fielding

temptation for taste buds of local food lovers

Megan Brennan and Jenny Fitzgerald

from Dunboyne

Pierce, Ruby and Ella Hill

Brenda O’Mara from Donabate

samples Irish grown strawberries

with Keelings grower Greg Bialek

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10 SWORDS GAZETTE 2 Aug – 16 Aug 2012

EXHIBITION Olympian gives insight into Games preparation

Harry’s Olympic history snapshotTHE official launch of the Irish Com-

petitors at the Stockholm Olympics 1912 exhibition in Fingal Local

Studies and Archive in Swords was held recently. Former Irish Olympian Harry Boland gave guests a fascinating insight into the way athletes got ready for the games in days gone by.

The exhibition details how nine indi-vidual sportsmen and one cycling team found a way to take part, representing the

US, Great Britain and South Africa, and going on to win three gold and one silver medal. 1912 was the first time the Games took place in London, before it returned to the English capital in 1948.

A basketball international, Boland is among 11 surviving members of the Irish contingent from those later London Games, and his talk gave a fascinat-ing snapshot into how the Games have changed.

1948 Olympian Harry Boland, holding his medal of honour, Fingal archivist Colm McQuinn, sports

historian Paul Harris and Fingal Mayor Cian O’Callaghan (Lab). Pictures: GAAPICS.com

Relatives of Thomas

O’Donohue, one of the athletes

featured in the exhibition

Friends and family of Thomas O’Donohue who is featured in

the exhibition

Harry Boland talking to sports

journalist Stephen Findlater

Paul Harris, sports historian

Harry with Rosemary Barnes and Clodagh O’Brien

Fingal Mayor Cian O’Callaghan (Lab), Harry Boland and

archivist Colm McQuinn

2 Aug - 16 Aug 2012 GAZETTE 11

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Brian and Pippa a good match in RTE show� BAIRBRE NI BHRAONAIN

CLONDALKIN Celeb-rity Bainisteoir hope-ful Brian Ormond last week found himself in direct competition with his nearest and dearest rival, model wife Pippa O’Connor in Donegal when the couple’s teams faced off in the first match of the new series of the popular GAA real-ity show.

The match last Sunday between Brian’s club St Mary’s and Pippa’s Naomh Brid team was the first of the series, but viewers will not know the results until Septem-ber 4 when the show airs on RTE 1.

The couple have had to make some adjust-ments to their lives to take part in the show.

“It’s going great so far and, sure, it’s a bit of fun,” said Brian. “But it’s hard to get up to train as we’re not used to it. I think it’s easier for me than Pippa as she has no background in GAA, whereas I was involved with the Round Tower club in Clondalkin with my brothers and I played soccer.”

Brian told The Gazette that there was no official training provided by the show’s organisers in terms of how he would set about training the Westmeath team, which is based in Rochefort-

bridge. “I just had to get a lot

of advice from friends and Bernard Flynn, the ex-Meath player, was down the other day helping out. You have to find it all out yourself, though, how to warm the team up, and all that. There’s no one there to hold your hand.”

New experience

Brian has been enjoy-ing the new experience of leading a side to vic-tory and has done some fundraising with the team, too.

“The whole experi-ence has been great so far. There’s no club in Celebrity Bainisteoir

that doesn’t want to be there, so that makes it much easier for me. We played a local match last week against Round Tower and beat them by 10 points.”

Asked about his con-fidence as manager, he said that he had new respect for all sports managers, as it takes up so much time and devo-tion. As yet, he said he’s totally in the dark as to who his biggest rivals on the show might be.

“Sunday’s game will be the first, so far. There are three games lined up in total. No one has seen the other teams play, so I don’t know who might be the best manager. It

Clondalkin Celebrity Bainisteoir hopeful Brian Ormond

doesn’t matter, really, because you could be the best manager, but if you don’t have a good team, then it’s game over.”

Brian seems very

TELEVISION Celebrity Bainisteoir hopefuls go head-to-head

proud of St Mary’s and the commute to Roche-fortbridge is a handy one for him as he doesn’t live too far away.

Other contestants donning the bainiste-oir’s bib for the show are Mary Byrne, Calum

Best, Paddy Doherty and Rozanna Purcell.

When asked about a possible return to his musical career or some-thing similar he left us wondering with the phrase: “Let’s wait and see, you never know.”

12 GAZETTE 2 Aug - 16 Aug 2012

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� ROB HEIGH

THIS week sees Dublin Gazette Newspapers print our annual double issue as we lead into the August holi-day period.

Like the rest of you, we’re taking a well-deserved break, but rest assured, we will be coming back on August 23 to continue to deliver to you the best news, sport and social coverage of any local

newspaper anywhere in the city.

This year has been an his-toric one for the Gazette, filled with anniversaries — our eighth year of publica-tion, our third year of cel-ebrating the finest in Dub-lin’s sporting achievements —and when we come back refreshed and raring to go, we’ll hopefully have more cause to celebrate again.

In this bumper edition,

we’re highlighting some of the great events taking place across the city, the country, and the world that will give us cause to raise the flags with pride again.

With the eyes of the world trained on London and the incredible endeavours of athletes from around the world, we are featuring pro-files and event information for our own local Olympians, as well as a special mention

in our sport section of one area of the country that has provided more competitors than any other, Dundrum.

The understated, reserved prayers that our hopefuls will come back with med-als will, with luck and hard work, be answered and we’ll be cheering them on every step of the way.

As well as our boys and girls in green, we have a blooming good chance of

having a Rose plucked as the best of the bunch in Tralee this year. We have an exclu-sive interview with Dublin Rose, Arlene O’Neill, and wish her every success in her journey.

As we have said before, Dublin Gazette Newspapers is nothing without our read-ers and advertisers, and I’d like to take this opportunty to thank all of our support-ers throughout the years.

Your input, enthusiasm and support for the newspapers have been instrumental in making us the number one local newspaper in the city, and we are looking forward to returning on August 23 to deliver the best in local cov-erage available anywhere in Dublin every week, in print and online.

Keep telling us your sto-ries, and we’ll keep telling the whole city.

We’re taking a break - but coming back strongEDITORIAL Dublin Gazette Newspapers will return on August 23

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Lucan’s Diana Bunici (left) is a presenter of RTE’s elev8

Talented kids urgedto show off or get off� LAURA WEBB

RTE’s elev8 is calling on talented youngsters between the age of eight and 13 years to audition for this year’s talent com-petition, Show Off or Get Off.

Dublin set the bar high last year, with the eventual winner, Zena Donnelly, coming from the Dublin auditions. So this year kids are being urged to let their talents shine and enter the com-petition with the act they think will take them to the winning podium.

During the audition stages, five acts from each audition will be selected as finalists to proceed to the next round. Each group of

five finalists will face a public vote with the two acts receiving most votes progressing to the next stage. The eventual win-ner will go on to perform live on RTE’s elev8 show. The winner will also get a chance to co-host the hit programme for a day.

Hopefuls are welcome to perform any act they like, from the weird to the wonderful. Last year’s show had a huge array of talent, from singer/song-writers to breakdancers and stand-up comedi-ans.

Each act is given one minute to perform their chosen act so they must make that one minute count. Children should be accompanied by an adult during the audi-

tion. This year, the team are

travelling to 12 locations around the country. In Dublin, open auditions will take place on August 3 between 10am and 2pm, and on Septem-ber 1 between 9.30am and 1pm at Filmbase in Temple Bar, and in Bray at The Esplanade Hotel between 3 and 6pm on the same day. All chil-dren must be accompa-nied by an adult.

Acts heading down to the audition stages are being asked to contact the show’s producers before the audition if they require props, materials or extra time or space to set up. Entrants requir-ing backing music must provide a CD of their

chosen track and should note that this copy will not be returned.

Mp3 players/mobile phones without adequate speakers will not be accepted. In the interest of fairness, all auditions are held on a first-come first-served basis - arrive early to avoid disappoint-ment.

Information on all other locations and times will be going up on the elev8 website in the com-ing weeks - www.rte.ie/elev8.

For further informa-tion contact the Show Off or Get Off team on 01-6704012 / 01-6704895 or by emailing [email protected], logging onto their Twitter page: @showofforgetoff.

RTE Seeking weird and wonderful acts

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Strutting her stuff: Amanda adds glamour to the launch of the Dublin Fashion FestivalAMANDA Byram, face of this year’s Dub-lin Fashion Festival, claiming her own O’Connell Street catwalk as she launches the countdown to the Dublin Fashion Festival which takes place from Septem-ber 6 to 9.

The festival was created by Dublin

City Business Improvement District to celebrate all that is great about fashion in Dublin city, covering everything from high street chains to boutiques to Irish design, right down to the best places to eat, drink and chill out post-shopping spree.

Tune in to ukulele fest

PEOPLE’S PARK: HOOLEY TO ATTRACT TOP TALENT

� BAIRBRE NI BHRAONAIN

THE People’s Park in Dun Laoghaire will be the venue to host a grand ukulele festival this August.

The Ukulele Hooley is the third internation-al festival and prom-ises to attract some of the best ukulele talent in the world to Dublin in what organisers are describing as “a mighty celebration of all things relating to the Shet-land pony of the guitar world”.

The ukulele is the world’s best-sel l ing instrument today, and its appeal and popu-larity are stronger than ever.

Players and aficiona-dos will come together to celebrate their love and passion for the plucky little instrument with the distinctive

sound.On Saturday, August

18, the festival will feature ukulele master classes, a grand ukulele public busk and an out-door open-mic concert for players who want to step up and show their skills.

There is even the chance of winning your own ukulele in a raffle on the day.

The main feature though, will be a free, day-long ukulele concert to round off the festival on Sunday, August 19.

The concer t wi l l showcase the best play-ers and will demonstrate the instrument’s diver-sity. The show starts at 12.30pm and will run until 8.30pm.

This is a family fes-tival, and it is being described as a perfect summer’s day out for everyone.

Nurturing artistic talentARTISTS with dis-abilities from Dublin are being urged to take advantage of an all-Ireland awards scheme designed to nurture and develop their talent.

The Arts and Dis-abi l i ty Awards Ire-land (ADAI) scheme is administered by the Belfast-based Arts and Disability Forum (ADF) and funded by both arts councils.

