European Athletics Team Championships 1st League Launch

The launch for the European Athletics Team Championships 1st League took place in the beautiful surroundings of County Hall in Swords, Co Dublin on Tuesday, 9th of April. A number of Ireland's elite up and coming athletes were in attendance to launch the event along with Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sports, Leo Varadkar TD.

Minister Leo Varadkar commented "As Minister for Tourism and Sport I am delighted that the European Athletics Team Championships will be held at Morton Stadium in Dublin in June. It is a great honour for Irish Athletics to be hosting such a prestigious event and it is a great opportunity to showcase our country as a wonderful location for hosting major sporting events."

This European Team Championships will be the highest quality athletics event ever staged in Ireland, with 12 national teams comprising of over 600 world class athletes competing to be crowned the European Team Champions 1st League in 2013. The event takes place in the world famous Morton Stadium in Santry, Dublin the home of Irish Athletics on June 22-23.

Coordinator of the event Liam Hennessey commented "The event in June will be the most prestigious international team event ever held in Ireland. We needed strong financial and infrastructural support to get where we are at tonight. It has been a most satisfying experience engaging with the enthusiastic support given by the individual partners; Irish Sports Council, the Gathering Ireland, Fingal County Council, National Sports Campus, Clonliffe Harriers AC , Setanta Sports and the Dublin Airport Authority."

2013 is the year of the Gathering and Ireland will open its arms to hundreds of thousands of friends and family from all over the world, calling them home to gatherings in villages, towns and cities in an initiative knows as the Gathering. Irish people love to gather and watch or take part in athletics, whether it is Track & Field, Road Running, Cross Country or Race Walking and as part of the year long celebrations Dublin is proud to host the European Athletics Team Championships 1st League on June 22-23.

Athletics Ireland President Ciaran O'Cathain commented "It is a great honour for the association to be awarded the hosts of such a prestigious event and it is a challenge our enthusiastic volunteers have embraced wholeheartedly. Events like this are crucial in motivating the next generation of athletes and in this special year for Irish tourism where the Gathering is proving to be such a success, I have no doubt that the European Athletics Team Championships will produce special memories which will live long in the heart of everyone who attends Santry for years to come."