Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

annalise page topper

Displaying items by tag: SS Hare

‘Safety at Sea Through War and Upheaval’ is the title of an exhibition now running at the dlr Lexicon in Dun Laoghaire, highlighting the history of Ireland’s lighthouses between the years 1911 and 1923.

Using resources from the Irish Lights archive, the exhibition – which runs till 7 January — next year explores the mission of safe navigation at sea in the context of the wider political and economic changes in Ireland at the time: independence, civil war, electrification and more.

A deeper focus on the years of the Great War is afforded by a new exhibition on the SS Hare and SS Adela in Dublin Port, which comes to dlr Lexicon this Monday (8 October) and tells the story of both ill-fated vessels during the rise of the U-boat threat from 1914 to 1918.

Keeping with the maritime theme, the late Des Branigan is the subject of a new display (opened yesterday, Friday 5 October) of archive material from photographs to books that give a rounded picture of a humble, ordinary seaman who achieved extraordinary things.

All exhibitions are open free to the public during library opening hours.

#WWIcargoshipsCeremony - To mark the centenary of the sinking of two merchant cargo steamships in the Irish Sea and loss of life, an unveiling of plaques are to take place this Saturday in Dublin, writes Jehan Ashmore.   

Family descendents of all 36 victims will be joined by community groups, the Lord Mayor of Dublin and the public to commemorate the separate incidents caused by German submarines.

The first cargoship to be struck by torpedo was S.S. Hare on 14 December, 1917, when on passage from Manchester to Dublin. The ship some seven miles east of the Kish Lighship, was attacked by submarine U-62 with the loss of 12 lives.

It was during the '1913 Lockout' that S.S. Hare became famously involved in delivering a cargo of relief food Liverpool to the starving strikers in Dublin. This historic event was also marked with a centenary commemoration by SIPTU and other Irish and UK trade unions with a re-enactment voyage as previously reported on Afloat.ie. This saw the charter of Ben Maye take on the role of 'S.S. Hare' having sailed the same route to deliver a symbolic cargo.

As for the other cargoship casualty, SS Adela was attacked by enemy action while on passage to Liverpool with a cargo of ivestock and coal. It was some 12 miles northwest of the Skerries off Anglesea, Wales that U-Boat 100 torpedoed the ship and taking with her 24 lives.

The majority of those on board who died were civilian seamen or cattle workers and it is understood that from both sinkings, only four bodies were recovered.

Most of the seafarers who died came from the close knit dockland communities, with the ships berthing along the inner city quays among them Sir John Rogersons Quay, part of what is now  called the 'Docklands' quarter. It is here that the centenary commemoration will aptly take place at Sean O’Casey Bridge (Custom House Quay) at 1pm. The two plaques are to be unveiled there close to where both ships berthed before making 100 years their final voyages.

For relatives of both tradgedies, Dublin Port Company are to provide a vessel to sail into the bay to conduct a short ceremony and wreath laying service at sea.

Organising the events are the Adela-Hare Centenary Commemoration Committee which was established by the victim's relatives. Following Saturday's plaque unveilings,  a reception is to be held along with a public exhibition and launch of a commemorative booklet.

Further events are planned up to December with the Committee given support from Dublin City Councils Commemorations Fund.

For more updated information on the commemoration visit the Committee's Facebook page here.

Published in Dublin Port

#Lockout1913 – S.S. Hare the ship that carried vital cargo food supplies from the British TUC to support 25,000 striking workers and their families during the 1913 Lockout was re-enacted yesterday, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Hundreds of people lined Sir John Rogersons Quay in Dublin's 'Docklands' where at berth No. 4 the small short-sea cargoship Ben Maye (1979/548grt) berthed alongside the last remaining campshire ware-houses.

To mark the unique commemorative voyage from Liverpool to the Liffey, the chartered cargoship coaster Ben Maye as previously reported is operated by the Ramsey Steamship Company. Coincidentally the Isle of Man based shipping company was founded a century in the same year of the so called Lockout.

Ben Maye was 'dressed overall' and her bows drapped with banners displaying her temporary renaming in the role of S.S. Hare. After the eventful year of 1913, she was sunk during WW1 by a U-Boat off the Kish Bank in 1917.

As the Ben Maye entered firstly through the East-Link toll lift bridge she was given an escort led by East coast rowing skiff's, Dublin Port Company tug sisters Shackleton and Burford and Dublin Bay Cruises excursion vessel St. Bridget. Following that she made the short distance upriver after passing the opened Samuel Becket swing-bridge.

Senior trade union official made speeches at the quayside and the organisers gratefully acknowledge the support received for the SS Hare re-enactment from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, SIPTU, Unite, Dublin Council of Trade Union, Dublin Port Company. Also providing assistance was the RMT, the UK's largest specialist transport union and the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF).

