For the first time, Ballina Badminton Club hosted the Connacht Premier Open in Ballina Community Sports Centre on Saturday, September 23, supported by the Ballina 2023 Community Events Fund. The competition and day was a great success.

The competition started at 11am and finished at 9pm with an entry of 38 players from Dublin, Waterford, Galway, Clare and Mayo. Five separate events took place on the day: Ladies Singles, Men’s Singles, Ladies Doubles, Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles.

David Walsh from Ballina won the Men’s Singles and Jack O’Brien, also from Ballina was the runner up. David and Jack also combined to win the Men’s Doubles!

David with Michelle Shochan, Dublin then won the Mixed Doubles.

David and Jack are former members of ballina Badminton Club’s Juvenile Club.

Michelle Shochan won the Ladies Singles and the Ladies Doubles was won by Ruth Kilkenny and Ciara Dwyer, Ennis.

Jean O’Brien presented the Jack Davies Memorial Cup to David Walsh, men’s singles winner. The O’Brien Family donated the cup to Connacht Badminton in memory of the late Jack Davies, missed by all in Connacht Badmintonmk which is the poorer as a result of his very untimely death at such a young age

Well done to Ballina Badminton Club on hosting such a successful event, and continued success to all involved in the club!

Last weekend was a busy one in Ballina! As well as Cannonball Ireland roaring its way through town, a much more peaceful event was taking place in Belleek Woods on Saturday, September 16.

As part of its RISE: Legacy Programme, Ballina 2023 presented a Leave No Trace Certified Awareness Course, delivered by our own volunteer Stuart Garland a certified Leave No Trace Trainer.

Throughout a day of outdoor discussions and activities, this course covered the seven Leave No Trace Ireland principles and discussed outdoor ethics in Ireland, equipping the attending participants with the tools and techniques for disseminating low-impact skills to others.

The weather worked in favour of the event and a really lovely day was enjoyed by all, with some valuable skills and knowledge acquired.

Our thanks to Stuart for sharing his time and knowledge so generously and to our Volunteer Co-ordinator Sheila for organising. 

This year’s Culture Night on September 22 is set to be the biggest and best yet in Ballina, with no fewer than FIVE fantastic events taking place to mark Ireland’s National Night of Culture.

Culture Night / Oíche Chultúir is brought to you by the Arts Council; it is a national moment, celebrating culture, creativity and the arts and seeks to actively promote the belief that this rich and varied culture is alive, treasured and nurtured in people’s lives, today and every day. 

It is delivered nationwide in cities, towns, villages and rural locations as well as online. All activities are available to the public, free of charge!

So, what’s happening?

We were delighted to team up with Moy Valley Resources IRD to support Mayo Volunteer Centre’s Volunteer Thank You Party in Kennedy Glasgow House, the Quay on Thursday, August 24.

The event was designed to welcome volunteers from all walks of life and organisations around the town who contribute so much to our area and was MC’d by Angelina Nugent. Music on the night was provided by For Folk’s Sake and the wonderful Denis McCalmont. Food on the night was prepared by Claire’s Kitchen and chef Ronan Fox. 

There was a great turn-out and a great night had by all – thank you to all who came along, and for all your hard work making our town a better place!

A special thank you to all our sponsors, especially our main sponsor, Moloney’s SuperValu Ballina, who ensured all our volunteers enjoyed lots of treats on the night!

The official Cannonball route for 2023 will include Dublin, Cavan, Ballina, Salthill, Limerick, Cork and Kilkenny 

Images: Cannonball Ireland and David Beattie

190 supercars, free family festivals, celebrities, over 1000km of Irish open roads, €1.5 million raised for Irish charities and the awesome sight of over 200,000 excited spectators coast to coast waving chequered flags from September 15th-17th 2023

Cannonball, the action-packed supercar spectacle, is set to roll on September 15th-17th with proceeds to The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation and Ballina, Co Mayo has been chosen for the first overnight stop on Friday September 15^th to coincide with the Ballina’s 300^th birthday and the Ballina 2023 celebrations. Cannonball, fuelled by milesPLUS from Circle K, is the largest organised road trip in Europe featuring the finest cars on the planet from the awe-inspiring power of Ferrari, Lamborghini and McLaren to the grace and elegance of Porsche, Aston Martin, and Maserati.  Cannonball has already raised €1,538,602 for Irish Charities and brings a unique and inimitable electric atmosphere to host towns all over the country making it a widely-anticipated free family event for spectators.  The finish line for day one of the event will be at the Quay in Ballina and the cars will be arriving in at 6pm to add to Ballina’s 300th birthday celebrations! The next morning at 10.30am, the cars will depart Ballina for stage two of the event and head towards Salthill in Galway for lunch.

