In the space of one week, Coláiste Iognáid students demonstrated their prowess in schools debating by winning four prestigious debating prizes.
Third year student Kate Duggan won runner-up Best Speaker in Ireland at the National Junior Mace in UCD on Saturday. With qualifiers starting back in October, the Jes pupil beat some 500 other speakers to the podium.
In the same competition, first year pupil Conor O’Sullivan was crowned Best First Year Debater.
Kate Duggan travels with debating partner Philip Buckley to Oxford in May where they represent Ireland in the 2014 International Junior Mace.
On Tuesday, senior debaters Eoghan Finn and Frank O’Neill enabled the Jes to become the west of Ireland champions for the ninth time in 10 years. At the same event, Alistair Richardson from the school also won the Individual Championship. It is only the second time that ‘The Double’ has been achieved in the 30-year history of the competition. They will travel to UCC next weekend to compete in the All-Ireland final.
Eoghan Finn and Frank O’Neill had just returned from Oxford where they had represented Ireland in the 2014 Oxford International Senior Mace.
