Belfast championships face parent revolt

ANY decision taken tomorrow by the IASA relating to the staging, or otherwise, of the national swimming championships in Belfast, due to start at the Grove Baths on July 23rd, has evidently been pre-empted by the parents of competitors.

The IASA executive met with representatives of clubs during the Age Group championships in Cork at the weekend and decided to delay any decision on whether to stage, cancel or postpone the national tests until further monitoring of the security situation in the North had been carried out.

But a marked reluctance by parents from outside Ulster to allow children to compete in Belfast seems sufficiently widespread, at the moment, to render an IASA decision quite irrelevant.

Terenure College, for example, whose Larry Williamson award is the most coveted trophy on offer in the championships, will not be represented in Belfast. At the same time, the club will not stand in the way of any parents who want their children to compete.

It seems that parents, clubs and coaches are at one in the view that there should be a national championships this year, but at a venue in the Republic.

It is understood that the five-lane Guinness pool in Dublin's Watling St is on standby for a July 23rd start. Other venues, such as Athlone, and Lesiureland in Salthill, are booked up. The well-appointed, six-lane Athlone pool will be playing host to events in a European sports and cultural festival.

The RAGS chub in Athlone, whose best known competitor is Julian Dooley, currently home from his scholarship at Ohio State University, Columbus, have but the one entry and will not be travelling.

The IASA's problems were outlined by the association secretary, Celia Millane, following the weekend meeting in Cork. "The difficulties in reorganising a five-day event at such short notice was explained and it was felt that if the security situation in Belfast improved it would not be necessary to cancel or postpone the event."

A postponement would, of course, cause other problems, largely to do with end of training season and family holidays.

Meanwhile, the season's open sea races continue on Saturday with the Glenalbyn races off Killiney beach (women 6.0pm, men 7.0pm) and the Malahide sea races (3.30pm) on Sunday.