Waterford Sports Partnership and Waterford SportsAbility Forum in association with SETU Arena ran Waterford’s SportsAbility Day on Sunday 1st of October from 11am to 3pm in SETU Arena, this was a great opportunity for people to find out what sports and activities are on offer across the city and county for people with a disability.
SportsAbility Day 2023 was a fantastic and very memorable day. The event started with local clubs and National Governing Bodies hosting information stands providing information support and advice on what is happening in Waterford at present. From 12-3pm, a wide range of taster sessions took place for people to try out. This included: Table Tennis, Football for All, Athletics, Muay Thai, Pitch & Putt, Rugby, Hockey, Badminton, Powerchair football, Wheelchair basketball, Boccia, GAA for all, Footgolf, Archery, access to the High-Performance gym and Sprinting Track and access to all different types of bikes such as two wheelers, trikes, handcycles, trishaw and balance bikes.
The event was hosted by the very talented Teresanne O’Reilly. Paralympians Hayley Fitzsimons, Niall Mc Veigh and Damien Vereker joined us on the day. Hayley and Niall gave a very informative interview about their sporting careers while Damien helped and took part in the cycling activities.
Waterford’s Sports Ability Forum was established in 2016, with representatives from various Disability Organisations, Voluntary and Statutory Organisations and National Governing Bodies. The aim of the forum is for organisations to meet quarterly and share information on what physical activity opportunities are available for people with a disability in Waterford. The forum’s secondary aim is to increase the awareness of the physical activity opportunities for people with a disability in Waterford. The SportsAbility Day is the perfect platform for this!
Thank you to everyone who contributed to making SportsAbility such an incredible day. A huge thank you to all the NBG’s and Clubs who hosted very fun and enjoyable taster sessions. These include: Table Tennis Ireland, Football For All clubs – Cappoquinn and Park Rangers, Irish Wheelchair Association Sport for hosting Wheelchair Basketball and Athletics, John Walsh from Muay Thai Waterford, David Hayes from Dungarvan Golf Club, Brendan Woods from Hockey Ireland, Brendan Cornish and the Wexford FC staff for Powerchair Football, Brickey Rangers and Munster GAA for GAA For All, Ben Swindlehurst from Munster Rugby, WSP staff member Sinead Brannigan for Boccia, Declan Kelly and Conor Colman for looking after the bike area and SETU Arena for the use of their High Performance Gym, Sprinting Track and Archery and Footgolf.
Thanks to everyone who hosted very informative information stands. These include Alex Malone from Paralympics Ireland, Adam Sommers from Active Disability Ireland, Little Vikings Special Olympics Young Athlete Club, Waterford FC, Park Rangers AFC, Irish Wheelchair Association and Motivate Fitness. Thank you so much to Teresanne O’Reilly for her professionalism in leading MC duties and to special guests, Paralympian Hayley Fitsimmons, Niall Mc Veigh and Damien Vereker. We appreciate SETU Arenas wonderful facility and the assistance of their staff in setting up the sports hall and to the volunteers and staff of WSP who kindly gave up their time to help.
For more information on opportunities for people with a disability please contact Jordan Kelly by email at jordankelly@waterfordsportspartnership.ie or call 086 167 5642