The scheme identi-fies, encourages and nurtures individual tal-ent amongst disabled artists, and individuals can apply for a bursary of up to the euro equiv-alent of £5,000. ADF chief executive Chris Ledger described it as a competitive scheme.

For more information on how to apply, contact the ADF on 04890239450 or [email protected] .

To dow nload an application form, go to www.adf.ie.

BURSARIES


FESTIVAL After securing sponsors and all her dresses Dublin

Dublin Rose Arlene O’Neill with mother Denise Pictures: Ian Fleming

Bookies SHE may be the book-ies’ favourite heading into the Rose of Tralee competition, but Dub-lin Rose Arlene O’Neill is focusing more on get-ting her wardrobe ready for the big night.

T h e 2 5 - y e a r- o l d Lucan native has had to secure sponsor-ship in order to fund the extensive array of dresses needed for the 10 day Rose festival, but a combination of local businesses and people stepped up to help fund the 20 or so dresses needed for a Rose.

“The preparations are going really well. I was

panicked for a while, but things have settled down now, thankfully.

“I have a couple more dresses to pick up and a few hats that I’ll get after the Galway Races. But there’s only a few of those to get.

“When else am I going to have an excuse to get 20 dresses?”

The passionate sci-entist was in the pres-ence of another noted Rose alumnus when she decided to take the plunge and go for the competition but, con-trary to reports, former winner Aoibhinn Ni Shuileabhain did not

twist Arlene’s arm.“I do watch the com-

petition and my mam and granny love it, but I had never envisioned myself actually taking part.

“I was being inter-viewed by Aoibhin Ni Shulleabhain for a sci-ence DVD and it came into my head. Some newspapers have said that she had urged me to enter, but that’s not the case – I didn’t even tell her I was thinking about going for it.

“I downloaded the application form and probably left it on the laptop for about a week,

Arlene O’Neill tells PAUL HOSFORD why she took the plunge to compete in festival


Rose Arlene is calm and ready to perform her party piece

Linda Balf, Paula Richmonds, Arlene O’Neill, Carol Lyons and Deputy Derek Keating (Lab)

scent Rose’s successbut when I told my mam, she told me to fill it out. That was about six weeks before the Dublin Rose selection.”

Being the Dublin Rose since the end of May has made Arlene something of a local celebrity and, in a competition that is such an institution, everyone has a piece of advice to offer.

“It’s been hectic, but in a great way. Peo-ple love the competi-tion and are giving me advice from all corners, which is what’s great about it in a way.

“What other competi-tion could your friend’s granny give you advice about?

“To be representing Dublin and Lucan is very humbling and it is great to have so many people getting behind me and it’s been great for my family especial-ly.

“They’re a l l ver y excited.”

The advice that comes back is universal, how-ever.

“People have just been telling me to enjoy it and be myself.

“The schedule is hec-tic, I know that. We got the schedules recently and, to the minute, we are very busy, but I’m going to enjoy the expe-rience.”

Every year, the fes-tival faces criticisms about its relevancy to modern Irish life and its role in enforcing gender stereotypes. For Arlene, however, it is a perfect example of Ireland.

“I think there’s no set criteria for the Rose. I still don’t know what they’re looking for and I’m entering an interna-tional festival.

“The credentials of the women entering are phenomenal year on year.

“The competition is 54 years old, so obvious-ly, when it started, they

were looking for some-thing different. I’m fin-ishing my PhD this year and that wouldn’t have been commonplace back then.

“But the competition has become more mod-ern and isn’t a pageant by any means.

“It celebrates Irish women and Irish tradi-tion. It shows there’s more important things than being a size six with a sparkly dress. It is very refreshing.”

As for the all-impor-tant party piece, Arlene is keen not to give much away and does not yet know whether she will be chosen to perform on August 20 in The Dome.

“Twelve of the 32 competitors get to per-form their party piece, and I don’t want to give too much away, but mine will be science-related.

“I want to keep the element of surprise.”

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‘12 of the 32 competitors get to perform their party piece, and I don’t want to give too much away, but mine will be science-related. I want to keep the element of surprise’- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

WE HAVE 135,000* READERS EACH WEEK

ADVERTISE YOUR YOUR BUSINESSBUSINESS TO OUR READERSCALL 60 10 240


ANIMAL lover Caroline Morahan is asking brides and grooms-to-be to consider ISPCA wedding favours for their big day.

As a bride-to-be herself, Dubliner Caroline knows only too well the money that gets spent on the spe-cial day and is now asking people to give a little back to a good cause.

The TV personality, who is getting married in September, is asking all brides- and grooms-to-be, to consider ISPCA wedding favours for their guests instead of the tra-ditional chocolates or sugared almonds on their big day.

Caroline said: “I think wedding favours that sup-port the ISPCA are a won-derful idea. It’s a great way to make a difference and bring an added feel good factor to your special day.”

I S P CA We d d i n g Favours come in a range of designs and are not only a thoughtful gift for guests, but they provide life-saving support to ani-mals in need. Please go to www.ispca.ie for more information.

Dublin stars in Bollywood movieDUBLIN will be playing a starring role in movie theatres this summer when it appears in the highly-anticipated Bolly-wood blockbuster, Ek Tha Tiger, due to hit screens on August 15.

Locations around

Dublin including Trinity College, Temple Bar and Grafton Street feature in the movie, along with members of An Garda Siochana and even the Kilkenny hurling team. The movie is set to be released in 24 countries worldwide and will reach an audience of over 100 million people.

This is the first time that a major Bollywood pro-duction has been shot in Ireland. Tourism Ireland worked with the Irish Film Board to secure the film for Ireland and with Dub-lin City Council and other agencies to help facilitate filming in the city.

Tourism Ireland is confident that it will help to significantly boost awareness of Ireland among India’s growing middle-classes, who may potentially visit the city

in the future. You can see a clip from the movie at www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB3AI8Wz-Js

Top milliner to design with diamondsIRISH-BORN hat design-er Philip Treacy is looking to take the world of high fashion by storm again with the recent announce-ment that he is to create a

bespoke diamond jewel-lery collection.

Visionary milliner Trea-cy will be creating the new collection in what will be a unique collaboration between the designer and Voltaire Diamonds.

The exclusive collection of individual diamond engagement rings, with matching wedding bands, is to be designed by Treacy and created by Voltaire’s craftsmen. The collection will launch in time for Val-entine’s Day, 2013.

Each set of rings, which can be purchased sepa-rately, will have an individ-ual identity reflecting the emotional commitment involved in engagement and marriage, according to Philip Treacy.

“We want the collec-tion pieces to represent beautiful, highly desirable, emotional symbols of love, which are also exclusive, treasured possessions,” said the designer, as the project detail was finalised this week.


The beautiful bride-to-be Caroline Morahan, with her four-legged friends from the

ISPCA, Harvey and Khal the dalmation puppy (inset). Pictures: Carmel Murray

A special favour for your wedding day

DIARY

SNAPSHOT The stories of the day from around the capital

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BUSINESS Salon thrives despite recessionary times

Nothing vain about this business plan� BAIRBRE NI BHRAONAIN

SOMETIMES in busi-ness, it pays to take a chance when everyone else is playing it safe, especially in the middle of a recession.

A fine example of that premise is the story of Jennifer O’Brien and Jennifer Butler, who established the Vanity Rooms, a luxury beau-ty salon in Stepaside four years ago, and the friends and business partners say that rather than struggling, their trade is thriving.

“Vanity Rooms, like most small businesses in Ireland, has felt the impact of the reces-

sion and, at first, we did panic. However, rather than keep doing that and take what was thrown at us, we made a very conscious decision to take it on,” said Jen-nifer O’Brien.

The two beauticians, from Knocklyon and Celbridge, attribute their success to passion, hard work, delivering excellent standards, value for money and refusing to lie down or adopt a negative atti-tude. Both women feel it is important that a posi-tive message in relation to a business doing well in the area can help to foster a sense of opti-mism and possibility for

a change. “What we have seen

in the downturn is that women still want to look after themselves.

“We don’t believe in giving inferior treat-ments and products, so we are always looking out for cheaper suppli-ers who can source what we need at a lower price. Then we can pass this on to clients.”

Butler and O’Brien started working togeth-er about eight years ago and had built up a large clientele between them in their own busi-nesses, and they felt it was a wise move when they decided to merge their common resources

Jennifer O’Brien and Jennifer Butler of Vanity Rooms, a luxury beauty salon

and open Vanity Rooms. The salon now employs three girls, two of whom live in Stepaside.

The salon is very active on Facebook and Twit-ter and constantly runs special offers. Facebook was also used to gener-ate new business during the leaner times by hold-

ing auctions online.Vanity Rooms recent-

ly appeared on TV3’s Expose, when Glenda Gilson went along to check out the luxuri-ous surroundings and highlighted some of the treatments and products on offer.

The salon carries an

exclusive range of nail varnish and manicure products by renowned New York beautician Deborah Lippman.

“We are now in busi-ness four years and, as a result of pushing on and taking action, we are a thriving business,” said O’Brien.

Free live music to support sailing spreeTHE Tall Ships are back in Dublin for four days and, to celebrate, the organisers are provid-ing a jam-packed pro-gramme of events, with four days of free live music and entertain-ment for the summer event.

From August 23 to 26, the Tall Ships Races 2012 Dublin will feature a lively range of stars at the Bulmers Live Music Stage at George’s Dock, with a stellar line-up that includes Ash, Cathy Davey, The Undertones, Duke Special, Ryan Sheridan, The Min-utes, Delorentos, Jerry Fish, the Dublin Gospel Choir and many more.

For a full list of pro-gramme events and times, log on to www.dublintallships.ie.

TALL SHIPS


London is calling� PAUL HOSFORD

“WINNING medals wasn’t the point of the Olympics. It’s the partici-pating that counts.”

The words of Baron Pierre De Coubertain, founder of the modern Olympics, ring truer with every four years that pass. The increas-ingly competitive sport-ing landscape means that athletes are amateur in all but name, but it also means that simply qualifying for the Games is a huge achievement in itself.

Many of the Irish ath-letes in London hold down full-time jobs while training. Some have moved to foreign lands for access to bet-ter training facilities,

putting their lives on hold to chase the Olym-pic dream, and some have battled back from the kind of injuries that would stop most others in their tracks.

