A sporting legend who was a gent
A TRIBUTE TO THE LATE, GREAT PADRAIG MAYE FROM ACLARE.
“He just enjoyed life. He was always interested in people, their stories and history. He was a gentleman, someone who always tried to do the right thing, either by being nice to people or by just helping them”
FOR ALL that we hope to leave behind, often a true measure of someone’s impact is what is said about them when they pass.
Aclare’s Padraig Maye, who died at the end of January, left behind a treasure trove of memories for those who loved him, an almost endless list of athletics achievements and the quiet, unsung deeds of being a cherished family man, a loyal friend, a good neighbour and a diligent teacher.
He was also rightly hailed for being one of life’s real deals.
Padraig, who would have been 81 this May, ultimately is best-known for his vast array of accolades from Masters athletics – he first got involved in athletics for older competitors in 2001.
This came after some terrific years as a handballer, where he won All-Ireland titles, and his time as a Gaelic footballer. He played for his club Tourlestrane – as well as lining out for Sligo – in his younger days. As a teenager, however, Padraig enjoyed the kind of success that has eluded many greats of Sligo and beyond. He won an All-Ireland Senior title (Hogan Cup) with St Nathy’s College, Ballaghaderreen, in 1957.
The then 17-year-old (a boarder at St Nathy’s), an adroit corner-forward, was one of several Sligo natives to feature on this history-making team (the others included Eamonn O’Hara, Gerry McManus, Eugene Stenson, Tommy Kilcoyne, Joe O’Grady and Gerry Boland). Padraig, who also won a Connacht Junior medal with St Nathy’s, was an All-Ireland Senior runner-up in 1959.
He took up athletics seriously when studying in University College Dublin. The long jump would become his core discipline and he had form in this field event, having won provinical long jump titles when at St Nathy’s.
One of his memorable feats in the 1960s was to retain the long jump title at the 1961 Leinster NACA Championships with a leap of 7.2 metres (23 feet 5 inches), a victory all the more notable because Padraig had an arm injury at the time and was jumping into the record books with his left arm encased in plaster.
Padraig, whose family ran a pub when he was growing up, then embarked on a varied life that took him abroad.
He spent a while working in England before a spell as a volunteer on the missions in Nigeria in 1963. Although thousands of miles from Aclare, he maintained his athletics prowess and won competitions during his three years teaching in the African country.
In 1966 he headed to Chicago and ended up staying in America until 1980. He met his wife, Terry, when working in the US as a teacher. Padraig and Terry married in the late 1960s. Their two daughters, Coleen and Erin, were born stateside.
The Dublin-born Terry, née O’Shea, hails from a sporting family – her brothers were prominent boxers. When Padraig and his family returned to Ireland he took up a teaching post at Banada Abbey, a secondary school in an area of south Sligo obviously familiar to him.
He also taught at St Attracta’s Community School, a new facility that was a replacement for the amalgamation of Banada and Tubbercurry’s Marist Convent.
When Padraig rediscovered his zest for athletics in his 60s, through the medium of Masters athletics, he encouraged his first cousin Neil Egan to get involved. Neil’s aunt, Nancy Egan, was Padraig’s mum.
Egan, synonymous with Tourlestrane GAA, speaks of a meticulous mentor who taught him how to do the long jump properly.
BUT the long jump wasn’t Padraig’s only forte. He excelled in shot put, javelin, high jump, sprints and other throws (weight for distance).
Often at meets both Padraig and Neil would employ their acumen for a
TAKING PART: Padraig Maye was a regular competitor in Masters athletics competitions.
variety of track and field categories, unlike others who didn’t mix events for fear of injuries or fatigue.
Padraig, who represented Ballina AC as a Masters athlete, also brought his mentorship to Kilmactigue Community Games, making sure that things were right for those taking part in the high jump and long jump. Between athletics, handball and Gaelic football Padraig amassed over 270 medals, cups and trophies.
Along with success at national level in Athletics Ireland competitions, Padraig won Masters events in the UK.
But the man from Aclare never became pretentious as a result of his increasing status as an older, exceptional athlete.