To commence the road trip on Thursday September 14th, the Cannonball crew will roll into Malahide Castle to get set for another adrenalin fuelled supercar spectacle.  The supercars are due to start arriving from 6pm with an opportunity for spectators to be captivated by their enviable fusion of engineering excellence and breathtaking design. On Friday September 15t at 10am, the gleaming convoy will depart Malahide Castle and will blaze a trail to Cavan for a lunch stop at the Slieve Russell Hotel and Country Club in Cavan.  The first finish line and overnight stay will be in Ballina and the cars are due to arrive to the finish line on the Quay at 6pm.

On Saturday September 16th the convoy will leave the Quay in Ballina at 10.30am and travel to Salthill Hotel Co Galway for lunch at 1pm and then onwards to Pery Square Limerick City for the second finish line and overnight stay in association with Limerick City and County.  On Sunday September 17th the supercars will leave Limerick City at 10.30am, then fuel up at Circle K Fermoy and then onwards to Cork for lunch at Fota Island Resort before a big dramatic final finish line in Kilkenny City at 6pm.

This year the official charity of Cannonball is The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation – an Irish children’s charity that funds and delivers in-home nursing care, respite support and end-of-life care for children from birth to six years of age who have highly complex and life-limiting medical conditions. There are currently over 400 children under the care of Jack and Jill right across the country and the charity’s mission is to empower parents to care for their child at home, because there is no care like home care for a Jack and Jill child.

Cannonball in Ballina will offer spectators a unique opportunity to witness the world’s most prestigious and sought-after supercars up close and enjoy the unique festival atmosphere that Cannonball is renowned for.  The Brazilian Dancers, giant screens, music and fanfare brings all the glamour of carnival and live DJs, bands and festivals in host towns get the party started. The Cannonballers and celebrities in colourful costumes add to the melee. From Spiderman to Star Wars, Cat Woman to Wonder Woman, cheerleaders to Charlie’s Angels, Batman, the Joker and more, it is a totally unique free family day out. This year, organisers are also calling on spectators to dress up in fancy dress with prizes for best dressed.

Cannonball was founded by Kildare businessman Alan Bannon and the benefit to the host towns for this event is estimated at €2,567,000 per year. Both Ballina and neighbouring Enniscrone will benefit this year from the Cannonball overnight stay.

Cannonball is fuelled by milesPLUS from Circle K as the main headline Sponsor for 2023 and all official fuel stops on the route where spectators can see the cars will be announced in the coming days. The Tour Sponsor this year is Apache Pizza and Cannonball official partners include Karl Goodwin Motors, AB Signs, HONE Energy and Majestic Ireland Road Trips.

See cannonball.ie and for local updates and schedules, follow the Cannonball at the Quay Facebook page.

This Giant Tent is building on a very special project developed in Ballina from 2018-19 by children from Involve Youth Project and Scoil Íosa, who created a book of the same name celebrating culture and identity, in collaboration with Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership and The National Museum of Ireland – Country Life.

To mark the Ballina 2023 celebrations, the project has been further developed into a public multicultural event rooted in community and celebration of both Traveller culture in Ballina, and of the myriad of cultures and communities that call Ballina home.

To date, This Giant Tent 2023 has been focused on research, and artist Alice Dixon has been working with The Traveller community and other communities in Ballina to develop work that is meaningful and allows for sustainability after the project has finished.

Organisational Partners, Kids Own Publishing, National Museum of Ireland, Turlough House and Involve Youth Project Ballina have committed time and support to the project, and the process to date has highlighted aspects that are unique to Ballina within the Traveller community in Ballina, that span over four generations of living history. For example, it has been identified that there are twelve families locally who have living great-grandparents  all of whom attended Scoil Croí Iosa.

