GAA volunteers from 10 different counties were this week honoured at the Volunteers in Sport awards hosted by the Federation of Irish Sport, in partnership with EBS, in Farmleigh House, Dublin.

The Awards celebrate the 450,000 volunteers contributing to sport in clubs and communities across Ireland which equates to approximately 37.3 million hours of volunteering across Ireland’s 14,000 registered sports clubs and associations.

Members of the public, sports clubs and governing bodies were invited to nominate an individual whose contributions to sport has made a real difference to their community, club or county.

The award recipients were selected by a judging panel consisting of 12 individuals drawn from sports administration, the volunteer community and media, including former Director General of the GAA, Paraic Duffy, The Irish Times sports journalist and activist, Joanne O’Riordan and former Irish rugby international, Trevor Ringland.

The GAA is Ireland’s largest sporting organisation and is built on an ethos of selfless volunteerism.

It’s a reflection of the hard work being done in communities across the country that 10 of the 32 volunteers honoured this year are GAA club volunteers.

Speaking at the awards, Mary O’Connor, CEO of the Federation of Irish Sport, said: “Sport matters. It contributes to our health, binds us together as a community and supports the economy, while bringing a sense of pride to us all.

“This would not be possible without the volunteers who share their time and expertise on pitches, tracks, gym floors and swimming pools across the country each and every week. To this end, the Volunteers in Sport Awards is an opportunity to recognise and celebrate these volunteers.

“I would like to extend my congratulations to all our award winners and to thank Minister Griffin for attending our awards ceremony and taking the time out to help honour our award recipients.”

Commenting from the awards ceremony, Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Brendan Griffin, TD, said:

“It was a real honour for me to attend the Volunteers in Sport Awards. As somebody who has been involved in sport at an amateur level since I was a child myself, I have always marvelled at the commitment that so many club members show to their communities up and down the country.

“It is a real privilege to recognise the contribution made by those who do so much for others in fulfilling the less glamourous but most definitely vital and often overlooked tasks involved in almost any sport you can imagine. The men and women honoured today may not be household names across the country but in their own communities they are real treasures. I was delighted to speak to many of them today. My thanks to the Federation of Irish Sport and all those who made this ceremony such a memorable occasion for all the recipients.”

Des Fitzgerald, CEO of EBS said: “EBS has been involved in communities in Ireland for over 80 years and are delighted to reignite our activity in communities around the country by supporting the 2019 Volunteers in Sports Awards with The Federation of Irish Sport. Through a new partnership with The Federation of Irish Sport we are delighted to celebrate volunteers in sport in Ireland and I would like to congratulate all the recipients of the 2019 Volunteers in Sports Awards. At EBS we know that our biggest asset is our people who work with customers in the community. That’s why EBS is delighted to champion the army of volunteers in sport that make sure sport happens throughout Ireland every day.”

GAA club volunteer award-winners

James McLornan – St Comgalls GAA (Antrim)

Paul Powell Enright – Armagh Harps (Armagh)

Tommy Murphy – Naomh Eoin Myshall (Carlow)

Mark Lawlor – Belturbit Rory O’Moores (Cavan)

Seamus Spaight – Meelick (Clare)

Liam Evans – St. James’, Clonakilty (Cork)

Carol Murray – Longford Slashers (Longford)

Gerry Tuohy – Calry St. Joseph’s (Sligo)

Martin Quinn – Galtee Rovers (Tipperary)

Eugene Dolan – St Pauls GFC Clonmellon (Westmeath)