SPORTS AND GAMES
Click here for program sign (pdf format).

Children's Sports/PlayBoard
Click here for program sign (pdf format).

Margaret Deevy,
    Belfast, County Antrim
Marie-Louise Tohill,
    Belfast, County Antrim

In 2005, PlayBoard, a Belfastbased
children's advocacy agency,
launched its "Reclaiming Playspace"
initiative, which seeks to provide
positive, outdoor play experiences
and foster inter-community
relations throughout Northern
Ireland. Using traditional street
games, co-operative group
games, and innovative fun
activities, playleaders Deevy and
Tohill encourage young people
from all backgrounds to take
ownership and share community
spaces. www.playboard.org

Gaelic Games
Click here for program sign (pdf format).
Click here for program sign in Irish (pdf format).

Gaelic Athletic Association/Comhairle
Uladh Cumann Lúthchleas Gael
Jimmy Darragh,
    Belfast, County Antrim
Stephen McGeehan,
    Armagh, County Armagh
Una McKay,
    Cookstown, County Tyrone
Terence McWilliams,
    Kilrea, County Londonderry
Aileen Tohill,
    Maghera, County Londonderry

Founded in 1884, the Gaelic
Athletic Association (GAA)
promotes indigenous Irish sports,
such as hurling (Irish iománaíocht),
camogie, Gaelic football, rounders,
and handball, as well as Irish
music, dance, and language.
The association has more than
2,500 clubs throughout Ireland
(500 of which are in Northern
Ireland) and many more around
the world. Coaches, like those
participating in the Festival, assist
players at all levels to improve
their skills and compete in local,
Club, and All Ireland County
Championships. www.ulster.gaa.ie

Hurling Stick Maker
Gavan Duffy, Belfast, County Antrim
Hurling sticks (also called "hurls,"
"hurleys," or camán) are used in
the ancient Irish game of hurling
and the women's version, camogie.
Gavan began as a player and
realized that despite the popularity
of the sport, there was a decreasing
number of stick makers. After
college, he set out to learn the trade
from traditional craftspeople and
establish a viable business. His
initial workshop on The Falls Road
did so well that he recently relocated
his expanding business, Camán,
to an industrial park just outside
Belfast. www.camanireland.com

Irish Football Association
Trevor Erskine, County Tyrone
David McVeigh, Belfast

Founded in 1880, the Irish Football
Association (IFA) is the world's
fourth oldest football-governing
body and an important member
of the International Football
Association Board, the sport's
international rule-making body.
Since 1998, the IFA has worked
with the Northern Ireland
Community Relations Council,
Sports Council Northern Ireland,
and the Amalgamation of Official
Northern Ireland Supporters
Clubs to broaden the game's
popularity by promoting "Football
for All." www.irishfa.com

Motorsports
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Brian Gardiner,
    Ballyclare, County Antrim
Niall McShea,
    Markethill, County Fermanagh

Motorcycle, or "bike," racing,
rally car racing, and carting seem
to combine an ancient Irish love
of horse racing with the region's
long-standing aptitude for heavy
engineering. Motorsports are
extremely popular: every May, the
North West 200 bike race draws
more than 100,000 spectators to
County Antrim's beautiful north
coast. Motorcycle racer Brian
Gardner and rally driver Niall
McShea explain how they modify
vehicles for competitions and train
themselves and others for their
sports. www.2and4wheels.com

Ulster Rugby
Click here for program sign (pdf format).

Michael Black,
    Kilfennan, County Londonderry
Barry Willis,
    Larne, County Antrim

The Irish Rugby Football Union
Ulster Branch (Ulster Rugby) was
founded in 1879. It oversees the
sport throughout Ulster—the six
counties that make up Northern
Ireland, as well as three counties
that are part of the Republic of
Ireland. In recent years, Ulster
Rugby and its coaches have
worked hard to broaden the sport's
popularity and its cross-community
appeal. www.ulsterrugby.ie

Sports Demonstrations
To assist coaches and officials from the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) and Ulster Rugby in Northern Ireland attending the 2007 Smithsonian Folklife Festival show off the excitement and traditions of their sports, two local sports clubs have graciously offered to play exhibition games on both weekends of the Festival:

Gaelic Games Exhibitions:
On Saturday, June 30, and Saturday, July 7, from 2:00-5:00 come see the D.C. Gaels demonstrate hurling, camogie, and Gaelic football on the National Mall. Exhibition games take place on the Sports Field in the Northern Ireland program area.

Founded in 1988, the D.C. Gaels are a sporting and social club, whose objective is to promote Irish culture and sport in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area. The Gaels have both Ladies' and Men's Gaelic football teams and hurling and camogie teams who compete throughout the summer months, with the hopes of qualifying for the U.S. National Championships. The Gaels compete in the Philadelphia Division of the Gaelic Athletic Association's (GAA) North American County Board (NACB). The GAA, the ruling body for Gaelic games in Ireland, was founded in 1884 in Ireland as a way to maintain the Irish language and culture. www.wdcgaels.com 

Rugby Exhibitions:
On Sunday, July 1, and Sunday, July 8, from 2:00-5:00 come see the Severn River Rugby Football Club from Annapolis demonstrate rugby on the National Mall. Exhibition games take place on the Sports Field in the Northern Ireland program area.

The Severn River R.F.C. is a Rugby Football Club located near Annapolis, the State Capital of Maryland. Since its inception, nearly 30 years ago, the club has played an integral role in forwarding the sport of rugby football in the region. Severn River is an organization that not only supports the recreation of the sport, but also the legacy of the sport. The club invites players from all age and skill levels to attend, and presently offers Mens, Womens, Under 19s, and Old Boys (Salts) competitions. www.severnriverrugby.org