To explore the theme of Celebrating our Connections, a series of workshops has taken place throughout the first half of 2023 in Scoil Íosa in close connection with Involve Youth Project, focusing on people, place and connection and a celebration of the rich diversity that exists in Scoil Íosa and the surrounding area.

The children and young people have used various artforms including portraits (of self and each other) exploring their own identities, what they like to do and their family backgrounds, focusing on that connect them with each other, and things that are unique about themselves and each other.

Objects have been brought into the classroom from National Museum of Ireland – Country Life connected to Traveller traditions and culture for the children to respond to. Similar to a show and tell experience, this is using creative methods to encourage sharing of stories about their families, heritage and living history. Conversations were captured through drawing and writing on large canvases/ watercolour paper, and students then brought in their own objects, pictures and stories they wanted to share with each other.

As the workshops progressed, group work took place, encouraging the children to design pieces that they would like to build in large-scale 3D. They were invited to choose to create several objects that they agree are important to them all – real or imaginary.

As well as a large focus on visual art working with Alice Dixon, the writer Mary Branley has worked with the children to record some audio pieces that will add another rich interactive layer to share with the wider public.

The work created by children and young people in these workshops will form the basis of an exhibition that will take place in Ballina town as part of the Ballina 2023 celebrations.

Throughout the summer months This Giant Tent is hosting a series of small pop-up workshops, talks and exhibits inviting the wider community to take part and celebrate our shared culture and diversity, focusing on the theme of ‘celebrating our connections’. Some of these have been hosted in a Giant Tent – most notably the recent  paper Traditional Traveller Lashul paper flower-making event delivered by Jolene Collins and Kathleen Collins, members of the Traveller Community on Ballina Salmon Festival’s National Heritage Day. Paper flower crafting was an important part of Traveller culture and at times, represented the only source of income that traditionally a Traveller women could call her own.

On September 12, the Traveller Community will host an event in Ballina celebrating connections, culture and community, and everyone is welcome to attend.

Other events coming up include Beady Pocket making workshops, storytelling, and an Introduction to Cant language workshop.

 Event at Kilcummin Harbour from August 11-13 will showcase one of Europe’s top scuba diving destinations

Building on the success of their previous annual dive gatherings including 2022’s Western Dive Rally, Ballina’s Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club expects to welcome over 150 divers from clubs all around Ireland and further afield to its International Dive Rally at Kilcummin Harbour from August 11 to 13 as part of the Ballina 2023 programme of events. The rally will showcase the region’s incredible diving offering and will also incorporate a programme of entertainment for members of the public to come along and enjoy at the site of General Humbert’s historic landing, 225 years ago in 1798.

Five dives in total have been scheduled over the course of the weekend, in stunning dive locations including Ballycastle Bay, Killala Bay and majestic Downpatrick Head. Divers, locals and visitors are also invited to come along and enjoy music in the marquee, tasty barbecues and boat tours from Kilcummin as part of the weekend’s festivities. DJ Chris Lawlor will play on Friday night, August 11 and lively rock, soul and reggae band Stewy and the Vegans will entertain partygoers on Saturday night, August 12.

North Mayo boasts some spectacular dive sites due to its geographic positioning as Ireland’s closest land base to the Continental Shelf, which is the driving force of marine biodiversity to the coastline, making it one of Europe’s top scuba diving destinations.

Speaking about the Dive Rally, Chairperson of Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club, Jean-Francois Brisson said: “We are fortunate to have such amazing dive sites on our doorstep in North Mayo that attract many from around Ireland combined with the spectacular scenery of the Céide Fields and Downpatrick Head as viewed from our diving ribs. We look forward to sharing these sites with our visitors during this year’s Dive Rally.”

Over the weekend, Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club boats will transport divers to their sites, while clubs also have the option to bring along their own boats.  A campsite will operate close to the harbour, and a bottle refill facility will be provided. A shore dive will also take place on Friday, August 11.

Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club is the second largest active diving club in Ireland. Established in 1979 to promote sports diving, it now boasts over 60 members, and has trained hundreds of people to enjoy diving along the Mayo coat in a safe, enjoyable environment. The club also operates a Search and Recovery Unit on a voluntary, on-call capacity, working closely with An Garda Síochána, the Coast Guard and other agencies. For more information on the club, on the International Dive Rally and a full schedule and site map, visit www.grainneuailesac.ie

The Ballina 2023 celebrations continue apace, and Humbert’s landing at Kilcummin, and the 200^th anniversary of his death are both being marked this year as part of the Ballina 2023 Year of the French/Bliain na bhFrancach celebrations, in partnership with Mayo County Council and the French Embassy.

Collaboration between Ballina 2023, the French Embassy in Ireland, Ballina Municipal District and In Humbert’s Footsteps to welcome French visitors with series of events marking 200 years since the death of General Humbert

A living history village, vivid re-enactment of the Humbert Landing, a series of exhibitions, musical performances, and a screening of RTÉ’s iconic drama, ‘The Year of the French’ from the eponymous book by Thomas Flanagan are just some of the events taking place as part of Ballina 2023’s ‘Year of the French’ festival taking place August 18 to Tuesday, August 2022.

Visitors from La Rochelle and Ballina’s twin town of Athis Mons will join locals to celebrate the festival, which forms part The ‘Year of the French’, of a year-long international initiative led by The French Embassy in Ireland marking the 225th anniversary of the French landing in Kilcummin on August 22, 1798.

2023 also marks the 200th anniversary of General Humbert’s death in 1823, 30 years of twinning with Athis-Mons and a celebration of the long-lasting friendship between Ireland and France.

The Year of the French Festival in Ballina will be delivered in partnership with the French Embassy in Ireland, Mayo County Council (Ballina Municipal District), In Humbert’s Footsteps and the Jackie Clarke Collection.

Catherine Gagneux, French Honorary Consul for Connacht and Donegal said: “The 225th anniversary of the landing of General Humbert and his troops, despite being short lived, is above all a commemoration of the fight of united men and women to create a democracy for all. It is a significant event in Irish history and in Franco-Irish relations that has cemented a lasting friendship between France and Ireland.”

An exhibition about the French Landing, launched by the Ambassador of France to Ireland, Vincent Guérend on July 5 will run in the Jackie Clarke Collection until August 22. On Friday, August 18, a plaque to rename French Lane will be unveiled to permanently mark this important site beside the Old Military Barracks, followed by a delegation tour delivered by In Humbert’s Footsteps in French and English. This will be followed by a welcome reception in Ballina Municipal District Civic Art Gallery and a screening of a short film by local producer Topher Neville, will compete for an award in this year’s DiviPassion Film Festival in Athis-Mons.

Saturday, August 19 will see the visiting delegation undertake a morning excursion to Killala, Kilcummin, Downpatrick Head and Céide Fields. Saturday afternoon will see the French, British and United Irishmen set up camp in the town’s old market area, the actual site of their respective camps in 1798 for the public to get a sense of what the scene might have been like 225 years ago. A play by local playwright, Tommy Cooke will be staged in the Walled Heritage Garden of the Jackie Clarke Collection at 3pm.

On Saturday evening, a compilation screening of ‘The Year of the French’ will take place in Ballina Arts Centre at 8pm. The six-part drama, first screened in 1982 was an RTÉ co-production with the French television station FR 3 in association with Britain’s Channel 4, featuring Irish, French and English actors and many local extras. The full episodes will be screened at public venues in Ballina and Killala over the course of the weekend.

On Sunday, August 20, the Deputy Ambassador to France in Ireland Marianne Barkan Cowdy will lay a wreath at a morning event at the Humbert Memorial Monument, joined by members of the French Navy.  From 1.30pm, Pearse St will be the scene of one of the largest Napoleonic battle re-enactments ever staged in Ireland, when the blue-clad French, the British red-coats and the Irish Rebel Pikemen do battle for the town amidst the crack and smoke of muskets, the boom of cannon, and the clash of bayonet, sword and pike.

The original re-enactment took place ten years ago in 2013 as part of The Gathering, under the stewardship of the late Steve Dunford, and subsequently won a national award.