The Olympics burst to life last Friday, with renowned film director Danny Boyle’s colour-ful opening ceremony getting things under way. Some of the record 66 Irish athletes have already finished up their Games across the 15 sports they are com-peting in, but there are many still taking part with medals in sight, including Olympic flag bearer Katie Taylor.

Taylor has become Ireland’s most recognis-able sportswoman. Soft drinks ads with world-

famous musicians, rap songs written about her and billboards taken out on St Stephen’s Green in her honour, it is no more than the four-time world champion deserves.

But, it would be wrong to think that Taylor works any more or less hard than the rest of the Irish team.

The commitment level of Ireland’s athletes, from top to bottom, is astounding. Trips away from young families for training, the constant battle to find sponsor-ship and funding, the physical toll that being an Olympic level athlete takes on a body – all of these are pressures that are hard enough to deal with, without “real” life bringing its own set of

problems.With thousands of ath-

letes vying for the small number of places at the prestigious Games, the reward for the years of hard work and months of preparation is the chance to walk in the hallowed footsteps and the right to forever call yourself an Olympian.

Though Ire land’s chances of achieving medal success are seen by many bookmakers to be slight, the pursuit of glory will not be taken lightly, and there can be no doubt that, no matter the result, our athletes deserve to come home to a hero’s welcome, and the work that they put in between Olympiads will continue to be covered by The Gazette.

Deirdre Ryan of Dundrum South Dublin Athletics Club will be hoping to claim a medal when she takes part in the high jump event on August 9

GazetteOLYMPICSOLYMPICS

KATIE TAYLORKATIE is a former Peamount United club member who has represented Ireland at both boxing and football. As a four-time World champion, she is Ireland’s brightest medal hope. She kicked off her Olympics by carrying the flag at the opening ceremony. She boxes on August 6, with semis and finals on August 8 and 9.

BOXING

EVERY four years, the attentions of the nation are focused on the Olympics. We at The Gazette like to think that we follow the times in between, as well. Indeed, of the 15 athletes in London that represent our catchment areas, most have either won or been nominated for the Sports Star of The Month award, with Deirdre Ryan the current yearly holder. Some of them may not yet be household names, but their dedication, workrate and determination should stand as an inspiration to us all. Everyone at The Gazette sends our very best to our athletes.


SCOTT FLANIGANJUST over a year ago Scott, who sails for Malahide Yacht Club, was preparing to sit his Leaving Cert. This year, he is headed to London as one half of the 470 class duo, along with Ger Owens. The duo qualified for the Games in May. Owens and Flanigan will race in Weymouth until August 7, with the medal race on August 9.

SAILING

NICOLAS ROCHENICOLAS, who is the son of Irish cycling great Stephen, grew up in the Meadowbrook estate in Dundrum, before decamping to France. He recently finished 12th in the Tour de France, and took part in Saturday’s cycling road race, finishing 89th, citing a switch of tactics as being costly to the three-man Irish team. He is expected to sign for a new team this week.

CYCLING

DAVID BURROWSDAVID, who sails for Malahide YC, is from Portmarnock and will be joined in the Star class boat by Corkman David O’Leary, whose girlfriend is Irish sprint queen Derval O’Rorke. The pair made the Games at the World Championships in Australia. There, they finished ninth. They will race on August 2 and 3, with the medal race on August 5.

SAILING

SANITA PUSPURE

LATVIAN-born Kinsealy resident Sanita is Ireland’s first female rower since 1980 and has claimed medals at both the World U-23 Championships and World Student Games. She received her Irish passport in 2011, qualifying for London in Lucerne in March. She reached the quarter-finals, but finished fourth.

ROWING

DEIRDRE RYANTHE reigning Dublin Gazette Sports Star of the Year, Deirdre represents Dundrum South Dublin AC and went to Ballinteer CS. She is currently based in Leverkusen, Germany and set a personal best of 1.95 metres at the Worlds in Daegu, Korea. She jumps on August 9 at 9am, with the final at 6.45pm on August 11.

HIGH JUMP

BARRY MURPHYIRELAND’S leading male swimmer comes from the Aer Lingus club in Swords. He smashed the Irish 100 metre breast stroke record en route to qualifying for the Olympics. He is taking part in his first Olympics, having missed out on Beijing by one-tenth of a second. He raced on Saturday, coming eighth in his 100m breaststroke heat.

SWIMMING

CLAIRE BERGINTHE first Irish woman to compete in Winter and Summer Games, the DSDAC track and field captain is a former bobsledder, who represented Ireland at the 2010 Vancouver Games. She will form part of the 4x400 metre relay team who race on August 9 at 6.30pm, with the final taking place the day after.

4X400M

SCOTT EVANSBALLINTEER badminton star Scott is entering his second Olympics, having been Ireland’s first male badminton player in the Games in 2008. He attended Wesley College before moving to Denmark at age 17 and has won the national title eight times. He lost his preliminary game on Monday against World number one, Lin Dan.

BADMINTON

AVA HUTCHINSONAVA, another of the DSDAC contingent, was based in Blackrock before moving over to England to train at the renowned Loughborough University under Ray Treacy. Hutchinson secured qualif ication in style, setting a personal best at the Houston Marathon in January.

MARATHON

EOIN RHEINISCHEOIN continues the Salmon Leap Club’s proud tradition of sending an athlete to every Olympics since 1972. He has recovered from three shoulder operations in the last two years. This will be Eoin’s second Games, having finished fourth in the K-1 slalom in Beijing, where just two-and-a-half seconds separated him from a medal.

CANOEING

LINDA BYRNEROUNDING out DSDAC’s four-strong contingent is Linda Byrne. Linda won the Flora Dublin Women’s Mini-Marathon this year and became Ireland’s first marathon A standard qualif ier since 1988 when she ran a 2:36:23. All the marathon runners go off on August 5 at 11am in what is to be a tightly contested race.

MARATHON

ANNALISE MURPHYANNALISE, from Rathfarnham, sails out of the National Yacht club in Dun Laoghaire and competes in the Laser Radial class. She comes from a sailing family, her mother Cathy MacAleavey having represented Ireland at the 1988 Olympics in Pusan. She finishes preliminary races on August 3 and 4, with the medal race on August 6.

SAILING

CAITRIONA JENNINGS THE Rathfarnham AC runner is a native of Letterkenny, Co Donegal and only turned to the marathon in 2010 and qualified for the Olympics in Rotterdam in April. She faced an anxious wait to see if she was one of Ireland’s three runners, but selectors confirmed her place on the plane to London in June.

MARATHON

GER OWENSGER sails for Royal St George YC and will compete in the 470 Class with Scott Flanigan. He is a double Olympian, having competed in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008, where he won two races, but missed out on a medal. He will hope to go better this year. The team of Owens and Flanigan will race until August 7, with the medal race on August 9.

SAILING

GazetteSTYLESTYLE Edited by Laura Webb

Sure to keep you dry and confident

A very sweet concert season with L’Oreal’s Miss Candy Collection

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OXEGEN might have taken a break this year, but festivals like Electric Picnic and Castlepal-ooza are still on track to rock our world and so a fashionista needs to look the part.

This week, Gazette Style is showing festival revellers a make-up look that is easy to manage, but on trend with this summer’s quirky style.

L’Oreal’s Miss Candy Collection wraps up the summertime mood with its fresh and bold colours. What’s great about the products from this collection is that the

packaging is easy to store and won’t take up much space in the minimal make-up bag that ladies carry at a festival.

Apply your usual foundation making sure it blends in with your natural colour. The area to highlight will be the eyes. Try Miss Candy’s Colour Infallible eye collection number 31 Innocent Turquoise – a great outdoor colour for any festival. Apply it on the eyelid without pass-ing the crease and sweep a little towards the eye-brow. Do not cover the whole eyelid, then line

your under eye to bring out the colour in your eyes. With speckles of sparkle mixed in this product eyes are sure to dazzle in the sun, and as its waterproof the col-ours stay intact, giving great colour that lasts and lasts even in the rain. Other colours available are Sassy Chamallow 32 and Naughty Strawberry 36 with a recommended RRP of €10.79.

As the eyes are tak-ing centre stage for this look, keep your lips neu-tral and shiny. For this, use Miss Candy’s Glam Shine range number 101

Nude Bon Bon. This gloss features a new swirl technology which blends two contrast-ing colours for a sweet shine. The unique heart- shaped wand makes it easy to apply. Other colours available are Miss Candy 709, Dolce Pralina 712, Pink Treat 710, Bubble Pink 701

and Tart Lollipop 703 – RRP €11.29.

With a great festival face, all one needs now is some great festival nails and this collection has it covered with its Colour Riche nail line. The candy cane colours go from bold brights to effervescent pastels. For festival mode, we recom-

mend going with bold brights, try even mixing it up and using two con-trasting shades like green and pink using Perle De Jade 602 and Opera Bal-lerina 101.

Make-up complete, all that’s left to do is get the right festival attire, grab a pair of wellies and enjoy the show.

L’Oreal’s Miss Candy Collection contains fresh and bold colours


WOMEN are con-stantly on the go, so deodorant is a must and one that keeps us dry and fresh is essential. Sure says “it won’t let you down” so we put its latest deodorant – Sure Linen Dry Deodor-ant – to the test. It says it keeps you feel-ing dry and confident from dawn til dusk.

Gazette beauty trialled it on a very active lady who works, is a mother and spends time in the gym. The results were that it actu-ally worked and she recommends women give it a try. This product is available in a spray (€2.89) or roll on (€2.37).

GazetteMUSICMUSICRadio Nova were celebrating last week when it was announced that they have increased their audience by 19% in the latest JNLR radio rat-ings.

The figures, which cover the 12-month peri-od up to the end of June, now give the station 140,000 listeners in Dublin and surrounding counties, cementing its reputation as the most successful radio startup in recent years.

“We’re very excited by this latest set of results”, said CEO Kevin Branigan. “Not only do they show an extremely strong overall result, we have achieved huge growth across all of the key demographics, clearly showing that Nova continues on a strong upward tra-jectory.”

The results come as the station prepares to celebrate its second birthday next month and demonstrate that the station is now one of the major operators in the city.

“In 2010 our goal was to bring something different to Dublin and the commuter belt counties. We’ve managed to entice listen-ers away from other stations by providing a unique mix of music, featuring the greatest-selling artists of all time, along with credible presenters – and it’s clear that this has proven immensely popular,” said Branigan.

