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Displaying items by tag: World Cup Trout Fly Angling Championship

#Angling - Thomas O'Loughlin's impressive 12-fish catch was more than enough to snag him the top prize at the World Cup Trout Fly Angling Championship on Lough Mask recently.

The Corofin, Co Clare native's final bag of 13.43lbs was 50% larger than that of his closest rival Jonathan Craven of Connacht in the 60th running of the competition, which took place over five days ending on Monday 1 August, as the Clare Champion reports.

His victory marks the first for any Clare angler in the Lough Mask contest – but is just the latest in a series of accolades for 'Tommy', who comes from an experienced family of game anglers.

The Clare Champion has much more on the story HERE.

Published in Angling

#ANGLING - Inland Fisheries Ireland has teamed up with the committee behind the World Cup Trout Fly Angling Championship to develop a biosecurity initiative for the contest, taking place on Lough Mask from 2-6 August.

The premier event in the angling calendar will be contested by up to 500 keen fly fishermen from Ireland and abroad, each anticipating lifting the coveted World Cup.

The anglers that fish this competition realise the true gem that Lough Mask represents, providing quality angling in clean, unpolluted waters.

Towards that end, the biosecurity initiative aims to prevent non-native invasive species and harmful aquatic pathogens being inadvertently introduced into the lake on angling equipment.

Central to the initiative is that all anglers must disinfect their landing nets and boots each day before registering for the competition.

Anglers will be requested to co-operate with stewards on each morning and to bring their landing nets and boots with them to the registration centre. There, they will dip their gear in supervised disinfection tanks and receive a stamp from the Biosecurity Steward to show that they have used the facility.

Only anglers who can show this stamp to the Registration Officer will be registered to fish the competition on that day.

In recent years, despite considerable effort on behalf of IFI and many other angling and conservation groups, the non-native invasive Zebra mussel was introduced to Lough Mask.

Invasions elsewhere in Ireland's inland waterways include the notorious Asian clam, which has taken residence from the River Shannon to the Grand Canal.

The present biosecurity initiative - which follows the recent launch of a smartphone app to identify and report aquatic invasive species - represents an effort to make anglers aware of the dangers posed, and to alert them to the fact that other harmful and environmentally damaging invasive species are present on the island of Ireland, and that these can be inadvertently introduced to the lake on wet nets or soiled boots.

Information packages relating to the threats posed by invasive species will be available to anglers’ during the competition.

Published in Angling

Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat

For the first time in sailing's Olympic history, a Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat event will be on the slate at the Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Competition.

The Mixed Two Person Offshore Keelboat will join kiteboarding, windsurfing, multihulls, singlehanded and doublehanded dinghies and skiffs, promoting the diversity of the sport. This, in turn, will support World Sailing's desire to promote and grow universality in all disciplines and increase female participation with gender-equal medals and athletes.

Offshore sailing is the ultimate test of endurance, skill, discipline, navigation and critical decision making.

Embracing a major part of sailing in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will enable new stars of the sport to come to the forefront.

Qualification

Offshore sailing is a universal discipline that every World Sailing Member National Authority (MNA) can participate in.

Up to 20 nations will be on the start line at Paris 2024 and sailors from every continent will be represented. To qualify for the Olympic Games, continental qualification events will be held and competition for a spot will be hotly contested.

Equipment

For qualification events, World Sailing will approve a list of one-design boats that are already regionally available and can be accessed as a charter boat. Boats will be equalised to ensure fair competition.

For Paris 2024, World Sailing's Council will select a list of different Equipment it considers to meet the key criteria by 31 December 2020 and then make a decision on the Equipment, selecting from the list, no later than 31 December 2023.

MNAs, Class Associations and Manufacturers have all been invited to propose Equipment for the list and a World Sailing Working Party will evaluate each proposal. A recommended list will be presented to Council for approval in November 2020.

This recommended Equipment list will ensure that event organisers, MNAs and the sailors have opportunities to train and compete in Equipment that is readily available and affordable within their continent and country. It will also ensure each MNA has a fair opportunity to prepare for qualification events and eventually, Paris 2024.

Format

Starting and finishing in Marseille, the Mixed Offshore event is expected to last for either three days and two nights or four days and three nights off the French coastline and whoever crosses the finish line first will be declared Olympic champion.

The race course and length will be announced in the lead up to the start so the competition can take advantage of the latest weather forecast. Current options proposed include long and short courses heading towards the West and East of France.

Safety and Security

The French Navy and Mediterranean forces have extensive experience of supporting major oceanic sailing races. They will provide safety and security at Paris 2024.