 

Published in Ports & Shipping

Irish Olympic Sailing Team

Ireland has a proud representation in sailing at the Olympics dating back to 1948. Today there is a modern governing structure surrounding the selection of sailors the Olympic Regatta

Irish Olympic Sailing FAQs

Ireland’s representation in sailing at the Olympics dates back to 1948, when a team consisting of Jimmy Mooney (Firefly), Alf Delany and Hugh Allen (Swallow) competed in that year’s Summer Games in London (sailing off Torquay). Except for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Ireland has sent at least one sailor to every Summer Games since then.

  • 1948 – London (Torquay) — Firefly: Jimmy Mooney; Swallow: Alf Delany, Hugh Allen
  • 1952 – Helsinki — Finn: Alf Delany * 1956 – Melbourne — Finn: J Somers Payne
  • 1960 – Rome — Flying Dutchman: Johnny Hooper, Peter Gray; Dragon: Jimmy Mooney, David Ryder, Robin Benson; Finn: J Somers Payne
  • 1964 – Tokyo — Dragon: Eddie Kelliher, Harry Maguire, Rob Dalton; Finn: Johnny Hooper 
  • 1972 – Munich (Kiel) — Tempest: David Wilkins, Sean Whitaker; Dragon: Robin Hennessy, Harry Byrne, Owen Delany; Finn: Kevin McLaverty; Flying Dutchman: Harold Cudmore, Richard O’Shea
  • 1976 – Montreal (Kingston) — 470: Robert Dix, Peter Dix; Flying Dutchman: Barry O’Neill, Jamie Wilkinson; Tempest: David Wilkins, Derek Jago
  • 1980 – Moscow (Tallinn) — Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson (Silver medalists) * 1984 – Los Angeles — Finn: Bill O’Hara
  • 1988 – Seoul (Pusan) — Finn: Bill O’Hara; Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Peter Kennedy; 470 (Women): Cathy MacAleavy, Aisling Byrne
  • 1992 – Barcelona — Europe: Denise Lyttle; Flying Dutchman: David Wilkins, Peter Kennedy; Star: Mark Mansfield, Tom McWilliam
  • 1996 – Atlanta (Savannah) — Laser: Mark Lyttle; Europe: Aisling Bowman (Byrne); Finn: John Driscoll; Star: Mark Mansfield, David Burrows; 470 (Women): Denise Lyttle, Louise Cole; Soling: Marshall King, Dan O’Grady, Garrett Connolly
  • 2000 – Sydney — Europe: Maria Coleman; Finn: David Burrows; Star: Mark Mansfield, David O'Brien
  • 2004 – Athens — Europe: Maria Coleman; Finn: David Burrows; Star: Mark Mansfield, Killian Collins; 49er: Tom Fitzpatrick, Fraser Brown; 470: Gerald Owens, Ross Killian; Laser: Rory Fitzpatrick
  • 2008 – Beijing (Qingdao) — Star: Peter O’Leary, Stephen Milne; Finn: Tim Goodbody; Laser Radial: Ciara Peelo; 470: Gerald Owens, Phil Lawton
  • 2012 – London (Weymouth) — Star: Peter O’Leary, David Burrows; 49er: Ryan Seaton, Matt McGovern; Laser Radial: Annalise Murphy; Laser: James Espey; 470: Gerald Owens, Scott Flanigan
  • 2016 – Rio — Laser Radial (Women): Annalise Murphy (Silver medalist); 49er: Ryan Seaton, Matt McGovern; 49erFX: Andrea Brewster, Saskia Tidey; Laser: Finn Lynch; Paralympic Sonar: John Twomey, Ian Costello & Austin O’Carroll

Ireland has won two Olympics medals in sailing events, both silver: David Wilkins, Jamie Wilkinson in the Flying Dutchman at Moscow 1980, and Annalise Murphy in the Laser Radial at Rio 2016.

The current team, as of December 2020, consists of Laser sailors Finn Lynch, Liam Glynn and Ewan McMahon, 49er pairs Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle, and Sean Waddilove and Robert Dickson, as well as Laser Radial sailors Annalise Murphy and Aoife Hopkins.

Irish Sailing is the National Governing Body for sailing in Ireland.

Irish Sailing’s Performance division is responsible for selecting and nurturing Olympic contenders as part of its Performance Pathway.

The Performance Pathway is Irish Sailing’s Olympic talent pipeline. The Performance Pathway counts over 70 sailors from 11 years up in its programme.The Performance Pathway is made up of Junior, Youth, Academy, Development and Olympic squads. It provides young, talented and ambitious Irish sailors with opportunities to move up through the ranks from an early age. With up to 100 young athletes training with the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway, every aspect of their performance is planned and closely monitored while strong relationships are simultaneously built with the sailors and their families

Rory Fitzpatrick is the head coach of Irish Sailing Performance. He is a graduate of University College Dublin and was an Athens 2004 Olympian in the Laser class.

The Performance Director of Irish Sailing is James O’Callaghan. Since 2006 James has been responsible for the development and delivery of athlete-focused, coach-led, performance-measured programmes across the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway. A Business & Economics graduate of Trinity College Dublin, he is a Level 3 Qualified Coach and Level 2 Coach Tutor. He has coached at five Olympic Games and numerous European and World Championship events across multiple Olympic classes. He is also a member of the Irish Sailing Foundation board.

