Irish Sailing Association honours

2003 volunteer and gallantry awards presented

Don O’Dowd, ISA Volunteer of the Year 2003

The ISA Volunteer of the Year award is an annual award given to a member of an ISA affiliated club or class, who has made a significant voluntary contribution to the sport of sailing during the year. There is a cash prize of €1,250 awarded to a club, class, or ISA affiliated Organisation at the discretion of the winner.

Don O'Dowd is a member of the RSTGYC, PRO for the Mirror Class, Chairman of the Organizing Committee for the 2004 420 Europeans, as a parent he is involved in the Optimist and the Laser Class and he himself sails a Dragon.

He has been very active in Junior sailing especially the Mirror Class for several years. He organized and managed a whole programme of winter and summer training for the Mirror Class from the late nineties, developing the squad, getting them up to speed, building up the circuit and as Chairman of the IMCAI 2000-2002 he continued to foster and encourage the development of Junior Mirror Sailing.

This directly led to both recent World Championship victories, Peter Bayly and William Atkinson in Howth, and Chris Clayton with Craig Martin in Tasmania.

In Tasmania, Ireland dominated the sailing with 1st, 2nd (by a point) and 4th, and 5 boats in the top 20.

Don has to be congratulated for his forward thinking, enthusiasm, inclusiveness which not only gives great encouragement and motivation to all the young sailors in enjoying the benefits of sailing their Mirrors, but particularly in enjoying sailing as a sport for young people.

The Jimmy Mooney Award for Gallantry

Adam Drew received the Jimmy Mooney Award for Gallantry at the AGM of the Irish Sailing Association in Malahide on Saturday.

Description of the incident:
On Saturday September 20th 2003 a woman in her eighties fell from the East pier in Dun Laoghaire Harbour, opposite the pontoon in front of the National Yacht Club. The tide was almost fully out, thus she fell approximately seven metres, sliding down the pier wall. She was lying on her back motionless in the water and sinking slowly.

Noel Butler (nominator) had been helming the 1720 “Yoke” with Adam Drew, Aidan Beggan and Dave Morley crewing. As they were returning to the dock of the National Yacht Club after racing, they saw the woman falling. Adam immediately dived off “Yoke” and swam about forty meters to where she had fallen. He got to her just as she was about to sink beneath the surface of the water and held her up. Meanwhile, they had alerted the National Yacht Club boatmen and they bought the launch to recover the woman from the water. Adam held the woman and assisted the boatmen in the launch (Cillian Meldon, Donal Cronin and Anthony Camilleri) in lifting her onboard. The emergency services were called and the lady was taken by ambulance to St. Michael’s hospital, where she was treated for shock and injuries to her pelvis and ankle.

If it were not for Adam’s instant reaction on seeing her fall, the woman would almost certainly have drowned. When Adam saved her, she was motionless in the water, with pelvic and ankle fractures and would certainly not have been in a position to save herself.