Local man crowned soapbox champion
SLIGO’S Robert McDaid (Sligo Toastmasters) was announced as the senior winner in the 2018 National Europe Direct Soapbox Competition on Tuesday 27 th November in Dublin. At the event in the Royal College of Physicians, Dublin, each of 16 finalists had three minutes to make their case for or against the theme ‘European Elections: Every Vote Counts’, convince the judges and win over the audience.
All through the autumn, contestants have been battling the length and breadth of the country, passionately defending or attacking the idea: ‘European Elections: Every Vote Counts’. The regional finals were held in the eight Europe Direct Information Centres in public libraries around the country, which hosted lively discussions on this topical subject, giving the public the chance to have their say.
Ms Breanna Spollen (Mercy College), Sligo’s regional win- ner in the junior competition, gave a great performance but unfortunately for her the judges decided that it was Anna Bradish from Tipperary who was deemed the 18-and-under category winner. As well as their prestigious titles, they win €1,000 and a trip to Brussels including a visit to the European Parliament.