ATHLUNKARD Boat Club has been crowned this years winner of the Limerick County award as part of Texaco’s Support for Sport initiative.
The boat club won €5,000 to help refurbish recreational boats and purchase stationary bikes to support members recovering from injury.
Founded in 1898, and situated on the banks of the River Abbey, Athlunkard Boat Club has recorded many successes at both national and international level throughout its history.
The club currently caters for both male and female rowers from age 12 years upwards at competitive and recreational levels and the clubhouse operates as a community hub and facilitates local schools for their PE classes on a weekly basis.
Former Irish rugby international and well-known broadcaster Donncha O’Callaghan oversaw the judging process, describing the boat club as “a very worthy winner”.
“This club stands out for its incredible passion for rowing and, more importantly, its people. It has an extremely clear vision of what it wants to achieve and I hope the Texaco funding goes some way to help the club to achieve its goals.”
Now in its fifth year, the Texaco Support for Sport initiative – organised by Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited – sees a fund of €130,000 set aside annually for allocation in equal amounts of €5,000 to successful applicants chosen on a county-by-county basis.
Previous Limerick winners include Fedamore GAA Club (2021), Limerick Cricket Club, Adare (2022), Hospital Tennis Club (2023) and Shannonside Football Club (2024).
Since its inception, the awards have distributed almost €650,000 to more than 125 sports clubs across the country.
