Special Olympics Kayaking athlete, Carmel Lynch, her mother Philomena and sister Emma Jane with fellow mother and daughter duo, Anne and Noeleen Parkes, will run the Evening Herald Women’s Mini Marathon to raise funds for the first ever Special Olympics Kayaking Club in Ireland.  Kayaking was a demonstration sport at the World Summer Games last year and not previously offered in the Special Olympics Ireland programme……until now!

Free Spirit Kayaking Club, named by Carmel, was established by the parents of Special Olympics Kayaking athletes after their successes at the 2003 Games and has a membership of eight kayakers hailing from all across Dublin from Tallaght to Stoneybatter.  The athletes train on the River Liffey every Saturday morning and the club utilises the changing room facilities of St John of God’s in Islandbridge, which are opened by World Games volunteer, Sarah Fielding who happens to work at the centre.  The coaches are John Daly, a Level 3 Paddler who loans boats from his Kayaking Club each week and Mick Daly, who is a keen Level 2 Kayaker and was a volunteer at the Salmon Leap Kayaking venue for the World Summer Games.

According to treasurer and one of the club founders Carmel Lynch “We were literally up the creek without a paddle and we used to beg, borrow and nearly steal boats each week to train at Islandbridge but now the athletes are in the process of buying their own boats.  Kayaking is a new sport to Special Olympics Ireland so we really want to get the club established and attract new athletes.  Special thanks must go to our dedicated volunteers who help us train and lend us equipment and we’ve been getting great support from Special Olympics Ireland.  By running the mini marathon we hope to raise enough money through sponsorship to actually purchase some more boats and equipment.”

If you would like to sponsor Carmel and Phil, Noeleen and Anne of if you’d like to participate in the mini marathon to fundraise for the Free Spirit Kayaking Club, please call Phil Lynch on 085-7270258 or email for a sponsorship card.