Super Nova extends its reign over rock radio in DublinA suitable salute to Philo

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� DEE WOODS

THE Boy Is Back In Town!

The Philip Lynott Exhibition has returned to the exhibition space in St Stephen’s Green in Dublin and is a must-see for music lovers.

You don’t need to be a die-hard Thin Lizzy fan to appreciate the intimate nature of the exhibits on display from all through Philo’s life, from hand-written post-cards and letters sent by Lynott, to school reports and other insights into his childhood.

Of course, his musi-cal life from The Liffey Beats to Skid Row, Thin Lizzy and beyond is told in great detail: through words, sound, pictures

EXHIBITION: AN INTIMATE AND CELEBRATORY PORTRAIT

and video, not to men-tion the memorabilia.

The iconic Thin Lizzy stage backdrop that spells out the band’s name in lights greets you as you walk in the door, and not too far away is a dilapidated bicycle that a young Philip used to get about town.

You’ll see handwrit-ten lyrics from the front-

man, as well as items of his clothing.

The jacket from the Old Town video made my jaw drop when I real-ised, standing next to it, what a tower of man he really was.

Of course, there are plenty of guitars on dis-play as well as all the Lizzy artwork which, in itself, deserves its own

art exhibition. You can also check

out the stars that were touched by the towering Lizzy frontman: tributes from the likes of Bono and Brian Downey play on a big screen, and it dawns on you just how much adversity Philo overcame to firmly carve his name in the history of rock.

Fans from all over the world have flocked to the capital to get a glimpse of the man behind The Rocker, and haven’t been disap-pointed.

The expo recently spent eight months at The O2 in London where it did a roaring trade, and now it’s returned to Philo’s beloved Dublin, just ahead of what would have been his 63rd birth-day, on August 20.

No Waiting For An Alibi, get yourself to this.

The Philip Lynott Exhibition runs from now until the end of September on the top floor of the St. Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre. Check out www.philipl-ynottexhibiton.com


GazetteBUSINESSBUSINESS

RETAIL giants Cur-rys and PC World have merged, and since making that decision, the store has become a one-stop-shop for household appliances and technology goods, with local outlets leading the way in their offerings to their customers.

Declan Ronayne, man-aging director of Currys/PC World, explained the rationale behind the decision when he spoke to Gazette Business last week.

“The decision was taken to merge the brands after several years of trials in Britain. After four years of research, we realised that our customers were very keen on the idea and were asking, when they had known that the stores were essentially the same brand anyway, that we had not done this before.

“The future is now to have both brands under one roof, and our cus-tomers are hugely sup-portive of the move,” said Ronayne.

When the stores were re-branded as Currys/PC World, the Blanchards-town store was the first

to unveil the new brand in Ireland, and according to Blanchardstown store manager, Mark Howard, the merger has been a huge success.

“It’s actually been a phenomenal success because the advantage we have been able to get is all products under one roof. It just means we can offer a much better proposition to the customers, but also a complete package as well.

“We have an exten-sive range – washing machines, kettles, toast-ers all at the appliance department, but also a range of laptops and TVs that we are able to offer as well.”

Innovative

The store has intro-duced some innovative ways to keep custom-ers up to date on what’s on the market. “We try to bring life to technol-ogy so that the customer can see first-hand how you can get the most out of products. It shows how technology can work seamlessly and it’s also affordable,” he told

Retail giant’s merger a huge success

Currys/PC World Blanchardstown store manager, Mark Howard

Guideline for buying new kitchen appliancesONE of Currys / PC World’s points of pride is the

level of help and service their customers receive,

and here they provide a few guidelines when it

comes to buying new kitchen appliances...

� Measure up - Know the dimensions of the space

you are fitting your appliance into. There have been

cases where people buy American-style fridge

freezers and cannot fit them into their house.

� Water source close by – Always make sure if

you are fitting a plumbed appliance that you have a

water source near the appliance.

� Know the energy rating - for example an A+

energy rated appliance will deliver better cost sav-

ings than a standard energy rating.

� Know what the water consumption will be - Some

washing machines will use less water than other

brands. For example, some brands can use as much

as 30% less water than other brands allowing for

significant savings when water charges come into

play. The average sink can use up to three times

more water when washing dishes than a dishwasher.

� Energy savings – If it is a fridge freezer, low frost

freezers can deliver more savings than a frost-free

fridge freezer.

� Guarantee - Is it a reputable brand and does the

brand come with a guarantee?

� Know your gas appliance - If it is a gas appliance,

please note that there is a difference between bot-

tle gas appliances and mains gas appliances. Some

gas appliances may require a conversion kit for

bottle gas. Always get a registered gas fitter to fit

your gas appliance.

� Kitchen design - When you are designing your

kitchen, always look to have an oven at an appro-

priate height. This means that you do not put

unnecessary strain on your back when taking out

that turkey on Christmas Day.

� We know how - Currys deliver nationwide, instal

and recycle. We offer a professional nationwide

delivery and installation service five days a week.

We can remove the packaging for you and we will

remove and recycle your old appliance. We even

deliver on Saturdays.

Gazette Business.The most important

thing for the company is satisfying customers and making their visit an experience, rather than just a shopping trip.

“We try to put the cus-tomer at the core of what we do. One of the things we believe in is not to leave the customer to fend for themselves. Our job is to make it simple and easy for customers to shop but also to be able to pur-chase the most desirable product that better suits them,” said Mark.

The team at Currys/PC World are all trained with the right product knowledge so they are in a position to offer the right advice to custom-ers. “When you come into buy a product it’s

important that you have the right person to give you the product that you need and not just off-load a product they believe is right.

“Then, there is the aftercare service. This

is just as important as the initial service – from our delivery proposition right the way through to offering help and advice. Maybe you don’t know how to use something,

your not getting the best out of it – that’s what we are there for and able to do for you as well.”

In an industry where technology changes every day, Mark said it’s impor-tant that they keep up to date with what is coming on stream.

“We have a compre-hensive library for every product so colleagues have the facility to go and learn about the product, and they also get tested on their knowledge about that product as well.

“A lot of people can be daunted by the prospect of buying technology and our job is to make it a very easy, enjoyable experi-ence so you go out of the door understanding what you got is right for you,” Mark added.


SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS A D V E R T I S E W I T H T H E G A Z E T T E C A L L 6 0 1 0 24 0

LOCALMATTERS

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The decision was taken to merge the brands after several years of trials in Britain- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

BUSINESS

RENT TO BUY MORTGAGES

Q – Can you let me know if there is any move-ment on rent-to-buy mortgages ? We have come to the conclusion we will never qualify for an ordinary mortgage on joint income of € 57,000. Any advice ? Mary – Raheny

A - Dublin City Council were the first in the country

to launch a rent-to-buy scheme of 91 apartments in

Rialto, Glasnevin and Finglas in July 2010.

If you meet the criteria, the banks WILL lend. The

original schemes started with the council’s Afforda-

ble Housing list of over 3,000. So, what are the terms

and conditions ?

• If single, you must have an income more than

€25,000 but less than €55,000

• Couple – between € 25,000 and € 75,000

• You must agree to a rent at the market rate less

20%

• Comes fully furnished too

• You pay two months’ deposit on signing the agree-

ment

• The purchase price is pre-agreed before you move

in

• You then have three years to decide if you want to

buy the property BUT you can back out if you wish

• If you do buy, 80% of the rent you paid over the

three years to the local authority is offset against

that purchase price

• Furnishings are included in that price

So it’s not a bad deal. Check with your local authority

but one issue is mortgage relief.

If you take out the mortgage after January 1, 2013,

you will not be entitled to any tax relief, even if you

are a first-time buyer.

� Contact John with your money questions at [email protected] or visit his website at www.moneydoctor.ie. John Lowe, Fellow of the Institute of Bankers, is founder and managing director of Money Doctor

Supported by AIB


PAUL Mahon is 45 years old and has been involved in music for over 20 years. He is a guitar player, teacher and director of Kilternan School of Music, based in Kilternan, Dublin 18.

His early career took him to the more technical side of the music industry where he worked in stu-dios such as Windmill Lane, Air Studios and Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios in the UK. He ran his own studio design and consultancy business for 12 years here in Ireland and eventually gave it all up to study his passion, classical guitar. He set up the music school about six years ago and the school is growing steadily.

Currently the instruments on offer include piano, guitar, drums, violin, cello, singing, choirs, a wind band, a string orchestra, music theory, recorder, clari-net, flute, saxophone and all brass instruments. They also offer pre-instrumental music classes for junior infant, first and second class kids.

Their mission is to offer music education at the highest quality possible. They try not to make it just exam based, but try their best to offer as many per-formance opportunities as is possible in a year. They want their students to enjoy what they do. But in order to make that succeed, they must understand that it takes hard work and dedication to achieve this.

Paul has an LTCL from Trinity Guildhall London in guitar. He has attended training courses at the Kodály society of Ireland and has spent some time at the Zoltan Kodaly Pedagogicial Institute in Keskemet, Hungary.

Interview: Paul Mahon, Kilternan School of Music

Q&A

Paul’s music school hits perfect pitch

Paul Mahon, guitar player, teacher and director of Kilternan School of Music

Q: When you were a kid, what did you want to be?A: As a young kid all I wanted

to be was a bin man.

Q: What was your first job?A: It was as a maintenance

engineer at Windmill Lane

Studios in Dublin.

Q: And your first pay cheque?A: It was 1985 and I think it

was £80 a week, not much less

than I earn today!

Q: Have you ever done a job you loathed?A: Thankfully no. I have

been really lucky in the small

number of jobs I have had

over the years.

Q: When did you start your present job?A: I’m terrible with years but

as far as I can remember, I

started teaching guitar about

eight years ago.

Q: What is the best thing about your job?A: To see kids take on an

instrument and see them

progress over time.

Q: What part of your working day do you ‘delegate’?A: Up to now I’ve been terrible

at delegating. Some of it is for

financial reasons, as it’s hard

to justify having an adminis-

tration person.

Q: What sport do you follow?A: Sorry - not a great sport

man, I like to watch a rugby

match, providing there’s a beer

involved

Q: What sport can you play?A: I used to be an avid sky-

diver and then took to scuba

diving but that’s all in the past.

I fish a bit, does that count?

