Athlone Agri Show returns on Sunday
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Damien Doherty, Sarah Devery, Peter Devery and Bernie Devery Costello with the Ellen Devery Perpetual Cup at the launch of the Athlone Agri Show at the The Bounty, Athlone.Image 2 of 4
Councillor John Dolan, chairman, with Majella Glynn and PJ Glynn, Equine section representative.Image 3 of 4
PJ Coghill and Mary Lennon, hospitality co-ordinator, at the launch of the Athlone Agri Show recently.Image 4 of 4
Padraig Higgins, secretary, Dr. David Fenton, joint treasurer, and John McCann, joint treasurer, at the launch of the Athlone Agri Show.Athlone Agri Show takes place this coming Sunday, June 19, commencing at 10.30am for the public.
This year the show will be held at the farm of Michael Donoghue of Garnafailagh, Athlone, N37 V252, which is very close to the town.
At the launch of Athlone Agri Show recently the Chairman Cllr John Dolan stated that the mission of Athlone Agri Show is to promote agriculture, equestrian sports, local enterprises, food and crafts for the people of Athlone and surrounding areas.”
“People are eager to showcase their wares, whether its prize livestock, baking, crafts, or trade stands and many more after such a challenging few years.”
The show prides itself on welcoming all urban and rural dwellers to enjoy a family fun day with a host of activities to entertain the whole family. The show endeavours to also give local food and craft entrepreneurs an opportunity to showcase their produce on the day.
Equine is always one of the most popular sections and is proving so this year with an offering of 90 classes. There are four RDS Qualifiers such as Side Saddle and Racehorse to Riding Horse. There are also eleven other qualifiers for shows throughout the country. One of the qualifiers that is getting a lot of attention according to the Equine Secretary is the Irish Green Hunter for registered Connemara ponies. This is a qualifier for the annual Connemara Pony Show, August 11.
The sheep section is also promising to be a record event this year. There are twelve breeds of sheep competing for several competitions from all over the country and this includes four All-Ireland Finals. There has been a record number of entries already for all these classes.
The show will also be showcasing The Super Dog Show; a competition for large and small dogs and finishing with the Champion Large Dog Ellen Devery Perpetual Cup. This always attracts a large group of participants on the day.
The Arts and Crafts section has an attractive range of competitions including Cookery, Art and Photography and Flower Arranging. This is the biggest range of classes for many years, and we hope to get a good response from the public. There will also be competitions to promote local food and craft products.
There will also be music, dancing, water activities, face painting and several exciting competitions.
Cllr Dolan said: “I would appeal to all our communities to come out and support this year’s Athlone Agri Show."
Visit www.athloneshow.ie.