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The bizarre story of the Irish Bobsleigh team

Tommy Martin and Bernard Jackman joined Richie McCormack for the Sunday Paper Review on Off the B...
Newstalk
Newstalk

17.16 4 Feb 2018


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The bizarre story of the Irish...

The bizarre story of the Irish Bobsleigh team

Newstalk
Newstalk

17.16 4 Feb 2018


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Tommy Martin and Bernard Jackman joined Richie McCormack for the Sunday Paper Review on Off the Ball this week.

Despite Ireland's dramatic win over France taking up most of the discussion - an almost incredible story about the Irish Bobsleigh team in the 1990s caught the eye. 

McCormack began: "One of the best stories in itself that is in today's papers circles around the team that Ireland sent to compete in the bobsleigh in the 1992 Winter Olympics. Mark Gallagher has written about this in the Irish Mail on Sunday. 

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"There's a couple of Winter Olympics pieces, obviously with Pyeongchang on the horizon, it doesn't lead surprisingly enough towards doping or any of that kind of stuff but looking at the involvement Ireland has with a small team and this time around back in 1992.

"Along with Pat McDonagh, Terry McHugh, the late Malachy Sheridan, Garry Power and John Farrelly - he was talking to Gerry Macken who was part of that bobsleigh contingent in 1992. 

"The story of how they got there is utterly remarkable. Macken and McDonagh were involved the Henley Regatta in rowing in 1986. They were renowned international rowers and competed in the race - "We actually won it" Macken recalls and at the end there was an envelope waiting for both of them from a London-Irish businessman called Larry Tracey wondering if they would be interested in representing Ireland in the bobsleigh, as you do!"

The full Sunday Paper Review is available here:

The bizarre story of the Irish Bobsleigh team

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