Isle of Man TT death: "Perhaps the greatest insanity of all is not to flirt with death, but to trundle through life assuming you can avoid death:"

Scene after Gorse Lea race was red flagged

Derek Brien is the third. This year, he’s the third. The 36-year-old died at the mystically named Gorse Lea. They often do die somewhere beautifully named. Snaefell Mountain, Rhencullen, Stonebreakers Hut. Ballaugh Bridge. Greeba Castle. Lambfell Cottage. Peaceful names, remote places, sometimes on a majestic sweep of mountain with nothing but the stone walls and greenery. Laurel Bank. Gob-o-Geay. Glentramman.

Brien’s tragedy is piled high on the list of names of those who have perished at the Isle of Man TT and again brings us to one of the most defiant pieces of rock on the planet. Like Everest the island accepts the riders every year and every year it takes a few. The unofficial list now is 234 deaths, not including officials or spectators. Everest’s appetite is just short of that and lists vary but one estimate stops at 216 deaths with around 150 bodies still on the mountain.

Brien was one of Ireland's great bike riders

Within a month Brien’s crash brings together two Irish people that died for the sports that thrilled them. On May 21st John Delaney failed to come down the mountain, the added anguish to his family being that his body remains in the Everest ice near the summit. Perhaps there is a strange comfort in that, and also for the family of Brien. What consumed both was more than a dalliance with the intrinsic appeal of danger but a relationship, familiar and natural, one that gave enormous pleasure.

The Isle of Man TT is as stunning a spectacle as you will ever see. It is a place where mortality is force fed, where the riders appear to go too fast into bends but somehow come out the far side, where they rear out of the seat to use their bodies as air brakes, smash into birds at 180mph, hit sticks on the road, find slippery bits of white line on hairpin bends. It is the community as much as the sports themselves that are the attraction.

Derek Brien as he will be remembered

Extreme bike racing and mountaineering are lifestyles and asking people to stop contributing to the body count is to ask them to change their lives because of our own buttoned-up sensibilities and infatuation with living safe and long. It is to say that doing one thing with a life is better than another. In that debate the bravery and the tragic clarity of choice of O’Brien and Delaney seems a creditable one to take.

Enduroman 2011 won by "The most remarkable Irish sportsman of his generation":

DECA iron man Gerry Duffy won the Enduroman competition which finished today. 

The 43-year-old Mullingar athlete, described on RTÉ last week as the  "most remarkable Irish sportsman of his generation", was one of 20 who began the gruelling 10-day undertaking last Friday week but that number had been whittled down to just five by the final day.
Every day Gerry swam 2.4 miles, cycled 116 miles and has run the full marathon distance of 26.2 miles, taking an average of 15hours to complete the task.

Gerry Duffy was once 50lbs overweight

The athletes had a maximum of 22hours to finish each day.  If they do not make the cut-off, they are disqualified.  
Gerry is also driven by a determination to complete the 10-day mega-marathon and raise much needed funds for Irish Autism Action.
His most recent venture comes hot on the heels of last year's challenge in which he successfully ran 32 marathons in 32 successive days in the 32 counties of Ireland, which is recounted in his book  "Who dares, Runs."

Leo Varadkar says: "GAA national training venue on way:"

HIGH HOPES: Leo Varadkar (right)

Just over 100 days in power and the Government are reporting progress on the sporting white elephant that is  the National Sports Campus.
In April, Leo Varadkar spoke of his hopes that the GAA might base their national training facilities at the 495-acre site in Abbotstown and yesterday the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport gave an encouraging update.
"We are also in consultation with the GAA, IRFU and FAI about having their training facilities on a partnership basis and that they would contribute a good chunk of the costs, and we would make some of the costs available too.  The discussions have been very detailed with the GAA because the GAA is in a very strong position financially but we have had not too many discussions with the IRFU as of yet because they are paying off the debt [on the AVIVA Stadium]," said the Minister, speaking to journalists at the same €410million venue.

NATIONAL AQUATIC CENTRE,  Abbotstown, Dublin

Beyond contributing to any new training facility, the Minister warned that the extent of state funding at Abbotstown will be the upkeep of the National Aquatic Centre and the Sports HQ, which will see the non-governmental sporting bodies move from Parkwest to Abbotstown.

Sign of the times as RTÉ lose Heineken highlights:

Big rugby coup for Irish language channel TG4

In yet another sign of the economic times; Ireland's state broadcaster RTÉ has lost the rights to show Heineken Cup highlights, starting next season.

TG4 has agreed a new three-year deal with the ERC to broadcast highlights of the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup tournaments. The exclusive highlights coverage will kick off in November when the 2011/12 Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup season gets under way.

They are the latest tournaments to be added to TG4’s expanding rugby schedule, which already includes the RaboDirect Pro 12 (formerly the Magners League) and deferred coverage of this autumn’s Rugby World Cup.

The station, which pioneered television coverage of schools rugby in Ireland, also has an extensive portfolio of Gaelic games and other live sports, including the National Hurling and Football Leagues, the All-Ireland Under-21 Hurling and Football championships and the Club Championships in Hurling and Gaelic Football.

