This Sunday September 13 local publican Cian Moran of The Olive Bar has organised a family event in a bid to raise money for the South Westmeath Hospice.
The Olive Bar will screen the All-Ireland final before the main event on Sunday afternoon which will feature a pig race at 5pm followed by a barbecue and live music.
The hospice, which at this point is about 60 per cent kitted out with equipment, is due to open in the next six to eight weeks and the committee is hopeful Health Minister Mary Harney will officially open the hospice.
While the committee has received a commitment from the HSE regarding funding staff for the hospice, fundraising efforts are still underway, which is why Cian decided to organise the event.
There will be seven races on the day with six pigs racing in each race. According to Cian a professional company, which specialises in pig racing, will be responsible for the event. Once they have held a pig race in a town they will only ever hold it at that one location. He said this would be a unique event in Athlone and he decided to organise it after speaking to a publican in Tullamore who had organised a pig race for charity. If the event is a success he will make it an annual event to raise money for local charities. The pig race will run along similar lines to charity race nights and people can buy a pig for €20, as well as being able to make small bets of €2 on the pigs on the day. Money will also be raised from the sponsorship of each race and the placement of adverts in the programme.
Parking facilities will be available at Athlone GAA grounds and Athlone Town FC grounds, both of which are located in close proximity to The Olive Bar. There will be local access only to Sli an Aifrinn.
Anyone who would like to support the event can contact either Ted Carty of the hospice committee or Cian Moran at The Olive Bar on (090 ) 6450508.
