Search Results for 'Race committee'

Harsh winter weather leads to severe famine.

Two High Court actions have been brought this week over the granting of planning permission for the Galway City Ring Road.

Michael Moloney has been living and breathing Galway Racecourse for many years now. When he was knee high to a grasshopper, he used to cycle around the course, while his father John, looked after the running of the course. Now, so many years on, Michael still thinks of Ballybrit as a back garden rather than a workplace, such is his passion for that patch of ground that heaves mightily every year and reverberates the Galway economy.

We know that horse races were organised in different parts of County Galway from the middle of the 18th century, in places like Kilconnell, Eyrecourt, Rahasane, Ballinasloe, Ballymoe, Carraroe, and Bermingham House near Tuam. They were known as ‘racing matches’. In 1764, there was a five day meeting held at Knockbarron near Loughrea, and between 1829 and 1857, 15 meetings were held in Kiltulla near Ballybrit. In 1867, a series of races was organised at Bushfield near Oranmore.

Some 150,000 punters are set to flock into the city over the next week as Galway Races celebrates its 150th birthday with a bumper meeting full of special events.

The two-day autumn meeting of the Galway Races begins Monday September 5 with a mixture of 14 flat and national hunt races taking place over the two days.