Four Penguins

Paul McNamara was honoured as the 2006 County Galway Athletics Sports Star in the Ardilaun House Hotel on Saturday night. With a haul of no less than six All-Ireland medals in 2006, Paul's achievements were well up there with the winners of the other sports categories. Two gold medal performances at the National 10k Road Race Championships and at the National Senior Short Course Cross Country were the highlights. He also collected bronze at the National Half-Marathon Championships and silver in his debut race over 26.2m at the National Marathon (Dublin). In both of these events Paul led his Athenry AC team-mates to national team prizes - bronze in the half marathon and silver in the marathon. With medals in both cross country and road-racing, he also showed his ability to mix it up with the best on the track scoring fouth place in both the 5000m and 10,000m at the National Track and Field Championships. Quite a year!

Paul's Athletics Award

The Awards ceremony was hosted by Bank of Scotland (Ireland) and took place in the Ardilaun House Hotel on Taylors Hill. Mick O'Dwyer was guest speaker on the night and only once mentioned the pain of Croke Park in 1998. Journalists from the Connaught Tribune, the Tuam Herald and Radio na Gaelteachta select the winners across twenty-two categories. Other award winners included Claire Rockall, basketball (who also competes for Athenry AC); Athenry's Regina Glynn, camogie; Damien Burke, gaelic football; David Mortimer, golf; Joe Canning, hurling; Andrew Farley, rugby and both Portumna and Salthill Knocknacarra as Clubs of the Year.

This was Paul's second time to win the County Sports Star award, he also collected it in 1991, fifteen years ago. Down through the years, some very prestigous names have shared the honour for athletics.

1965 Tommy Madden

1966-69 Michael Molloy

1970 Brian Geraghty

1971 Ray McBride

1972 Murt Hynes

1973 Ann O'Donnell

1974 Michael Mulloy

1975 Joe Scanlon

1976-78 Colman O'Flaherty

1979 Jimmy Fallon

1980 Conrad Conneely

1981 Richard Mulligan

1982 Matt O'Flaherty

1983 Gerry Staunton

1984 Paul Donovan

1985 Christine Kennedy

1986-87 Paul Donovan

1988 Gerry Ryan

1989 Celia Nolan

1990 Christine Kennedy

1991 Paul McNamara

1992 Shane Daly

1993 Seamus O'Donnell

1994-95 Kathryn Casserly

1996 Paul Reilly

1997 Seán Breathnach

1998 Martina McCarthy

1999 Sarah Kelly

2000 Olympians - Martina McCarthy, Olive Loughnane, Eadaoin Ní Challaráin, Neville Maxwell

2001-04 Paul Hession

2005 Gemma Hynes

2006 Paul McNamara

Champagne anyone?