Jockey Nina Carberry was honoured at
The Irish Times Sport Ireland Sportswoman of the Year Awards which took place
in Dublin last weekend following another memorable performance at Cheltenham
earlier this year.
Carberry won the Foxhunter Chase on
the Enda Bolger-trained ‘On the Fringe', for the second year running, making it
three victories in the race in all and six career victories at the Festival.
The win earned her the Sportswoman of the Month award for March.
Carberry boasts an enviable
record at the Awards having won her first Sportswoman of the Month award in
2005 when she became the first female jockey to win at Cheltenham in 18 years.
In 2011 she was The Irish Times Sport Ireland Sportswoman of the Year in after
she became only the second woman to win the Irish Grand National on Organised
Confusion.
Carberry, widely regarded as one of
the greatest amateur riders Ireland has ever produced, is married to Ted Walsh
Junior. Just last month she announced that she would not be riding for the
remainder of the season as she is expecting her first baby.
She was presented with her award by the Minister of State for Tourism and Sport
Patrick O’Donovan and Frances Kavanagh from Sport Ireland.
Established in 2004, the aim of the
Sportswoman of the Year awards is to recognise the abilities and achievements
of women in Irish sports.
Olympic silver
medalist Annalise Murphy, who was the August winner, was crowned The Irish
Times Sport Ireland Sportswoman of the Year for 2016.
Murphy, from Dublin, displayed
tremendous courage and skill to bounce back from the disappointment of a 4th place
finish at the London Olympics in 2012 to claim silver in Rio. Her
success was Ireland’s first medal in sailing since Moscow 1980.
One of Ireland’s greatest ever
runners’, Sonia O’Sullivan, who won
silver at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, was presented with the Outstanding
Contribution to Women’s Sport Award 2016.
The guest of honour Tánaiste and
Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald highlighted the award winners’ role in
encouraging women to participate in sport.
“Every woman here today is a role model and an inspiration.
And I know they will continue to be role models, not just throughout their
sporting careers, but afterwards, hammering home the message that activity is
good.”
“That team sports teach us to rely on
others and be worthy of the reliance of others. That solo sports require a
fierce continued dedication. That activity is its own reward. All of those
things are important to women, and it is marvelous that The Irish Times has
created such a simple, elegant way of celebrating success and sharing that
success” the Tánaiste said.
The Sports Editor of The Irish Times
Malachy Logan described the nominees as a group of extraordinary people who
deserve all the kudos that come their way. He said there needed to be positive
discrimination in the media towards the coverage of women’s sports.
Ends.