But it was the youngsters from Co. Laois who took first prize - edging ahead of the team from Co. Cork - in the Cadet Team event (u16s). The team from
Mountrath consisting of Aideen Phelan, Ruairi Carroll and brothers Eoin and Peadar Middleton beat-off strong competition from all other counties to take gold in the event. Second place
winners, Cork fielded a team from the Ballincollig-Ballinora branch consisting of Niamh Mc Carthy, Eilieen Kelleher, Aoife O'Connell and Amy Brennan. Third place was won by the Louth team from
Dundalk; Mackin family members, Niamh and Aoife, together with Orla Kelly and Glenn Young.The best individual cadet is: Laura Stenson from Abbeyfeale, Co. Limerick. Second place was won by
Gary Gaughan, from Clontarf in Dublin and third place by Sorcha Parks, Dundalk, Co. Louth.The Novice category - for first-time First Aiders - saw the team from Cork take first place. The
team from Ballinora-Ballincollig, was led by Máire FitzGerald and consisted of Katie O'Riordan, Martin Crowley and Robert Mulcair.Second place was won by the Dublin Borough (City) team
from Clontarf, consisting of Ciaran McDonagh, Paul McDonagh, Alastair Martin and Liam Houlihan. Galway's team from Portumna, consisting of Niamh Gordan, Alana Coniray, Keith Flynn and Maria Whelan
took third place.Joy O'Neill from Clontarf, Dublin Borough (City), is the best individual newcomer to First Aid in the country, taking first prize in the Novice individual category. Second
place was won by Galway's Megan Cotter, from Claddagh in Galway City and third place was won by Orlaith Shinners from Limerick City.Praising all those who took part, the National
Vice-Chairman of the Irish Red Cross, Tony Lawlor said it was wonderful to see so many young people and new people learning First Aid."I'm very pleased to see such commitment. As we
know from the recent European survey on First Aid skills, Ireland lags well behind most countries in Europe in terms of knowledge of First Aid and this needs to be addressed," stated Tony Lawlor.
He congratulated all the winners and thanked the organisers for their hard work in staging the competitions.The report, published to mark World First Aid Day (12 Sept), noted that in
Ireland just an estimated 5% of the population are trained in First Aid, whereas in countries such as Austria and Germany, where First Aid training is available in schools and is a mandatory part of
the driving test, an estimated 80% of the population know First Aid.
Note to Editors:
Interviews with Irish Red Cross spokespersons can be arranged. Contact Aoife Mac Eoin,
National Communications Officer. 087 - 998 3788
Photographs will be supplied after the event. Contact Kevin Byrne. 087 6271313
The National Cadet & Novice First Aid Finals
consist of four events - a team and individual event for Cadets and a team and individual event for Novices (i.e. first-time competitors).
The Finals took place at the Heywood Community
School, Ballinakill (5km east of Abbeyleix), Co. Laois on Saturday 24 October 2008, Ends
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