Egan, who remembers Padraig talking about the Big Snow of 1947, says that his famous cousin was known to have gone to the bog in the summer time to save turf, of course, and also practise either the shot put or triple jump.
“He was always a sporty lad from when he was in his teens, from his time at St Nathy’s.”
There was no particular secret to Padraig’s near relentless capture of medals. His natural ability, positive
outlook and determined attitude simply combined to produce a winning formula that seems to be familiar to so many wonderful competitors from Tourlestrane and its surrounding areas.
Padraig was a one of a kind, according to Egan.
“Certainly, people might be very active when they are young but a lot of Irish people have an attitude of
‘I’m getting too old’ for sport or general exercise when they get older.” “Padraig had that outlook where he would keep going as long as he could.”
An avid sports fan, Padraig would enjoy regularly attending Tourlestrane and Sligo fixtures. His interest extended to American Football, too.
Egan continued: “He enjoyed a quiet life. He would record events in the parish. He was very much into local history. I never saw him lose his temper. He was a very placid man.” “It is only since his passing that people have become more aware of just how many competitions he won because he was never one to go around bragging about his success.” “People are only realising now just how good he was.”
Meanwhile, the industrious history group that Padraig worked with to produce Kilmactigue Parish History & Memories paid a glowing tribute to their friend and colleague.
THIS statement of admiration, posted on the group’s Facebook page, outlined Padraig’s contribution to their initiative that has produced two informative publications on Kilmactigue Parish.
“Padraig was a proud son of this parish and, in particular, of his birthplace of Aclare and spent many years collecting information on the people and events in this parish.”
“Over the years he interviewed many of the older people in our community, people who are no longer with us, those who were camera shy – using his trusty notepad and pen to jot down their memories and stories. “One of the people he visited and chatted to was the late Jim Fleming from Curraghboy and it was through these visits that Jim entrusted Padraig with his hand written memoirs that we lovingly called ‘The Bran Flakes Chronicles’ as these memoirs had been written on the inside of empty Bran Flakes boxes.”
“At that [first] meeting [of the group] we got a strong sense of Padraig’s love and knowledge of local history which stretched back to his boyhood days growing up in the family pub in Aclare.
“That night he arrived with a folder full of photographs, newspaper cuttings, articles and handwritten notes that he had collected over the years.” “Padraig was meticulous in his research and would write and rewrite an article a number of times until he was satisfied with finished product, which he would then take to his grandchildren to type it for him.” Because Covid-19 restrictions prevented a public launch for volume two of Kilmactigue Parish History & Memories, a DVD was produced using drone and video footage – Padraig was heavily involved in this process.
The statement added: “Padraig has left an indelible impression on all of us who knew and loved him, we treasure the time we spent in his company and the many wonderful evenings spent pouring over old manuscripts and photographs – the fun, laughter and gentle humour of one of life’s gentlemen.” “Farewell dear friend, how lucky are we to have had a friend that it is so hard to say goodbye to.” E
GAN reiterated the sentiments expressed by Padraig’s fellow local historians, Daniel Jones and Marie Fleming, in that recent social media post.
“Padraig just enjoyed life – he was always interested in people, their stories and history.”
“He was a gentleman, someone who always tried to do the right thing, either by being nice to people or by just helping them.”
Egan recalls what turned out to be the last conversation he had with his friend, relation and athletics mentor. In January the cousins chatted about the upcoming athletics season and what would or would not be going ahead because of Covid-19 restrictions. “I know he was looking forward to competing this year.”
“He did say that he probably wouldn’t do as much running but that he would do all the field events.” For so many people that knew him, Padraig will always be that excellent, medal-winning competitor.
For his family, he’ll forever be the husband, dad, brother, uncle, grandfather and great-grandfather.
Egan added: “He was always pleasant company, he always had a kind word to say about people. He was never critical.”
“His daughters [Coleen and Erin] paid such a great tribute to him on the day of his funeral. They were so happy to have had such a wonderful father.”
Whenever there is a story to be told of a townland or parish in south Sligo or wherever there is a game to be played, a race to be run or a long jump challenge, Padraig Maye will be there, gently smiling.