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Disability Sports Volunteer of the Year
Posted by administrator (administrator) on Feb 03 2011
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IDSA chairperson, Kevin Downing has been selected as the winner of the inaugural Cork Sports Partnership Awards scheme in the “Disability Sports Volunteer” category.

This is the first year the Sports Partnership have operated this scheme. They received well over 100 entries in this category which were carefully evaluated by the judging panel shortly after the Christmas holidays. Kevin was presented with his award at the awards ceremony on Friday 28^th January in the vertigo reception room, County Hall, Cork.

Kevin has been active within the Irish Disabled Sailing Assoc. (IDSA) since 1994,  both as a sailor and a volunteer, in 1996 he represented Ireland in the Paralympic Games in Atlanta.  He is an avid Club racer in Kinsale and has numerous titles and competitions won.

In 2008 in his capacity as IDSA Chairperson, Kevin was a founder member of the Kinsale Access Sailing Program.  A Program which enables children and young adults with disabilities, the opportunity to learn to sail and compete at sailing at a level of there choosing. Following an initial pilot scheme in 2008, the program now caters for up to 40 children and the numbers are growing on an annual basis in what is  an all inclusive environment.  The young sailors are also fully integrated to the KYC social scene.  Kevin has also been involved in securing funding for the program  and with his help the program has been able to grow it’s fleet of dinghies that are vital to the continued success.

Kevin has also been heavily involved in spreading this program throughout the country where programs based on the model of Kinsale  have emerged in Dun-Laoire, Lough Derg, Galway Bay and Tralee Bay sailing club. 

Aswell as being a founder member, Kevin is running the Kinsale program on a weekly basis,  scheduling the weekends sailing schedules organising the volunteers,  preparing and up-keeping boats for weekly sailing programs and being personally present at practically every sailing session. The success of this very worthwhile program is mainly due to the hard work and dedication of Kevin.

The committee of the IDSA, the sailors, trainers and volunteers wish to congratulate Kevin on this worthy accolade and for bringing this focus to the work of the IDSA.

Left to Right: Back - John Sheehan, Jason Kelly. Front - Kevin Downing (IDSA Member), Patrick Kelly (Access Class Sailor).

Last changed: Feb 03 2011 at 4:33 PM