It is a big weekend for Gymnastics Ireland on both the global and the local stage.
In Doha, Adam Steele has qualified for the Final of the Men’s Floor alongside seven other competitors from Ukraine, Britain, Croatia, Kazakhstan, Spain and Korea.
He will be followed into the arena by Rhys McClenaghan who will take on athletes from Ukraine, Austria, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Belgium and Israel.
Three of the other individual apparatus finals have competitors from Russia and Belarus taking part with the International Gymnastics Federation being one of the few international bodies not to have banned athletes from the two countries that are involved or have assisted in the invasion of Ukraine.
In the parallel bars final, Illia Kovtun of Ukraine will compete against two Russian athletes in what is a bizarre circumstance of sporting competition between athletes whose two countries are locked in a war state. The same is true in two of the Women’s finals as well.
Back on home soil, there will be an estimated 1,200 young competitors taking part in the first GymStart event to take place at the Sport Ireland Campus in two years.
Tickets have to be booked in advance and getting a good attendance of family and friends will be central to the sport continuing its financial recovery from the serious hits of the Covid period.