Q: What is your guilty music/TV or movie pleasure?A: Priscilla Queen of the

Desert

Q: Who best represents mod-ern Ireland – David Norris or Jedward?A: Jedward, of course.

Q: What music/pictures/movies do you have on your

iPod/iPad?A: No movies, but lots of clas-

sical guitar and lots of kiddy

songs for my pre-instrumental

classes.

Q: Who do you follow on Twit-ter/Facebook?A: Although I have a Facebook

page for the school I’m terrible

at keeping it going.

Q: What was your last Tweet/status update?A: I just took a look, no notifi-

cations, no likes, just nothing,

I’m a disaster!

Q: Describe your dream meal?A: Pan-seared foie gras with

roasted rhubarb, brioche and

a glass of sauternes. Belly of

pork, cabbage and creamed

potatoes and I’ll have some

fine cheese instead of dessert.

Q: Who would you rather have dinner with – Enda Kenny or Dame Edna?A: Dame Edna, please.

Q: Where do you enjoy spend-

ing money frivolously?A: On food. I’m not fat now, I

just love cooking.

Q: How many pairs of shoes do you own?A: This is getting embarrassing

now… two.

Q: What was your worst holi-day experience?A: As a wedding gift from a

former boss of mine, myself

and my wife went to Senegal.

A wonderful gift however it

was a disaster. We missed

Christmas Day at home, got

robbed etc.

Q: Describe your dream holiday?A: Italy, just about anywhere

in Italy.

Q: What would be your dream job?A: I would love to run my own

restaurant.

Q: What do you plan to do when you retire?A: Travel the world occasion-

ally and grow vegetables.

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All of your latest local news, sport, features and pictures are now just a click away

RoadRoadSignsSignsSkoda pairs up with Dogs Trust

Prices for the C-Max Titanium start from €25,011 (model tested €26,911)

A fine mix of luxury and practicality� CORMAC CURTIS

SOMETIMES all it takes is one or two nicely thought-out features to make a car truly memo-rable.

A few weeks back, my life was made immeasur-ably easier by two simple elements of the new Ford C-Max.

Firstly, there is the key-less ignition – why don’t all cars get built this way?

I have driven cars that have ticked all kinds of premium-level boxes, but try finding the hole for the key? Good luck!

Start-stop buttons are the way forward, but, for obvious reasons, don’t keep your keys in a back pocket. The way I see it, for a busy parent, the less they have to do in a car the better.

And with the C-Max Titanium, there are a host of features that make family driving that little bit easier. Second on my list of favourite additions is how the boot is con-trolled. It is truly stagger-ing just how easy it is to

get used to an automatic powered boot.

By pressing a button on the key fob, the large rear boot opens. And I mean opens, it doesn’t just pop up a little at the latch. This is powered by two hydraulic arms that open it completely.

You might think that this would just come in handy when you’re holding bags of shop-ping, but after a day with the C-Max I didn’t lower myself to the menial task of opening it manually at all. This, I loved.

Moving to favourite feature number three, is the child observation mirror.

Yes – a small piece of molded plastic with a reflective surface that pops down from the roof really does make my life easier.

Kids don’t care if you’re driving, they want your attention – all the time.

At least with a wide-angle mirror you can keep an eye on your passengers without flipping your rear-view mirror or strain-ing your neck and back to

see behind you. But let’s not get bogged down in the practicalities.

The model I was driv-ing was the Ford C-Max Titanium.

This car gives the family the chance to enjoy some contemporary luxury along with all the practi-cal stuff.

And it’s not just skin-deep extras. For “info-tainment”, the high-end Sony radio/CD with Bluetooth, external AUX jack and USB port gives you all the plug-and-play features you need.

The majority of this is easily controlled from the steering wheel, while navigating iPhone/iPod music collections is done easily through the dash-board.

To make any journey a comfortable one, the dual-zone electronic automatic temperature control makes combating the unpredictable Irish weather a doddle.

Even though the car I tested didn’t have a leath-er interior, the design of the seats definitely gave it a special feel.

The materials used are of high quality and the contrast stitching was very easy on the eye.

In terms of overall style, you couldn’t exactly accuse Ford of having a unique style signature, but there was certainly a nice mix of brushed steel surfaces with dark panels and a comfortable leather steering wheel.

As I said earlier, less is more, and automatic headlights, wipers and cruise control all make the C-Max Titanium a very attractive option in this segment.

I would certainly rec-ommend the optional integrated sun blinds in the back, along with the privacy glass (that comes as standard), they help keep the kids comfort-able on long journeys.

For anyone consider-ing the C-Max option, be aware that it is due to be released with Ford’s new 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine in October of this year.

I recently test-drove the Focus with this engine and was quite blown

away by its performance – it really does bring the whole discussion of driv-ing characteristics back to the table and, as far as I’m concerned, it would be the obvious choice for the C-Max.

There will be the option of purchasing a C-MAX and Grand C-MAX with either the 100 PS or the 125 PS versions of the 1.0-litre EcoBoost, which was recently named the 2012 International Engine of the Year.

The Ford C-MAX 1.0-litre EcoBoost is expected to deliver 5.1 l/100 km (55.4 mpg) and 117 g/km CO2 across both power outputs, while the Grand C-MAX should achieve 5.2 l/100 km (54.3 mpg) and 119 g/km CO2.

Updated C-MAX and Grand C-MAX will offer in-car connectivity system SYNC with Emergency Assistance; and advanced driver assistance technol-ogies active city stop, lane keeping aid, lane depar-ture warning, auto high beam, driver alert and traffic sign recognition.

GazetteMOTORSMOTORS

Xpose presenter Kirsteen O’Sullivan at the

launch of Skoda’s partnership with Dogs Trust

Ireland


SKODA Ireland has announced its partnership with Dogs Trust, becoming the official vehicle supplier to Dogs Trust Ireland.

As part of the agreement, this year Dogs Trust will be supplied with two Skoda Roomsters to complement its current fleet of Skoda vehicles.

In addition to this, Skoda dealerships will be collecting funds and raising awareness about the Dogs Trust partnership.

The two customised Roomsters will play a key role in the daily operations of the Dogs Trust team, transporting dogs to and from the Rehoming Centre in Finglas.

The Roomster model was selected for the Dogs Trust partnership because of its impressive interior spaciousness and functionality.

Speaking at the launch, Raymond Leddy, head of marketing, Skoda Ireland, said: “Skoda is delighted and proud to launch this partnership with Dogs Trust Ireland. In our role as official vehicle supplier, we hope to drive awareness for Dogs Trust and to help them on their daily journeys assisting abandoned dogs around the country.

“Skoda will also provide support through fundraising initiatives that will be activated through our nationwide network of dealerships throughout the year.”

Mark Beazley, executive director, Dogs Trust added: “We are thrilled that Skoda is partnering with Dogs Trust Ireland. The spaciousness and functionality of our new Roomster vehicles are valuable assets to our daily activities. Skoda’s support is of huge help but sadly thousands of dogs are still abandoned each year by their owners so it is imperative that we continue to raise vital funds and educate the public about canine care.”

Learning basics ofhome improvement

The team at B&Q Liffey Valley are ready to help budding home improvers tackle

every job

It’s happened to us all at some point or other in our lives. There is an unavoidable job to be done, and it looks like it could only be tackled by someone with years of experience. Do you wish you could spruce up a kitchen or lay a patio like a pro?

But the reality is that do-it-yourself really can be done by yourself, and B&Q in Liffey Valley are setting up a service to help the hardy home handy-man and woman to learn the skills they need to tackle those kinds of job.

The You Can Do It centre is offering 12 workshops over the sum-mer, from painting and

wallpapering to plumb-ing and flooring. The workshops are hands-on and range from two-to four-hour sessions, all under the guidance of B&Q DIY experts, who will pass on tips of the trade to get the best fin-ish for your job.

Easier

A B&Q spokesman said: “We can make it easier for you to do DIY with confidence in your own home, mak-ing dreams a reality and helping you tick those nagging jobs off your list.

“In the workshops, we’ll show custom-ers step-by-step how to tackle jobs, and let you have a go yourself under

the guidance of our DIY experts.”

In addition to the workshops, there are more than 20 classes to choose from.

For younger enthu-siasts, B&Q are also hosting Kids Can Do It classes, which let chil-dren collaborate and learn DIY skills that will last them a lifetime at the Liffey Valley store, too.

“Kids classes will give you and your young apprentice the satisfac-tion of making some-thing from scratch and learning new skills along the way.

“We’ll show them step-by-step how to make something from scratch, and let kids have a go

yourself under the guid-ance of our DIY experts.

“We’ll teach them new skills, such as sawing, drilling, gluing and nail-ing, and the courses last around an hour, and cost €5.”

Push a button

In addition to their in-store offering, B&Q also have over 100 how-to videos available at the push of a button on their YouTube channel, help-ing customers to com-plete home improvement projects with ease.

Whether it’s help with fixing a new door or ideas for a decking or even learning how to hang wallpaper, the B&Q YouTube channel has all

DO-IT-YOURSELF: CLASSES TEACHING SKILLS TO BEGINNERS

PROPERTY Partners O’Brien Swaine are bringing 88 Grangeview Road, Clondalkin, a well-appointed three-bedroom semi-detached property, to the market for an asking price of €139,950.

Brought to the market in show-house condition, this property has recently been refurbished and re-painted.

It also boasts many extras including PVC double glazed windows and a gas central heating system.

A c c o m m o d a t i o n comprises an entrance hall with an alarm point and under-stair storage. The living room boasts a feature fireplace with a gas-fire fitted, a TV point, and double doors to the dining area.

The kitchen and dining area has wall and floor-mounted units, plumbed for stainless steel sink unit

and a washing machine, and patio doors to rear garden.

Upstairs comprises a landing with access to the partially-floored attic, and a hot press, while two of the three bedrooms have built-in wardrobes. The family bathroom which contains a WC, a wash-hand basin, shower unit with tiled surround.

The rear garden is an area with a fully-walled lawn and planted areas with mature trees and hedges, and is very pri-vate.

Grangeview Road is close to the M50 and the Naas Road and is also close to all local ameni-ties.

Viewing is highly rec-ommended, and can be arranged by contacting Paul O’Brien at Property Partners O’Brien Swaine in the Omac Business Centre in Clondalkin on 01 457 8909.

