The Olympic torch relay, a throwback to ancient Greece, became a contemporary Olympic tradition at the 1936 Summer Games in Berlin. The 2012 summer games will open on July 27, in London, after the torch has completed a 70-day tour of 8,000 miles, carried by 8,000 torch bearers. As the Olympic torch traveled its 5-day relay through Northern Ireland and Dublin June 3 through … [Read more...] about Keep ‘er Lit: The Olympic Torch in Ireland
Sports
Irish and Irish-American Olympians to Watch
As the Olympic Games get in gear, Irish Americans with loyalties on both sides of the Atlantic will find themselves with an abundance of stellar athletes to root for. With 525 athletes, Team U.S.A. is a force to be reckoned with. The Irish-American competitors receiving the most media buzz include 16-year-old gymnast McKayla Maroney; distance runner Shalane Flanagan, who set a … [Read more...] about Irish and Irish-American Olympians to Watch
Running Rings Around the Empire: The 1908 Olympics
As Britain hosts the Summer Olympic Games in London, we look back on the first great modern Olympic confrontation between the United States – most of whose top athletes were Irish – and Britain, which took place in London in 1908. Notably, they were the last Olympic Games at which the judging committee was made up entirely of people from the host country. In 1908, as the … [Read more...] about Running Rings Around the Empire: The 1908 Olympics
The Naming of Winged Fist Way
A stretch of 43rd Street and 48th Avenue in Sunnyside, Queens, received a second name on March 10. Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, it became Winged Fist Way, in honor of the Irish American Athletic Club. The I-AAC, whose members were known as The Winged Fists, thrived in Sunnyside at the beginning of the 20th century as one of New York’s first inclusive, multicultural … [Read more...] about The Naming of Winged Fist Way
GAA Takes Off in Texas
In Dallas, Texas, it’s all about community and camaraderie over competition. Spurred by the success of the Celtic Cowboys, a Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) league formed in Austin in 2004, Fionn Mac Cumhaill GAA was founded in Dallas in 2010. Emmett Long, Brian Geraghty, Kevin McCann, Paddy Walsh and Davey Devlin were among the founding members – all from Ireland. They sent … [Read more...] about GAA Takes Off in Texas