Wires Crossed is one of the flagship events of Galway 2020 taking place this August, where 400 people will tightrope walk across the Corrib.
However it may that this tightrope event will only have foreign participants, as almost 150 Irish people who are registered to take part may not be able to do so thanks to the insurance crisis.
Galway Community Circus, the group organising the event, has warned that unless its insurance woes are solved soon, many Irish people will not be able to train in time the Irish Times reports.
Last November it emerged that the Community Circus was struggling to secure adequate insurance cover with spiralling costs and tight restrictions.
Its insurance premiums jumped from €4,500 in 2016, to €15,886 in 2017 despite never having any claims against it.
Last year the circus was only able to secure a single quote for insurance cover at €23,890, and crucially this policy does not cover aerial acrobatics or any activity more than 1.5m off the ground.
This directly affected the classes and activities offered to the 650 members of the community youth circus, and may jeopardise their participation in Wires Crossed.
Unless the insurance issue is resolved by the end of February, then people who are expected to begin training in March will not have enough preparation time to take part said spokesperson Dani Gill according to the Times.
Instead the only ones taking part come August will be those with cheaper foreign insurance.
It was also reported that the government has refused to meet to discuss this issues, with the Department of Culture, Heritage, and the Gaeltacht saying they cannot directly control the cost of insurance.
Wires Cross will see 400 people cross the Corrib in a row in one 33 hour stretch to highlight mental health problems in the community.
