Irish Coursing Club Explained

Irish Coursing Club
Formation:1916[1]
Type:Sports Association
Purpose:The management and promotion of Irish hare coursing
Headquarters:Davis Road, Clonmel, County Tipperary
Region Served:Worldwide
Language:English
Leader Title:President
Num Staff:Limited full-time staff
Website:irishcoursingclub.ie

The Irish Coursing Club (ICC) is the national association for hare coursing in Ireland. Founded in 1916, it consists of 89 affiliated clubs on the Island of Ireland and acts as the official authority for the Irish variety of the sport.[2] It solely controlled and administrated Greyhound racing in Ireland until the creation of the Irish Greyhound Board in 1958, however it still continues to do so in Northern Ireland.[3] [4]

National Meetings

The association holds two national meets, the National Meeting at the Clonmel Greyhound Stadium in County Tipperary in February, being the most important event in the coursing calendar, attracting 10,000 spectators,[5] and claimed by its organisers to be worth up to €16 million for the local economy,[6] and the Irish Cup at the County Limerick Coursing Club a few weeks afterwards.

Conservation

A study in 2010 by Dr Neil Reid at Queen's University Belfast found that the density of hares in ICC preserves was eighteen times higher than in the wild in Ireland.[7] [8] It is claimed by the ICC that without regulated coursing there would be an increase of unregulated illegal hunting.

In July 2019, Rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD2), a highly contagious disease nicknamed 'rabbit foot and mouth' which is fatal to Leporidae (rabbits and hares), was discovered in wild hares in County Clare, County Wexford and County Wicklow. As a result, the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht suspended capture and tagging licences issued to the ICC and affiliated clubs.[9] [10] RHD2 was found in hares in the counties of Clare, Cork, Dublin, Kildare, Leitrim, Meath, Wexford and Wicklow. In August 2019, restrictions were lifted in areas outside of 25km radius prohibited zones surrounding discovery locations which was welcomed by the Club.[11]

Rules

The rules and regulations appertaining to the Irish Coursing Club are stringent, with 178 sections in 9 parts, this is in addition to Acts introduced by the Law of the Republic of Ireland.[12]

Every greyhound bred in Ireland is required to have an Irish identity card and requires microchipping.[13] The vast majority of greyhounds bred are either sold to owners within Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom or race in Greyhound racing in Ireland. The much smaller majority remain within coursing. The Greyhound Board of Great Britain do not allow registered owners to compete in coursing.[14]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: About Us. Irish Coursing Club. 23 February 2020. . en-IE.
  2. Web site: THE TRUTH ABOUT HARE COURSING . . . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226020603/https://www.independent.ie/sport/the-truth-about-hare-coursing-26351091.html . 26 December 2019 . . en . 13 December 2006.
  3. Web site: Fenton . Robert . Going to the dogs has a new meaning at Drumbo . . . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226054316/https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/racing/going-to-the-dogs-has-a-new-meaning-at-drumbo-28441478.html . 26 December 2019 . . en . 31 July 2008.
  4. Web site: Stennett . Aidan . The status and funding of greyhound racing . . Research and Information Service (RaISe) . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226054717/http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/globalassets/documents/raise/publications/2010/culture-arts-leisure/13710.pdf . 26 December 2019 . . 3 . en . 30 April 2010.
  5. News: O'Reilly, M. BBC. Countryfile. 2008-02-10.
  6. News: Thousands to attend coursing event. 2008-02-03. The Irish Times. 2008-02-15.
  7. Reid . Neil . Magee . Ciarán . Ian Montgomery . W. . Integrating field sports, hare population management and conservation . . March 2010 . 55 . 1 . 61–71 . 10.4098/j.at.0001-7051.030.2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226015129/https://pureadmin.qub.ac.uk/ws/files/664299/Reid . dead . 2019-12-26 . 26 December 2019 . . en.
  8. Web site: Viney . Michael . Michael Viney . Can coursing be good for hares? The strange answer is yes . . Irish Times Trust . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226015620/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/can-coursing-be-good-for-hares-the-strange-answer-is-yes-1.3738552 . 26 December 2019 . . en . 12 January 2019.
  9. Web site: Coursing licences suspended after rabbit disease found . . . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226033903/https://www.rte.ie/news/2019/0809/1067988-rhd-infection/ . 26 December 2019 . . en . 9 August 2019.
  10. Web site: Sheahan . Fionnán . Government to catch up to 500 hares for high-security study after heated meeting over ban on coursing . . . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226035213/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/government-to-catch-up-to-500-hares-for-highsecurity-study-after-heated-meeting-over-ban-on-coursing-38582736.html . 26 December 2019 . . en . 10 October 2019.
  11. Web site: Ryan . Órla . Suspension of hare coursing licences lifted in areas not affected by deadly virus . . Distilled Media . 26 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191226050837/https://www.thejournal.ie/hare-coursing-licence-suspension-lifted-4854749-Oct2019/ . 26 December 2019 . . en . 16 October 2019.
  12. Web site: IRISH COURSING CLUB RULES. Irish Coursing Club.
  13. Web site: Introduction to microchipping. Irish Coursing Club.
  14. Web site: GBGB Rules of Racing. Greyhound Board of Great Britain.

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