NUI Galway has announced a new partnership with Rowing Ireland which will help develop the high-performance programme at NUI Galway.
The college will become an official Pathway University, developing talented athletes for international selection at Under 23 and eventually Olympic level.
The partnership will also provide value to NUI Galway coaches with Rowing Ireland helping to upskill them, improving the rowing programme on campus.
This will in turn increase the number of NUI Galway athletes on the national squad.
“We are very excited about this New Partnership with Rowing Ireland’s High Performance Programme,” said Mike Heskin, Director of Sport and Physical Activity at NUI Galway.
“The University has been developing partnerships with a number of the High Performance Sport programmes in Ireland involving both domestic and Olympic sports.
“These partnerships will prove hugely beneficial to our University athletes by providing a clean pathway for them to archive their athletic goals.”
He said that they are especially delighted to be in partnership with Rowing Ireland to build on the existing relationship which has provided Olympians in the recent past.
“We hope to see a number of other sports follow Rowing’s Lead and operate a high performance programme from the NUI Galway’s campus.”
NUI Galway head coach, Ciro Prisco will continue to build on his experience as part of Rowing Ireland’s High-Performance coaching team.
He will take up the new position of temporary High-Performance assistant coach, working with the team at the National Rowing Centre while combining his duties as NUI Galway head coach, overseeing the development of the club programme in Galway.
Commenting on today’s announcement, High-Performance Director Antonio Maurogiovanni, said, “We are delighted to have NUI Galway as a partner in supporting the High-Performance Programme Pathway.
“Along with our partnership with Queens, NUI Galway will have an essential role in our High-Performance programme’s success in the years to come.
“We welcome Ciro Prisco to our High-Performance team in an important role as Assistant Coach for our High-Performance Senior Athletes. Ciro will be a valuable member of the team, and we look forward to working with him and supporting him alongside his role in NUI Galway.”
Michelle Carpenter, Rowing Ireland Chief Executive Officer, added that NUI Galway has a history of producing World Class athletes, and this partnership will benefit both NUI Galway and Rowing Ireland for the future.
“This partnership is a testament to the vision and hard work that our High-Performance Team has put in,” said Michelle.
“I want to thank Antonio Maurogiovanni and Fran Keane for their hard work in getting this over the line.”
