GMIT Mayo to host National Surf Intervarsities (6-8 March)

Top surfers from third-level colleges in Ireland will gather in County Mayo from Friday 6 to Sunday 8 March when GMIT Mayo hosts the Surf Intervarsities 2020. Up to 200 surfers are expected for the annual weekend festival of surfing which includes a variety of events supplementing the competitive action.

GMIT Mayo has won the last two national championships (2019 and 2018) and hope to retain the title to make it three in a row. The weekend of events starts on Friday with a welcome reception to the west where colleges will complete registration in Castlebar. Saturday will see competitors hit the water at Keel Beach, Achill, from 9am. Sunday will see the concluding stages with finalists, having come though their heats, fighting it out for top honours, commencing 10am. The 2020 champions will be announced in the afternoon.

Nigel Jennings, GMIT Mayo Sports Officer, organiser of the Intervarsities in partnership with GMIT Mayo’s Student Surf Club, says: “I am extremely proud of our students for the huge undertaking of hosting an event of this scale with the complexities and logistical difficulties it brings and I am absolutely confident that they will once again deliver a top class event here in Mayo.”

“The 2020 Surf Intervarsities will further enhance GMIT Mayo’s reputation as a national power in the realm of outdoor adventure activities and reinforce Mayo’s growing reputation as the destination of choice for outdoor adventure activities.  It offers a great boost for the county both economically and from a promotional point of view.”

GMIT Mayo Surf Club Captain David Hartley says: “For a lot of our club members this will be the last Intervarsities as final year students. We will make sure this event will be the highlight of the third level sporting events calendar for all the visiting surfers.”

Professor Neville McClenaghan, Vice-President, GMIT Mayo Campus, says: “This promises to be another excellent event, showcasing the skills of Mayo campus students studying our Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Arts Honours Outdoor Education and other programmes, and a great opportunity for talented surfers from colleges across the land to come and demonstrate their talents here in Mayo, the Adventure Capital of Ireland.”

The 20x20 Women in Sport campaign entitled ‘If she can’t see it, she can’t be it’  will be central to the weekend. GMIT Mayo Clubs and Societies’ Officer Sophie Devereux says: “We are delighted to be part of this this campaign. Surfing offers a wonderful opportunity for women to showcase their talents. We have reached out to surfers from around the globe and will use the Intervarsities to continue to spread this vital message.”

For further information about this event, please email: surfintervarsities2020@gmail.com and/or tel.
Rowan Quinn +353 86 871 5783 or Sophie Devereux +353 87 145 6498.

For details on GMIT Mayo’s Outdoor Education course, see: https://www.gmit.ie/outdoor-education/bachelor-arts-honours-outdoor-education
and for information about the GMIT Mayo campus, see: https://www.gmit.ie/mayo/mayo

ENDS

Regina Daly
GMIT Communications & Press Officer
Tel. 00 353 (0)91 742826 (office) / 0879618355 (mobile)
regina.daly@gmit.ie  www.gmit.ie/news

Galway-Mayo IT, IT Sligo and Letterkenny IT are working towards becoming a Technological University for the west and northwest of Ireland