Bennett back training with Cork City FC:

Alan Bennett (top left) celebrates 2005 Eircom League win

Former Cork City star defender Alan Bennett has been training with the club and could well re-join when the transfer window re-opens next month.  The 2005 Eircom League winner trained on Wednesday evening with Tommy Dunne's charges and will watch this evening's game against Athlone Town from the stands at Turners Cross.  Bennett was joined at training on Wednesday by former City players Denis Behan, Leon McSweeney and Joe Gamble, who were all released by Hartlepool United at the end of last season.  The quartet were also joined by current Ireland senior international Damien Delaney at City training on Wednesday, but for the latter it is more with a view of maintaing fitness ahead of the upcoming Championship season he faces cross channel with Ipswich Town.

PROUD IRISH INTERNATIONAL: Bennett has won two full caps

Ex City star Gamble also training at club

Bennett, who has won two senior international caps, now looks a realistic possibility to re-join the "Rebel Army," though he has said that he would prefer to play full-time football and earn a "full-time wage."  City are of course now part-time and playing first division football, though, should City achieve promotion this season, they could well become a full-time or semi full-time outfit next season.  Bennett's presence at the heart of the back four would help attain said promotion.  Bennett has also stated that being offered a part-time contract would not be a major "stumbling block" and that he would speak to any League of Ireland club.  This would lead further credence to his "full-time football" desire however and is almost a "Come and get me" plea to Premier Division clubs who could employ his services.  
However, when he left City in 2007 for (then Premier League club) Reading, the now 29 year old stated that he would return to his hometown club someday and fans of the Rebel Army will be hoping that he does just that over the coming weeks.

Fota opportunity for top young golfers:

The majestic Fota Island Golf Club and Spa Resort. Fota Island, Cork

Cork's Fota Island Golf Resort will host some of the best young pro golfers from Britain and Ireland this summer at a competition from July 6th - 8th with a prize fund of €40,000.

It will be one of the most prestigious events of the 2011 season.   This will be the first time the Tour has held a tournament at the venue, which is widely regarded as one of the finest golf courses in Ireland and arguably, Europe.

“It’s fantastic news that Fota Island will be on the schedule this year and we’re very proud to announce this as it shows our commitment to adding quality courses to the calendar each year,” said Danny Nickless, Operations Manager for the PGA EuroPro Tour.  “Having previously hosted the Irish Open; Fota will be one of the highest quality venues that the Tour has ever visited and the players will be met with a world class golf course," - Mr Nickless further elaborated.

2010 Open Winner Louis Oosthuizen:  a graduate of the EuroPro Tour

The EuroPro Tour is the leading golf develop - mental tour in Europe and a host of former players have gone on to lift some of the biggest titles in the world.   Louis Oosthuizen won the 2010 Open after playing on the EuroPro Tour in 2003, while Ross Fisher was a member of the winning European Ryder Cup team only five years after playing on the EuroPro Tour.

Cork GAA: Clubs need to get behind county:

Cork football captain Canty supports hurlers in 2009 strike

"This is your county.  You should be responsible for running it and the way it is run," -  Graham Canty

 
 When the Cork hurlers first addressed the clubs during the last player's strike in February 2009, they were joined on the podium at the Maryborough House Hotel by Cork football captain Graham Canty.
Canty outlined the reasons why he and his team-mates were backing the hurlers through the threat of strike for that year's Championship campaign.  Canty also added that the debate now represented a chance for club members to take ownership of GAA in Cork.
"This is your county," - he said.  "You should be responsibe for running it and the way it is run."
At the time, that was just one element in a battle that was being waged between a group of players, a manager and a county board.  It was only a matter of time though before Canty's words represented a near revolutionary slogan.  Through seeking to arrest power back from the county board, the clubs mobilised to such an overwhelming degree that they generated an avalanche of support which eventually ended the dispute.
What subsequently emerged, in March 2009, at the behest of over 150 clubs, was the establishment of the Cork GAA Clubs' Forum.  Their remit was to work on behalf of the clubs for the betterment of Cork GAA in an open and positive manner.  When they drew up their final report in October 2009, it concluded: 
"Recent events have cast a shadow across the image of Cork GAA.  In co-operation with the County Board, clubs and players, we intend to change that and bring success back to Cork GAA." 

Cork County Board Kingpin:   Frank Murphy

"co-operation"  was the key word in the statement.  Now, with Cork GAA facing a watershed moment over the coming months due to the impending retirement of the all powerful secretary Frank Murphy; Cork's clubs are seeking to be actively involved in the process seeking Murphy's successsor.
In the spirit of  "co-operation", that process can now be used to prove that matters really have changed for the better in Cork GAA.
It is also a perfect opportunity for the County Board to show that they are attuned to the needs of the clubs to be involved in making important decisions.
The clubs believe that full openness and transparency in the voting of a new secretary is essential at a time when a number of important issues need to be decided.
The defeats of the county's minor and senior hurlers in the first round of Championship action this year, has increased the desires of the clubs to have a more opinionated input into the development and coaching of hurling in the county.  Clubs agree that only a unified coaching structure can achieve that goal.

Cork GAA:  clubs need their say

Cork's clubs view the upcoming appointment process as vital to the future harmony, unity and progress of the Cork GAA.  The clubs want to appoint a successor who can provide a fresh outlook and impetus, someone who has the vibrancy and enthusiasm to implement the long-term initiatives that are required to rejuvenate the GAA in Cork.  The clubs are right to want to have their fair say in this because as Canty told them: "This is your county.  You should be responsible for running it and the way it is run."