Grangeview worth a view

GazettePROPERTYPROPERTY2 Aug - 16 Aug 2012 GAZETTE 29

Call our NEWS TEAM on 60 10 240 or email [email protected]

GOT A STORY?

the ideas and know-how for people to get started on those home improve-ment, DIY and gardening jobs step-by-step.

To find out more infor-mation about You Can Do It workshops logo onto www.diyclasses.ie

For any enquiries

regarding booking a place on the You Can Do It or Kids Can Do It classes, call 1800 812993.

R1

The walled city offers a Legen-derry welcome � NATALIE BURKE

ALMOST gone are the days when booking a flight was a prerequisite for a “weekend away”, and it seems that in its place has arrived an appetite to see what our own Emerald Isle has to offer and to explore a land that is, for a lot of us, remarkably unknown.

Perched on the north west of Ireland just three hours from Dub-lin and nestled snug in its full historic glory on the River Foyle, Derry is a city in the midst of a significant transforma-tion.

Unlike most cities, where times gone by are subtly masked by a more modern age, Derry’s his-tory is pretty much writ-ten on the walls. Not to be too literal.

As a first-time visi-

tor to the city of many names (Derry, London-derry, Stroke City – a combination of the two – and the Walled City), I couldn’t help but get the sense of a city ready to move on, while never wanting to quite forget its past.

While the bustling city streets were full of locals and holiday-makers in town for the homecoming Clipper Festival, there is no doubt the 400-year-old history and more recent troubling times have left their mark - most dis-tinctly, perhaps, in what have now become icon-ic murals painted on the Bogside of town.

Arriving a few min-utes before dinner, we checked in at the four-star Tower Hotel, the only hotel located within the historic city walls.

As well as 90 contem-porary bedrooms, the Tower Hotel also boasts a stylish setting in its restaurant and bar, a hotspot with locals and tourists alike.

Having come pre-pared for the worst of the Irish weather, our coats took an unex-pected rain check when the sun paid a fortunate visit, just in time for the Clipper Homecom-ing Festival – one of the many celebrations

planned for action in Derry.

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race made Derry a port of call on its homecom-ing leg from Nova Sco-tia, after sailing 40,000 miles around the world.

The walls of the city are Ireland’s only com-pletely intact city walls and the ideal location to walk in the foot-steps of times gone by while appreciating the historic landscape, the backdrop of the Don-egal hills and the River Foyle.

T h e b r a n d n e w Peace Bridge, still shin-ing since its unveiling only last year, links the Walled City to the much-celebrated rede-velopment at Ebrington Square.

Once a British Mili-tary Parade Ground, the barracks have been reborn as a creative hub for the city.

A city full of culture, it’s fitting that Derry has been chosen to host the UK City of Culture celebrations next year.

“There was music there in the Derry air,” Phil Coulter once told us and it appears not much has changed - in that regard at least.

Emerging from the very streets of Derry has come former Eurovision Song Contest winner, Dana, Girls Aloud star-

let Nadine Coyle and Snow Patrol’s Johnny McDaid.

After a night’s sleep and a nightcap at the resident’s bar, break-fast brought with it a local Derry man called Martin McCrossan, a celebrity of the city, it seemed.

With his knowledge and passion for his city, the native took us on an award-winning tour of the city walls, once enjoyed – I’m told – by Mr Will Ferrell himself.

His intriguing tales led us to visit the Story of Derry at the Tower Museum, before stroll-ing to the muralled landscape of the Bog-side, past the raw mes-sages rising above the cityscape and on to the museum of Free Derry.

Established by those closest to the victims of what has become known as Bloody Sun-day, the museum is home to remnants of that historic day; tragic letters and perhaps one of the most symbolic memories of the day, the famous white hand-kerchief waved by a dis-traught priest.

The festival weekend

Few places in these islands

the steep hills overlooking

A view from the top of one of Derry’s walls looking down on the Bogside

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

‘I couldn’t help but get the sense of a city ready to move on, while never wanting to quite forget its past’- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A giant reason to visit the North as most popular attraction gets brand new visitor centre NORTHERN Ireland’s most popular attrac-tion and only UNESCO world heritage site, the Giant’s Causeway in County Antrim, has just unveiled its new must-see visitor centre worthy of the site’s giant reputation.

In celebration, the FLAGS at the Giant’s Causeway will be running August 20 – November 4.

The unique installation by German artist Han Peter Kuhn will be embedded into the dramatic natural landscape and a series of flags randomly positioned along the banks of the cliff face - a one-off experience for any family.

When visiting the new Giant’s Causeway Visitor Centre or the unique FLAGS installa-tion why not turn your trip into a short break and take advantage of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board’s special accommodation offer at the Bayview Hotel, Portballintrae, County Antrim, which includes two nights’ accommo-dation with breakfast and one evening meal from £109pps?

For further information contact the North-ern Ireland Tourist Board on 1850 230 230.

Escape and experience character and charm aplenty at thefour-star Ballygally CastleESCAPE to the northern coast this summer for a charming castle retreat in the four-star Ballygally Castle and enjoy overnight accom-modation and an evening main course in the exquisite Garden Restaurant from only £80 per couple.

With the enchanting 17th century hotel regarded as one of the most luxurious hotels in Antrim, Ballygally Castle is full of character and charm boasting 44 beautiful bedrooms and many of the castle’s original features including the renowned Ghost Room.

The famous Glens of Antrim and the popu-lar Giant’s Causeway destinations are just a stone’s throw away from the hotel, which overlooks the golden sands of Ballygally Bay.

Superb scenery can also be enjoyed from the many coastal and glen walks nearby. The offer is available on a room only basis and is valid until August 31, 2012.

To book or for further information go to www.hastingshotels.com/ballygally-castle or call 048 2858 1066.

FastTravel

GazetteTTRAVELRAVEL30 GAZETTE 2 Aug – 16 Aug 2012

can offer such a compelling and unique experience for the visitor as the Walled City of Derry on its setting on

the wide sweep of the River Foyle

Enjoy a relaxing, indulgent weekend of escapism and pampering in the Slieve Donard Resort and Spa IF ever there was an excuse to treat yourself, the magnificent Slieve Donard Resort and Spa in County Down could be just the ticket.

Indulge in three, two or one night luxury breaks from only £80 per person including a full Irish breakfast, dinner in the Oak Restaurant and full use of the spa facilities. The Slieve Donard Resort is one of Ireland’s finest spa hotels and the perfect place for a relaxing, indulgent weekend of escapism and pampering. Lie back in the lounge and enjoy roaring open fires, catch up in the cosy bar or if you’re feeling adventurous take a hike up the close-by Mourne Mountains. Two-night stays start from £145 per person and a three-night stay starts from £200 per person. Offer is per person sharing and is avail-able from Sunday to Thursday and is valid throughout 2012.

For further information log on to www.hastingshotels.com/slieve-donard-resort-and-spa.

TravelBriefs

Edited by Natalie Burke

2 Aug – 16 Aug 2012 SWORDS GAZETTE 31

was a taster for other celebrations set to hit the city over the next year, and brought with it the continental Walled City Market which stretched along the river side, just moments from where the Clipper boats had docked.

A meander through the stalls brought to l i gh t in ternat iona l cheeses, French pastries and Spanish paella, as well as handmade jew-ellery, local crafts and artwork, before we took a sip of champagne aboard the visiting Earl of Pembroke Tall Ship, a vessel with Hollywood on the front page of its resume.

A short stroll across the Peace Bridge took us back once again to Ebrington Square, for open air performances

of the Saw Doctors and the Undertones, before the fireworks on the Foyle lit up the river and the city behind it.

The poignant crackle of the festival fireworks were reminiscent of the troubled sound that at one time had filled the Derry air, but a touch-ing reminder that the future of the city is a bright and optimistic one, and has an extraor-dinary story to tell.

For more information on the fantastic events taking place in 2012 contact the Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) on callsave 1850 230 230, visit the Tour-ist Information Centre, Suffolk Street, Dublin 2 to avail of its free advice and booking service or click on www.ni2012.com.

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race made Derry

a port of call


Special NeedsOffering information on disabilities and special needs

FINDING products and toys that can assist children with their specific needs can be dif-ficult, frustrating and time consuming but Thinking Toys, an Irish online business, is striving to eliminate those issues for parents of children with special needs.

Since it was first set up, Thinking Toys has helped raise awareness of a range of products that can bring specific benefits to children with special needs or learning difficulties.

Established by a family who felt the frustra-tion first hand when trying to source suitable products to help their daughter’s special needs, the business has now become a one-stop shop for these toys.

Today, it has the most extensive range of such products available in Ireland, competi-tive pricing and carry a wide range of stock available for immediate shipping, whenever possible.

Thinking Toys constantly liaise with thera-pists, parents and children to identify gaps in the market and strive to fill them, and current-ly have a catalogue with 2,500 products.

The business will also demonstrate and display their products anywhere in Ireland to groups of therapists, teachers and support groups free of charge, and will be featuring a series of special Christmas toy shows across Ireland later in the year.

For more information and to keep up to date with new products, see www.thinkingtoys.ie.

Special toys for special children

PLAY TIME: A UNIQUE ONLINE SERVICE

The National Council for Special Education is supporting the inclusion of children with special needs in mainstream education

Supporting schoolsEVERY child has a right to an education appro-priate to their needs and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) underlines the importance of educating a child with special edu-cational needs in a main-stream class or a special class in a mainstream

primary or post-primary school.

The NCSE has a role in helping support schools in educating children in mainstream or special schools and also has a role to support parents in making decisions about their child’s education. With over 80 special edu-cational needs organisers (SENOs) working in 40 areas across the country, the NCSE works locally with schools and parents

in this way. With the NCSE pro-

viding all schools with the additional educa-tional supports they need to help children with special educational needs receive an appro-priate education, schools across Ireland can apply for resource teachers and special needs assistants (SNAs).

Resource teachers pro-vide additional teaching capacity to mainstream

primary and post-pri-mary schools while SNAs assist in the care of pupils with disabili-ties, such as those with medical needs, a physi-cal or sensory disability or where their behaviour is a danger to themselves or others.

If your child has more significant special edu-cational needs, they may need to attend a special class in a mainstream school or a special school

where the NCSE allo-cates the teaching and SNA supports to these settings.

Schools may also request specialist equip-ment, assistive technol-ogy and special school transport arrangements.

