Róisín Wiley, the New York Rose, was named the 2023 Rose of Tralee on Tuesday night at the conclusion of this year’s festival in Co Kerry.
Ms Wiley, the vice-president of sales at a New York City marketing firm, has roots in Co Limerick – her mother Majella is from Templeglantine, while her father Eddie is a native of Kilmallock.
Speaking after the result, Ms Wiley said she was shocked “in the most amazing way”.
“I started this journey knowing that the Rose of Tralee was the main goal, and I’m just excited now to see what’s to come. This has been something I’ve hoped for my whole life, and now I’m just ready to take on that next chapter,” she said.
Ms Wiley, who is based in the US, said she was excited to represent Ireland in New York.
“Growing up as an Irish American in New York, with the name Róisín, being Irish is usually the first conversation I have with somebody new.
“I feel like I’ve been an ambassador for Ireland my whole life in the background, and now to fully stand as a formal figure I’m just so excited and honoured,” she added.
Ms Wiley inherits the title from last year’s winner, Co Westmeath native Rachel Duffy.
The 27-year old’s triumph followed the second of two selection nights at the Rose Dome, in the Kerry Sports Academy in Tralee, where Roses were led by co-hosts Dáithí Ó Sé and Kathryn Thomas in sharing emotional anecdotes, songs and party pieces
Over the course of the week, Rose of Tralee proponents pointed to the prominence of women with neurodiverse conditions at this year’s festival and dismissed familiar criticisms – including suggestions that the festival is dated, and lacks diversity.
South Australia Rose Charlotte Burton (27) was set to become the first married woman to participate in the Rose of Tralee. She also has autism.
“I think the beautiful thing is it’s not just me – I’m not the only one representing change. All these girls have something that’s unique, that’s progressive, that they carry with them, that 50 years ago we would have looked at – as a society – and said that they aren’t the image of what an Irish woman should be,” Ms Burton said, prior her television appearance. “To be an Irish woman is just to be an Irish woman.”
In the spirit of inclusion, Ms Burton said she would be in favour of raising the age limit of 29, but that doing so would raise questions over “what form the festival wants to take”.
“If it wants to be about just a general celebration of women, or if it wants to stay as something that’s focusing on young women and their identity, and finding who they are.”
On stage on Tuesday evening, Kathryn Thomas became emotional as she spoke with Clare Rose Aisling O’Connor (25), who recounted the loss of both her parents, three years apart, events that caused her world to completely stop, the primary schoolteacher said.
In speaking about her experiences of loss and grief, Ms O’Connor paid tribute to her brothers, and her home parish of Feakle, Co Clare. “We wouldn’t be anywhere without the community.”
For Sydney Rose Aoife Butler (29), from Co Wexford, entering the Rose of Tralee was about honouring her late brother Matthew, who passed away tragically while living in Australia.
“I was always meant to travel over to him, and when I got to Australia, I feel like I grew into the person who I am today,” the mental health nurse said on Tuesday afternoon at the Meadowlands Hotel in Tralee, holding Ms Burton’s hand as she spoke. “I feel like I have a story to share, and I’m proud of the person I am.”
Kelsi Wallace (27), the New Zealand Rose, also paid tribute to her late brother during her onstage interview on Tuesday evening.
Thomas, the festival’s first-ever co-host, was buoyant after her Rose debut. The second half of Monday night’s broadcast drew 406,400 viewers, an increase of 40,000 on last year’s offering.
“You could say that it’s a show that a lot of people love to hate,” Thomas said on Tuesday afternoon. “But you can’t argue with the amount of people tuning in to watch it.
“I think there was an expectation there because there hadn’t been that co-hosting element to the show ... people were wondering how it was going to work out.”
Earlier on Tuesday, on the streets of Tralee, opinions on the Rose festival swung from apathy to gentle endorsement.
“They had a girl with dyslexia, a girl who was bullied in school – that was nice to have, a different point of view. Because normally, you’re like, ‘aw, [the Roses are] so stunning, they must have a perfect little life’,” Louise Leahy (19), from Listowel, said, referring to the experiences of Offaly Rose Allie Leahy.
“The girl from Limerick had Asperger’s, that was really interesting,” she added, speaking of Molli-Ann O’Halloran, standing on Ashe Street after some clothes shopping with her cousin, Abby Leahy (17).
Michelle Davis (20), from Cornwall but living in Tralee, was taking a break from busking on The Mall on Tuesday morning.
“If people enjoy it, it’s a bit of entertainment and all that, and people feel like they’re gaining something from it – whether they are or not – it’s not really relevant. If people enjoy it, that’s all that matters surely,” she said, her Scottish smallpipes in hand.
Anne Marie Neligan (35), from Dingle, questioned if the festival was truly representative of a “modern Ireland”, pointing to – for example – a lack of racial diversity at this year’s festival.
