Remarks by President McAleese at the 2011 National Ploughing Championships, Athy
Athy, Co. Kildare, Tuesday, 20th September, 2011
Dia dhíbh go léir inniu. Tá an-áthas orm bheith anseo libh. Míle bhuíochas díbh as an gcuireadh agus an fáilte a thug sibh dom.
Welcome to Cardenton and the 2011 National Ploughing Championships. Judging by the crowd I could easily use up every one of Ireland’s famous one hundred thousand welcomes, so céad míle fáilte whether you have travelled from within Ireland or from abroad, whether you are here as competitors, exhibitors or visitor I hope you will have a brilliant time here.
The National Ploughing Championships are celebrating their eightieth anniversary and we are right back where it all started – in Athy in 1931 - when two friends argued over which county had the best ploughman. That row has continued for eighty years and it has seen the Championships grow from a small rural contest - that cost the equivalent of about fifteen euro to stage in its first year - to a multimillion euro legend which has become one of Europe's largest and most successful agricultural trade exhibitions.
Yet despite its now enormous size and scale the National Ploughing Championships have always stayed deeply rooted in community and dependent on the spirit of the meitheal- the spirit of the volunteer whose goodwill, generosity and hospitality brings people back in their thousands each year to be part of these unique days. And competition between ploughmen and women has always remained centre stage no matter how massive the exhibition area or dazzling the entertainment or the other attractions.
The Fennin and Fox families are old hands at these championships for they have hosted them no less than three times. We owe both families huge thanks for welcoming us all so heartily again. We thank their neighbours and wider local community who have facilitated the arrival of a temporary but massive on farm city on their doorstep. Behind the huge effort to bring the Ploughing Championships back here again were of course the National Ploughing Association, Kildare County Council, the Gardai and many clubs, rural organisations and individuals. They have formed a comprehensive partnership not just to make this event possible but to make it outstanding. So thank you and congratulations to all of them. Watching over them all, like a mother hen over a clutch of chicks is of course the indomitable Anna May McHugh whose inspirational and tireless leadership is so key to the strength and reputation of the National Ploughing Championships and the pride they generate throughout the country and throughout our Irish family at home and abroad. Congratulations Anna May - once again you have done rural Ireland proud and constructed a fantastic, dynamic, hope-filled event against a backdrop of harsh economic conditions which might have daunted lesser souls.
This is not just a showcase of great ploughing skills, or farming craft or advanced machinery, it is a showcase of the spirit and the genius of rural Ireland. Farmers know that we cannot reap if we do not sow and we cannot sow if we do not plough. So rather than curse the times they prepare the ground for the future harvest and do their best to make it the best harvest they can. Take a look at the sector which has emerged as a star of our economy in these particularly tough times - the Agri-Food sector is our most important indigenous industry and is playing a hugely important role in our export-led economic recovery. That did not happen by some coincidence but by the hard and relentless work of our agricultural community which has set and maintained the highest standards in food production, the environment and sustainability. The quality of what they produce is first class and respected all over the world. Your success gives us heart as a nation and renews our faith in Ireland’s status and potential as a world leader in the Agri-Food sector.
On this my last Ploughing Championships as President but not my last Ploughing Championships, Please God, can I thank the organisers and all of you for inviting me back year after year, making Martin and I so welcome, feeding us with delicious food that Martin raves about from one Ploughing Championships to the next and sending us home happy and deeply proud of our people and our country. For here you see and experience Ireland at its best.
To all the competitors and their supporters - every success and thank you for your fidelity to this great and fundamental skill. Enjoy the most spectacular Ploughing Championships ever. Go maire sibh an céad.
Go raibh maith agaibh arís agus go n-éirí go geal libh go léir.