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Cronin joins Moonraker field in pre-grist rehearsal

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Current British Rally Championship (BRC) leader, Keith Cronin, has placed an entry for the Moonraker Rally, which is set to take place in his home county of Cork on Saturday, July 2.

The Munster Car Club organised event will be based in the village of Ballyvourney and is to be a counting round of the Motorsport Ireland National Forestry Rally Championship.

Cronin and co-driver, Mikie Galvin from Agahdoe, previously won the Moonraker in 2017, and then as now, are using the outing to gain additional gravel running in aid of a BRC campaign. The duo went on to take the British title that year, and presently head the 2022 points standings following a victory on the Jim Clark Rally last month in their Volkswagen Polo GTi R5.

With the BRC due to resume the following weekend on the Nicky Grist Rally in Wales, the Moonraker is ideally placed to provide the required warm-up. 

“The first two BRC rounds were on tarmac, and we’re now heading into two gravel rounds," Cronin explained.

"We haven’t done a forest rally since the Cambrian last October, and that was in the Fiesta rather than the Polo, plus we’re on Pirelli tyres now, so there’s some learning to be done. The Moonraker suits in every way, it’s only a week before the Nicky Grist and it’s only about 40 minutes from home. It’s possible that it will be our only outing in Ireland this year.”

The entry list for the Moonraker features most of the National Forestry Championship frontrunners, including Jordan Hone and Keith Power in Ford Fiestas, Conor McCourt in a Skoda Fabia, and local driver, Gerard Lucey, in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8. The field will also include Motorsport Ireland National Junior Rally Series competitors, divided into 14-18 and 19-25 age groups.

The Moonraker Rally will consist of eight stages, a loop of four repeated twice. It will get underway from Coláiste Ghobnatan at 9am, with the first stage scheduled to start at 9.37am. The National Forestry Rally Championship regulations require that two wheel drive cars run first, in reverse seeding order, with four wheel drives after in normal order. Service will be at the Údarás na Gaeltachta complex after stages two, four and six, and the Finish celebrations will take place at the Abbey Hotel in Ballyvourney, which serves as Rally Headquarters, at around 5.45pm.

The Volkswagen Polo of Keith Cronin and Mikie Galvin is prepared by Tom Gahan Motorsport and supported by M O’Brien Group of Companies, Keohane Seafoods, Inver Energy, Cremin Coaches, Cronin’s HomeValue Hardware, Cronin’s Centra and Pirelli Tyres.

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Killarney for Palestine film screening

Killarney for Palestine recently held a sold-out screening of the Oscar-winning documentary ‘No Other Land’ at the West End School of Arts, raising €2,100 for Camp Breakerz. The event, which […]

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Killarney for Palestine recently held a sold-out screening of the Oscar-winning documentary ‘No Other Land’ at the West End School of Arts, raising €2,100 for Camp Breakerz.

The event, which took place on July 3, included two screenings, both of which were fully booked. Guests enjoyed cheese and wine before the shows.
‘No Other Land’ depicts the ongoing destruction in Masafer Yatta, a cluster of villages in the Southern West Bank, and shows the experiences of Palestinians under Israeli occupation. The film won in the Best Documentary category at this year’s Academy Awards.
The screenings were organised in association with the West End School of Arts.
All proceeds from the €25 tickets benefited Camp Breakerz Crew, a children’s charity based in Gaza that provides creative outlets through dance and is involved in food distribution programs in Nuseirat Camp and Deir-Al-Balah due to food shortages.
Sally MacMonagle, who recently spent time in Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, also spoke at one of the screenings.

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Bid to host European Presidency summit meetings gathers pace

Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Tourism, Michael Cahill TD, has highlighted Killarney’s suitability to host summit meetings of international Government Ministers during Ireland’s six-month European Presidency tenure in 2026. Deputy Cahill […]

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Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Tourism, Michael Cahill TD, has highlighted Killarney’s suitability to host summit meetings of international Government Ministers during Ireland’s six-month European Presidency tenure in 2026.

Deputy Cahill believes Kerry’s available accommodation, food, and conference facilities are “second to none,” with Killarney as the central location.
“Visitors from every corner of the earth have been coming to Kerry for centuries now, to experience its beauty and serenity and have returned on many occasions because of the fabulous time they have enjoyed during their stay here,” said Deputy Cahill. “Where else would you want to bring the senior Government Ministers of all of our EU counterpart states, to experience Ireland, its customs and heritage?”
The Rossbeigh TD outlined various attractions available for visitors during downtime: “During their downtime, they can visit the Blaskets and Slea Head, Sceilg Mhichíl and the Ring of Kerry, Killarney’s Lakes, Gap of Dunloe, National Park and Sliabh Luachra, all of our glorious beaches from Ballybunion to Rossbeigh, Kells to Ventry, Whitestrand to Inch, Ballinskelligs to Cromane, Waterville to Derrynane.” He also cited Kerry’s golf courses, Listowel Writers Week, the Rose of Tralee, and Puck Fair as potential experiences.
Deputy Cahill confirmed he has raised this matter with An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin; An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Harris; and Minister of State for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne.
“If Killarney’s bid is successful in bringing the Heads of State to our county for meetings, conferences and functions, it will be a massive boost to the local economy in Killarney and also throughout the county,” added Cahill.”Iwill continue to push in the coming months for Killarney and Kerry to be included as bases for the rounds of meetings that are to take place from July 1 to December 312026.”

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