One of the NCES’s many functions is to provide information and advice to parents of chil-dren with special educa-tional needs and SENOs are available to provide parents with information to help make important decisions about their child’s education.

The NCSE has also produced an informa-tion booklet for parents to help you understand more about your child’s special educational needs, how these needs are assessed and the sup-ports available to your child in school.

The information book-let for parents is available on the NCSE website or you can obtain it by call-ing the head office on 046 948 6400.

Contact details for the council’s SENOs are available at www.ncse.ie.


A Special effort for inspiring athletes

Special Olympians Claire Adams and Lynn Conroy

WITH all eyes on Lon-don and the endeavours of our local Olympians, it shouldn’t be forgotten that another group of sporting heroes must be hailed for their determi-nation and commitment.

Special Olympics pro-vides a year-round pro-gramme of sports train-ing and competition for people with intellectual disabilities, and it ena-bles athletes to achieve and win not only in sport but in life too.

Dublin falls under the remit of Special Olympics Eastern Region. Special Olympics Eastern Region extends from Balbriggan in north County Dublin to south County Dublin, Bray and along the east coast to Arklow.

There are 2,600 ath-letes participating in 87 clubs in Special Olym-pics Eastern Region.

In addition to offering

a comprehensive sports training and competition programme for people with an intellectual dis-ability, Special Olympics also offers an Athlete Leadership Programme (ALPs), which offers workshops and training programmes at which athletes learn life skills such as public speaking, cookery, presentation skills, communication skills and computer skills. Eighty-nine athletes cur-rently participate in the Athlete Leadership Pro-gramme in the greater Dublin area, and these new skills enable athletes to become more inde-pendent and encourage them to become more involved in their local community.

In addition, the ALPs programme enables ath-letes to assist Special Olympics to advocate for the programme particu-

SPECIAL OLYMPICS: CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS AND LEADERS

DISCOVERING your child has a special need or disability for the first time can be daunting but Informing Families is a dedicated website which aims to provide support and advice to parents.

Funded by the Health Service Executive and set up as part of the Informing Famil ies Project, the website not only supports parents but offers guidelines for healthcare workers in supporting families at this time.

For any parent learn-ing their child has been diagnosed with a dis-ability, or for parents who worried that their child might have a dis-ability, the Informing

Informing and supporting ONLINE SUPPORT: A NEW WEBSITE FOR PARENTS AND FAMILIES

Families website offers information on learn-ing your child has a dis-ability, understanding what early intervention services are, finding out about the professionals you may meet, getting advice about search-

ing for health informa-tion on the Internet and learning about the entitlements and ben-efits that you and your family may be entitled to receive.

Katherine O’Leary, a parent and chairperson

Katherine O’Leary, Chairperson of the Informing

Families Project with her son Diarmuid

of the Informing Fami-lies Project, welcomes new visitors and parents to the website, saying: “Everyone deals with the news of their child’s diagnosis differently. The timing of the diagnosis might also be different for everyone. It could come during pregnancy or after the birth of the baby, or, in some cases, it could be months or years later.

“Whenever it happens, remember that there is a lot of information out there. Sometimes this can feel like it is just too much to take in, so take your time with the infor-mation.”

Katherine is a mother to four children, two of

whom have disabilities. “They are both now adults, so take it from me, you will cope and you will be happy again. It just takes some time to adjust to the new path ahead.

“I often wonder why I cried so much in those first few weeks. I now have many occasions to cry with happiness and pride in their achieve-ments. Take one day at a time and, gradually, you will start to enjoy your baby, while meeting the extra needs that your son or daughter may have,” she said.

For more informa-tion, visit www.inform-ingfamilies.ie or call 091792316.

larly in presentations to schools, universities and in the corporate sector. Athletes are very strong advocates of the pro-gramme and can demon-strate, better than anyone else, the changes Special Olympics make to their lives and the lives of their families.

Special Olympics Eastern Region is always looking for mentors to come on board to sup-

port athletes who wish to participate in the Athlete Leadership Pro-gramme. Mentors work closely with the athlete to develop their skills and support them as they par-ticipate in various ALPs activities including the ALPs award scheme. Key responsibilities include attendance at meetings/workshops and working directly with the athlete to assist them in improv-

ing their writing, public speaking skills and with any projects they might be involved in.

If you’re interested in getting involved in the athlete leadership pro-gramme or any other aspect of the Special Olympics Eastern Region programme, contact Spe-cial Olympics Eastern Region directly on 01 891 2000 or email [email protected].

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SOME of the best young American football play-ers from the United States are heading across the Atlantic to kick off their new season in Dub-lin - and Gazette readers have a chance to be there thanks to an exclusive tickets competition.

Top high school teams Loyola Academy from Chicago and Jesuit Dal-las Prep from Texas will clash at 4pm on Friday, August 31, at Donny-

brook Stadium, followed by college teams John Carroll University and St Norbert College at 7.30pm the same night.

Among the highlights on offer on Dublin’s southside, Loyola won 12 straight games in Chi-cago’s tough Catholic League last season before losing in the state cham-pionship game. They are coached by former NFL Buffalo Bills linebacker John Holecek. Oppo-nents Jesuit won eight games and lost two in

Dallas, arguably the most competitive and talented area when it comes to high school gridiron.

Parnell Park sees the Kent School from Connecticut take on the National School of American Football all-star team from the UK at 4pm before one of Amer-ica’s nationally-ranked high schools Hamilton from Arizona face Notre Dame High School from California at 7.30pm.

Notre Dame are tradi-tionally one of the strong-

COMPETITION: WIN A PLACE AT GIFT 2012 IN DONNYBROOK STADIUM OR PARNELL PARK

John Carroll University (pictured here in blue) of Ohio will be facing off against St Norbert College of Wisconsin in

Donnybrook Stadium on Friday, August 31

US players touch down for football American style

est teams in California, while in the past 14 years Hamilton have won 171 games and lost only 15 and have produced sev-eral prominent college and NFL players, includ-ing current Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs.

The Global Ireland Football Tournament (GIFT) event will also feature a parade from St Stephen’s Green to Trin-ity College featuring all teams, bands and cheer-leaders at 5pm on Thurs-day, August 31 and a pep rally at 6pm.

We have two pairs of tickets for the GIFT 2012 to give away for either Donnybrook Stadium or Parnell Park. Just answer this simple question to be entered into a draw to win: How many points are awarded for scoring a touchdown?

Email your answers and your contact details to [email protected] with the subject line “GIFT 2012”

If you are not lucky enough to win, tickets are available online at www.Tickets.ie/GIFT2012 priced €15.

GazetteSPORTTRACK STARS:TRACK STARS:DSD quartet make DSD quartet make club and Irish club and Irish Olympic history Olympic history Page 36Page 36



GazetteSportSportFastSport

Staunton qualifies for Skins fourball finalEMMET Staunton enjoyed a homecoming suc-cess as he and Rod Park qualified for the Skins PGA Fourball Championship Final.

Staunton, from Castleknock Golf Club, and Sligo-based Park tied at the top of the leader-board at the Irish region qualifying event held at Headfort Golf Club.

They carded a two under par round of 70 along with Peter Hanna (Lurgan) and Paul Stevenson (Portadown).

And they will join three other qualifiers at the £28,750 final which will be staged at Forest Pines Golf Club in Lincolnshire between October 3-5.

Staunton admitted he was on familiar territory at the Co Meath venue.

He said: “I played there as an amateur so I know the course well. I suppose it’s a bit like coming home - and I actually live very close by.

“But it’s probably been about 10 years since I left. I still have connections there.

“On this occasion though, the course played a lot longer than I remember it and although the conditions were good, it was windy and I think that was reflected in the scores.

“It’s a huge course when you’re playing off the blue tees. So a little local knowledge comes in handy.”

The pair did not take their place in the final last year. But Staunton says both he and Scottish player Park will be appearing at the Lincolnshire course this time.

He said: “We’ve never actually played in the final before, but we’ll be there.

“I’ve played there as a PGA assistant but never in the Fourball Championship. Rod’s a very good player, he was solid at Headfort.”

The final qualifying place had to be decided by a play-off with Mark Cribben (Carr Golf Services) and Greg Massey (Hermitage) winning through to the final.

� STEPHEN FINDLATER

[email protected]

DUNDRUM South Dub-lin AC will enjoy another memorable week in their storied history as four of the club’s athletes compete at the Olympic Games in London.

It makes the Marlay club the best represented of any sports club in Ire-land while also beating their previous highest involvement when Noel Berkeley, Nick Sweeney and Victor Costello lined out in Barcelona.

This time around, the quartet includes mara-thon queens Linda Byrne and Ava Hutchinson, high jumper Deirdre Ryan – the Gazette Sport Star for 2011 – and Claire Bergin who will be part of the 4x400 metre relay team.

And club PRO and famed trainer Eddie McDonagh says it is a

momentous occasion for the club.

“This puts us onto another level. It’s very exciting,” he told Gazette-Sport.

“All of them have been in the club for many years, all from our local base which gives us a great deal of satisfaction.”

Ryan looks set to lead the charge following her incredible performance at last year’s world champi-onships in Daegu, Korea when she broke her per-sonal and Irish high jump record with the stand-out Irish performance of the world championship.

The Ballinteer woman makes it into the history books as Ireland’s first ever female Olympic high jumper. Clearing 1.95m in Korea netted her a sixth place finish. Her event starts on August 9.

Byrne and Hutchinson will be the first pair to

taste action in the Games this Sunday as they run in the opening event of the athletics competition, rac-ing around the streets of London.

It is another feather in the cap of DSDAC’s incredible long-distance running regimen.

Both Byrne and Hutch-inson were regular run-ners for the club as they ran up an incredible 15 consecutive national jun-ior women’s cross-coun-try titles before moving into adult competition.

McDonagh says Lon-don can be a big stepping stone for the two young athletes.

“They’ll all be look-ing for personal bests. The African dominance means we’ll be pushed to show in the final stages. But Ava and Linda are both young, ‘next-time’ people and are in great shape and will run very

well and, with any bit of luck, will improve for Rio in 2016.”

The former was among the first qualifiers for the Games when she became the Irish national cham-pion in the 2011 Dublin city marathon, beating the Olympic A standard of two hours and 37 min-utes.

Hutchinson qualified with the fastest Irish time, beating the A time by 90 seconds at the 2012 Chev-ron Houston marathon in January.