Later that evening, a Year of the French Seminar will take place, focusing on the legacy of the events of 1798, with Sylvie Kleiman-Lafon (Asst Professor in English Literature at the University of Paris VIII), Ruan O’Donnell (Head of the History Department at University of Limerick and official historian of the Robert Emmet Association), and Paddy Cullivan, historical entertainer, writer and performer of ‘The Ten Dark Secrets of 1798’.

That morning, Ballina Athletic Club will also host their annual Wild Atlantic 10-Miler road race, the route of which takes in a portion of the Old French Road upon which General Humbert and his troops approached Ballina.

The Year of the French Festival will be preceded by Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club’s International Dive Rally in Kilcummin from August 11 to 13, which will also welcome French divers from La Rochelle.

“We’re burning down our children’s home”, according to Chair of the Elders and former president of Ireland Mary Robinson, but young people should not despair, but instead should be “prisoners of hope”.  

The need for rapid action to address the climate crisis and to empower communities to play their part were the key messages from speakers and delegates at the inaugural Mary Robinson Climate Conference, themed “Communities Creating Change”, which took place in Ballina, Co. Mayo this week.

A partnership between The Mary Robinson Centre, Ballina 2023, Mayo County Council and University of Galway saw over 250 delegates visit the North Mayo capital, to hear speakers including former President Mary Robinson, Minister Eamon Ryan TD, Kevin Anderson; Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the University of Manchester, 18 year-old climate justice activist Saoirse Exton of Fridays for Future, Eimear Cotter, Director with the Environmental Protection Agency and Adele Mealey of the ​Creative Ireland Programme. Informed by their own work, conference speakers shared their personal perspectives, resulting in a consistent, unanimous call for urgent action on climate change.

Mary Robinson welcomed contributions from young climate activists participating in the conference which included Fridays for Future, SAUTI- Galway and the Children and Young People’s Assembly on Biodiversity Loss and spoke of the importance of encouraging and facilitating intergenerational dialogue, to create climate justice for younger generations and empower them to be better community leaders and civic society members.

Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan TD in his address, which was disrupted by climate activists, acknowledged that the time has passed for dictating to people how to address climate change, insisting instead that listening, motivating and empowering communities to create solutions will deliver results. Communications around climate action must be clear and compelling, said the Minister, so that everyone can understand how we can create the future we want, instead of unwittingly creating a future we do not want.

Conference partner Mayo County Council is the lead authority and host for the Climate Action Regional Office (CARO) for the Atlantic Seaboard North and was the first Local Authority in the country to employ a Climate Action Officer. At the conference, Laura Dixon launched the Mayo Climate Action Survey, to ensure that communities can contribute to the Mayo Climate Action Plan due to be delivered to government next year. Conference sponsors IPB, the lead insurer to the Irish public sector, together with Mayo County Council and the Mary Robinson Centre facilitated a Local Authority Climate Action Staff networking event, where officers shared their experiences and workshopped new strategies to empower communities to address climate change.

Other events during the conference included a bike buffet, a climate-focused art exhibition in Ballina Civic Offices and a series of field trips showcasing local climate action projects including the Enniscrone Dunes project and the award-winning Ripple Ballina project, which explored how a community in Ballina transformed green space with the use of rainwater.  During the conference, a gathering of young people also met with Mary Robinson, the US Ambassador Claire Cronin and French Ambassador Vincent Guérend, facilitated by University of Galway, President Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh to discuss youth leadership for sustainability from a global and local perspective.

Ballina is fast becoming a national leader on community climate action with community-led initiatives addressing climate action and sustainability, including the Ballina Green Town initiative, which has set an ambition for Ballina to become Ireland’s Greenest Town. Ripple Ballina recently became the first Irish winner of a New European Bauhaus Award in the Reconnecting with Nature category, and Ballina Chamber of Commerce has recently been recognised with the Sustainability & the Sustainable Development Goals Award in the National Chambers Ireland Awards. In 2021, Ballina Community Cleanup Group with their ‘Beelieve in Ballina’ biodiversity initiative won an IPB National Pride of Place Award.

The Mary Robinson Climate Conference was formed part of the Ballina 2023 programme, which is marking the tercentenary of the town, and was supported by IPB Insurance and Eirgrid. Ballina 2023’s RISE Legacy Programme aims to upskill, empower and build capacity within the community, creating a strong legacy for the town.