They really gave it welly on the last day of the Ploughing!
SUN, rain, and... supremely soggy children – Ratheniska had it all yesterday as both the 91st National Ploughing Championships and the 67th World Ploughing Championships came to a close in Co. Laois.
While the gods were unkind with a very wet morning for the last day of the three-day festival, things had dried out by the time winners of world titles were announced last night at a gala banquet.
Chairman Colin Millar formally closed the 67th World Ploughing Championships and the flag was officially handed over to the 2023 host, Latvia.
Around 70,000 people braved the torrential rain, which saw cars stuck in the mud and large pools of puddles on the site. Spirits were not dampened, however, as some revellers were spotted dancing in the rain to live bands while others hid under tented areas.
Among the many festival events yesterday, there was an announcement by Minister for Further Education Simon Harris of details of three new apprenticeships in farm management, farm technician work and horticulture. He said the programmes come with a €2,000 incentive for farmers to take on an apprentice.
In the national ploughing competition, Eamonn Tracey from Carlow won the overall conventional class and John Whelan from Wexford won the Reversible Ploughing competition.
Meanwhile, the highly coveted Best Brown Bread Baker title went to Darragh O’Brien from Co. Kildare, whose bread will now be sold in Aldi stores nationwide.
Across the three days, more than 1,700 trade stands showed their wares to 277,000 people, with a record 115,500 in attendance on Wednesday.