Punchestown festival worth €60 million to local economy
The Punchestown National Hunt Festival is worth €60 million each year to the local and national economy.  This was among the findings of a research project undertaken at NUI Maynooth through the interview of 1,100 race goers at last year’s festival.
95,000 people went racing over the five days, over 45% of them women, and they spent €7 million on preparing themselves by way of hair, make-up and fashion.  20,000 visitors came over from the UK, an increase of 23% since 2005.
The report was launched by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Simon Coveney who referred to Ireland being the best racing nation in the world.
Sport for Business was at the launch and there is a feature in Sport for Business Weekly which will be published online later today.
Irish Olympic Sailors make their mark
All three of the qualified Irish Olympic sailing teams have been ranked within the World top 10 according to the most recent ISAF (International Sailing Federation) official world rankings.
Peter O’Leary and David Burrows are ranked 5th in the world in the Star class.  Fellow squad member, 21 year old Annalise Murphy is also 5th in the world in the Laser Radial rankings. 49er duo Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern lie 8th overall within their class.  All three will represent Ireland at the Olympic Sailing event in Weymouth this summer.
“It is fantastic to see Irish sailors at the top of the world rankings,” said ISA High Performance Director James O’Callaghan.  “They themselves though will continue to focus on results at they continue their preparation for the summer”.
GAA comes down hard on ‘fighting’ clubs
The GAA has handed down fines of €5,000 and €2,000 to Derrytresk and Dromid Pearses GAA clubs, as well as bans for 11 players arising out of the brawl that marred the end of their AIB Junior All Ireland Club Championship match in Portlaoise last month.
Derrytresk are due to play in the Club final at Croke Park against Conbur from County Galway on Sunday, February 12th.  They have eight of their players suspended, four who started the semi final and four of the original substitutes.
British (Olympic) Handball secures major sponsorship deal
The British Men’s and Women’s (Olympic) Handball teams will carry the names of Collins Stewart Wealth Management and Pinsent Masons law firm on their shirts in the run up to the London Olympics this summer.
The two blue chip sponsors will also contribute £10 per goal; scored by either team towards a fund for the players.
“The sports sector is a key part of our firm’s business,” said Trevor Watkins, Head of Sport and a Partner at Pinsent Masons.  “We are delighted to invest back into sport and make a real difference in doing so. It gives our staff across all of our offices a tremendous opportunity to be part of the GB Handball journey as the teams prepare for what will be one of the greatest sporting events in our lifetime and to play their part by volunteering, supporting and helping to create a strong foundation for the sport beyond 2012.”
Handball is known as Olympic Handball in Ireland to differentiate from the Gaelic Games variety.  The Irish Olympic Handball Association has exciting plans for the future of the sport and will feature in a forthcoming issue of Sport for Business Weekly.