It almost became a DSDAC one-two-three as Maria McCambridge - a club member for over 15 years but now based in Letterkenny - beat the Olympic time in Rome.

But, in the end, 36-year-old McCambridge was missed out as Caitriona Jennings, from Rathfarn-ham AC also made the cut-off in Rotterdam.

Athletics Ireland only had three places to dole out and Jennings got the nod.

For Byrne and Hutchin-son, their race gets under way at 11am on Sunday.

McCambridge decided against an appeal, accept-ing the tough decision but, for Claire Bergin, who she runs with in the 4x400m relay was a situ-ation twice contested by Caitriona Cuddihy and Joanna Mills.

For Bergin, her partici-pation is another one for the record books, being the first female to com-pete for Ireland at both the summer and winter Games. In 2010 she was part of Ireland’s superb women’s bobsleigh team at the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

Her heats take place on Thursday, August 9 with the final taking place the following day.

Historic week for DSD

ATHLETICS: DSD IRELAND’S MOST OLYMPIC CLUB FOR LONDON

DSDAC’s Olympic quartet for the 2012 Olympic Games: Linda Byrne, Claire Bergin, Ava Hutchinson and Deirdre Ryan


�STARof theMONTHFINN LYNCHTHE NATIONAL Yacht Club sailor produced an amazing performance to grab a sil-ver medal at the WSAF world youth sailing championships, held in Dun Laoghaire in July. The 16-year-old was a dis-tant third before a remark-able comeback in the final race of the regatta against sailors up to two years older than him.

HOME turf can often provide the edge in performance and so it proved this month for our sporting stars.

For Finn Lynch, knowing the waterways and waves of Dun Laoghaire harbour may well have given him the inside knowledge against an international field as the world junior sailing championships, an edge which meant he kept the faith when silver looked out of the question on the final day of racing

and leapt from third to second.For Gerry and Robert Moran,

their experience of the famous Cas-tle course where they are members proved their edge, winning an All-Ireland title ahead of a huge cast of challengers.

Let us know about your achieve-ments in sport, so that the Gazette can tell the rest of Dublin. Contact us on 01 601 0240 or [email protected] to tell us all about your successes.

GERRY AND ROBERT MORANCASTLE golf club pairing Gerry and Robert Moran overcame a field of over 500 to claim the annual All-Ireland Father and Son com-petition. After five rounds of competition, they eventually held their nerve on the first playoff hole to get the better of the Whelan combination from Baltinglass in the final.

TEAMof theMONTH

2012 DUBLIN SPORTS AWARDS JULY WINNERS

Volunteer training scheme� [email protected]

THE UCD Athlet ic Union Council and Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown Sports Partnership have introduced a sports vol-unteer development programme in conjunc-tion with the UCD Cen-tre for Sports Studies.

The aim is to equip volunteers with the skills to contribute to the development of their club and will assist participants to become positive roles models within the community

and sports clubs. Programme partici-

pants must be over 18 years of age and cur-rently be, or aspire to become, actively involved in an organisa-tional or administrative capacity in a sports club within Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County or UCD club.

Twenty places will be made available in 2012. Ten of these places will be reserved for those from sports clubs based in the County and ten for members of UCD

sports clubs. The pro-gramme fee is €75 and covers all of the courses and workshops.

These include sports first aid, child protec-tion, sports inclusion, volunteer recruitment, club finances, sports governance , spor t s sponsorship, communi-cations and media and event management.

The programme will run from September to December 2012 with all sessions taking place in UCD.

Participants will be

required to attend all ten workshops and seminars over three eve-nings and two Saturdays totalling 20 hours.

For more infomation and to download an application form, go to www.dlrsportspartner-ship.ie.

You can also contact Dun Laoghaire-Rath-down Sports Partner-ship at [email protected] or 01 271 9502.

Completed forms must be returned Sep-tember 7.

www.gazettegroup.comAll of your latest local news, sport, features and pictures are now just a click away

www.gazettegroup.com

Fins’ festival: Lawless park run girls’ day FINGALLIANS will host a Gaelic football festival for juvenile girls’ teams on August 18 from 11am to 4pm. This celebration for U-10 girls

involves teams from across Leinster, with 150 children tak-ing part. This annual event was last held in Fingallians in the 1980s and its revival promises a very enjoyable and successful day of sport.

These volunteers were honoured for their outstanding contributions to sport in Ireland in the Aviva Stadium

VOLUNTEERS: UCD AND COUNCIL TO RUN COURSEDublinGazetteNewspapers


� [email protected]

SWORDS swimmer Barry Murphy bowed out of the 100m breaststroke event at the London Aquatics Centre last weekend at 2012 Games, finishing eighth in his heat with a time of 1.01.57.

Despite clocking his third best time ever in the 100m breaststroke, Murphy has found him-self out of his preferred event, and will now look forward to the 50m free-style, which he will par-ticipate in on Thursday, August 2.

Speaking after miss-ing out on a place in the quarter-finals, Murphy

said: “Thankfully, it is not my only event, I’ve got the 50m freestyle where I’ve been showing good speed all year.”

“I can forget about breaststroke now and start concentrating on the freestyle, which I haven’t been doing for a week or two.”

Earl McCarthy, one of Ireland’s swimming greats of the 1992 Games, noted how Murphy, irre-spective of his perspective and other events, would be disappointed with the outcome in the breast-stroke.

“This is really disap-pointing for Barry. I’m sure he’s going to be very

disappointed with the result.

“All credit to him as an athlete, but this is not what he would have been looking for coming into the Games.

“If he had swum a little bit better than his best, he could’ve got through to the semi-final, and look-ing at the other results, that would’ve actually worked for him.

“But it didn’t go his way and it’s a very dis-appointing day for such a talented athlete,” said McCarthy.

Veteran of the 2000 and 2008 Games and close friend to Murphy, Andrew Bree also sound-

ed off on Murphy’s early exit: “The 100m is a very tough event, you have to go all out for that minute and Barry seemed to be in amongst it for the first 15 metres, but you have to keep that pace through the first 25 to 50 metres.

“You have to keep relaxed and the swim needs to be smooth so you can give it your all in the last 50 metres, and we saw he just dropped in the last 15.

“I know exactly what he was going through and his whole body would’ve been [hurting] in the last 15 metres. It’s a very tough swim but I’m sure he’ll be disappointed,”

said Bree. Melanie Nocher, who

also failed to qualify from her heats, went on record earlier this week to defend her own per-formances and that of her team mates, who many believe to be out of their depth in the swimming events.

“We may get criticised for not swimming our best times in our heats, but at the same time there’s only 20 per cent of people overall who do personal bests at the Olympics and that’s very rarely in the morning, so you have to take that into consideration,” said the Wexford swimmer.

Murphy disappoints in heatBarry Murphy now focusing on his other event, the 50m freestyle

Michael Toft Cup: Swords to take on Shels at BalhearySWORDS Celtic will play a challenge match against Airtricity League pow-erhouse Shelbourne for the Michael Toft Memorial Perpetual Cup challenge match between on August 4 at the club’s Balheary home at 3pm as part of their Leinster Senior League preseason prepa-rations.Pictured at the launch of the game this

week were Larry Clare, Swords Celtic senior manager; Michael Toft Senior and Ray Kelly, Swords Celtic chairman.

GazetteSportSportOLYMPICS: SWORDS SWIMMER MISSES OUT ON SEMI-FINALS CLUB NOTICEBOARD

ANOTHER great week-

end for our adult foot-

ballers with wins for

both our intermedi-

ate and junior football

teams. Our inters beat

Ballyboughal on Sat-

urday evening and the

juniors beat Wild Geese

on Sunday morning.

We had seven repre-

sentatives on the Fin-

gal minor hurling team

that played in the All-

Ireland hurling blitz in

Monaghan. Fingal man-

aged to win all three

games, beating Tyrone,

Monaghan and Louth

to reach the final of

the competition, which

will be played over the

coming weeks.

The next Dublin SFC

match is against Laois

and it will be played in

Croke Park on Satur-

day, August 4 at 7pm.

The Lotto jackpot

was €6,000. The num-

bers drawn were 4, 12,

15, 22. There was no

winner. The €50 win-

ners Con Murphy and

Eoin, Cillian, Callum and

Evan c/o Mary Murphy.

Next week’s jackpot will

be €6,100.

FINGALLIANSTHE PAUL Flynn football

school of excellence

for boys and girls aged

12 to 16 takes place on

August 7 to 10. Coach-

ing will be carried out

by Dublin intercounty

players and the cost

of the camp is €50.

T h e c l u b w i l l b e

hosting an U-10 foot-

ball festival on August

11 (boys) and August 18

(girls).

A j u n i o r h u r l i n g

quarter-final between

Fingall ians and Ki l-

macud Crokes will be

played in Silver Park

on Wednesday, August

15 at 7pm.

Our club camogie

section is approach-

ing its first year anni-

versary with three

teams active in the

Dublin leagues. We are

act ively recruit ing

new players and men-

tors.

Training is on Tues-

days nights for U-13s

at 6pm in Balheary,

with all teams playing

on Thursday nights at

6.30pm, again in Bal-

heary.

For further infor-

mation, contact San-

dra O’Brien on 087 582

9821 or sandraobr-

[email protected]

ST FINIANS

THE SENIOR team had

a good win last week

in the league against

St Mary’s, but were

beaten by Oliver Plun-

kett’s on Saturday.

All tickets for All-

Ireland quarter- final

vs Laois in Croke Park

must be collected and

paid for on Fr ida y

night from 9 to 10pm in

the bar of Kettle’s.

We want your old

m o b i l e p h o n e s t o

upgrade our defibril-

lator. There is a box in

the clubhouse where

you can leave them, or

please bring them to

Kettles when you are

collecting your tickets

on Friday.

We extend our sym-

pathies to the Walker

family on the death

of Betty last week.

We would also like to

send our sympathies

to the family of Liam

Andrews and to Car-

mel Sammon and her

family on their recent

bereavement.

A n y o n e w h o i s

interested in apply-

ing for the job of club

caretaker and main-

tenance person, com-

mencing the first week

in September, please

contact John McCa-

rthy on 087-6599348,

this is run in conjunc-

tion with FAS, all appli-

cants must be over 25

and must be signed on

for at least one year.

FINGAL RAVENS

swords

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