Annalise Murphy is by far and away the biggest Irish sailing star. Her fourth in London 2012 when she came so agonisingly close to a bronze medal followed by her superb silver medal performance four years later at Rio won the hearts of Ireland. Murphy is aiming to go one better in Tokyo 2021. 

Under head coach Rory Fitzpatrick, the coaching staff consists of Laser Radial Academy coach Sean Evans, Olympic Laser coach Vasilij Zbogar and 49er team coach Matt McGovern.

The Irish Government provides funding to Irish Sailing. These funds are exclusively for the benefit of the Performance Pathway. However, this falls short of the amount required to fund the Performance Pathway in order to allow Ireland compete at the highest level. As a result the Performance Pathway programme currently receives around €850,000 per annum from Sport Ireland and €150,000 from sponsorship. A further €2 million per annum is needed to have a major impact at the highest level. The Irish Sailing Foundation was established to bridge the financial gap through securing philanthropic donations, corporate giving and sponsorship.

The vision of the Irish Sailing Foundation is to generate the required financial resources for Ireland to scale-up and execute its world-class sailing programme. Irish Sailing works tirelessly to promote sailing in Ireland and abroad and has been successful in securing funding of 1 million euro from Sport Ireland. However, to compete on a par with other nations, a further €2 million is required annually to realise the ambitions of our talented sailors. For this reason, the Irish Sailing Foundation was formed to seek philanthropic donations. Led by a Board of Directors and Head of Development Kathryn Grace, the foundation lads a campaign to bridge the financial gap to provide the Performance Pathway with the funds necessary to increase coaching hours, upgrade equipment and provide world class sport science support to a greater number of high-potential Irish sailors.

The Senior and Academy teams of the Performance Pathway are supported with the provision of a coach, vehicle, coach boat and boats. Even with this level of subsidy there is still a large financial burden on individual families due to travel costs, entry fees and accommodation. There are often compromises made on the amount of days a coach can be hired for and on many occasions it is necessary to opt out of major competitions outside Europe due to cost. Money raised by the Irish Sailing Foundation will go towards increased quality coaching time, world-class equipment, and subsiding entry fees and travel-related costs. It also goes towards broadening the base of talented sailors that can consider campaigning by removing financial hurdles, and the Performance HQ in Dublin to increase efficiency and reduce logistical issues.

The ethos of the Performance Pathway is progression. At each stage international performance benchmarks are utilised to ensure the sailors are meeting expectations set. The size of a sailor will generally dictate which boat they sail. The classes selected on the pathway have been identified as the best feeder classes for progression. Currently the Irish Sailing Performance Pathway consists of the following groups: * Pathway (U15) Optimist and Topper * Youth Academy (U19) Laser 4.7, Laser Radial and 420 * Development Academy (U23) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX * Team IRL (direct-funded athletes) Laser, Laser Radial, 49er, 49erFX

The Irish Sailing performance director produces a detailed annual budget for the programme which is presented to Sport Ireland, Irish Sailing and the Foundation for detailed discussion and analysis of the programme, where each item of expenditure is reviewed and approved. Each year, the performance director drafts a Performance Plan and Budget designed to meet the objectives of Irish Performance Sailing based on an annual review of the Pathway Programmes from Junior to Olympic level. The plan is then presented to the Olympic Steering Group (OSG) where it is independently assessed and the budget is agreed. The OSG closely monitors the delivery of the plan ensuring it meets the agreed strategy, is within budget and in line with operational plans. The performance director communicates on an ongoing basis with the OSG throughout the year, reporting formally on a quarterly basis.

Due to the specialised nature of Performance Sport, Irish Sailing established an expert sub-committee which is referred to as the Olympic Steering Group (OSG). The OSG is chaired by Patrick Coveney and its objective is centred around winning Olympic medals so it oversees the delivery of the Irish Sailing’s Performance plan.

At Junior level (U15) sailors learn not only to be a sailor but also an athlete. They develop the discipline required to keep a training log while undertaking fitness programmes, attending coaching sessions and travelling to competitions. During the winter Regional Squads take place and then in spring the National Squads are selected for Summer Competitions. As sailors move into Youth level (U19) there is an exhaustive selection matrix used when considering a sailor for entry into the Performance Academy. Completion of club training programmes, attendance at the performance seminars, physical suitability and also progress at Junior and Youth competitions are assessed and reviewed. Once invited in to the Performance Academy, sailors are given a six-month trial before a final decision is made on their selection. Sailors in the Academy are very closely monitored and engage in a very well planned out sailing, training and competition programme. There are also defined international benchmarks which these sailors are required to meet by a certain age. Biannual reviews are conducted transparently with the sailors so they know exactly where they are performing well and they are made aware of where they may need to improve before the next review.

©Afloat 2020