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Ryan First Irish Female Short Track Skater To Compete At World Juniors

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This weekend Ava Ryan (18) becomes the first female skater from Ireland to compete at the ISU (International Skating Union) World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Bormio, Italy (31 January – 2 February).

Ryan will be lining up among 190 skaters from 37 countries who will be vying for top honours in the Italian alpine resort. The competition will begin with the qualifying rounds for the 500, 1000 and 1500 metre distances on Friday, 31 January. The subsequent rounds will take place on Saturday, 1 February and Sunday, 2 February.

Ryan’s father hails from Cork and she trains under Simon Cho, 2010 Olympic medallist, at the Potomac Speed Skating Club in Maryland, United States of America.

“I am very excited for the opportunity to race here in Bormio and represent Ireland,” Ryan said. “My goals for this weekend are to skate my best races and set personal bests. I’ve already hit personal bests in practice and hope those will continue during the races.”

You can follow the ISU World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships on the ISU YouTube Channel and by using the #ShortTrackSkating hashtag on social media. Competition results will be updated here.

Ryan And Sean McAnuff Ready For Short Track Europeans

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Ryan and Sean McAnuff will be flying the flag for Ireland at the ISU (International Skating Union) European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Debrecen, Hungary (24-26 January).

For the second year in a row at the European Championships, Ireland will have two representatives in the men’s category as the McAnuffs secured the spots with their overall placement at last year’s Europeans in Dordrecht, Netherlands.

The brothers will be lining up among 141 skaters from 23 countries who will be vying for top honours in Debrecen. The competition will begin with the qualifying rounds for the 500, 1000 and 1500 metre distances on Friday, 24 January. The subsequent rounds will take place on Saturday, 25 January and Sunday, 26 January.

Ryan is now in the second year of his degree in medicine at the University of Limerick and has been continuing his studies with training. Sean has already participated in two World Cups in Salt Lake City, United States of America and Montreal, Canada.

“I am excited to be racing and representing Ireland once again,” Ryan McAnuff said. “I find it very rewarding balancing full-time medical school as well as training for international competition.”

“This weekend is going to be lots of fun,” Sean McAnuff said. “I will focus on improving each race and implementing the specifics I have been working on in training. I’m very excited to see how it goes.”

You can follow the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships on the ISU YouTube Channel and by using the #EuroShortTrack #UpAgain and #ShortTrackSkating hashtags on social media. Competition results will be updated here.

2019 Review: Another Exciting Year For Irish Ice Skating

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The year kicked off with Ryan and Sean McAnuff becoming the first skaters from Ireland to participate in the same International Skating Union (ISU) Championships in January when they competed at the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Dordrecht, Netherlands. They retained two spots for Ireland for 2020.

At the end of January, Conor Stakelum took part in the European Figure Skating Championships in Minsk, Belarus. The Dubliner posted an ISU personal best in the short programme to place 33rd.

In February, Tara Donoghue became the first Irish skater to race at the World Junior Speed Skating Championships which were held in Balsega di Pine, Italy. Her 23rd place in the 3000 metres was the highest finish yet by an Irish competitor at an ISU Championships.

The month also saw an introductory seminar for short track speed skating officials held in Dublin.

March saw Tara Donoghue  conclude her season by setting national records over the 1000 and 1500 metres at the Viking Race in Heerenveen, Netherlands. Sean McAnuff also closed out his season with a 38th place at the World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria.

In July, a figure skating technical specialist seminar took place in Dublin.

In her second season competing on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit, Elizabeth Golding set Irish junior records for free skating and total scores in October at her second assignment in Egna, Italy.

Tara Donoghue competed in the ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating event in Enschede, Netherlands and earned a spot for Ireland at the 2020 Youth Olympics becoming the first Irish skater to accomplish this feat.

At the Canadian International Invitational in Montreal, Canada in December, Ava Ryan booked her place at the 2020 World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships. She will be the first female short track speed skater from Ireland to participate at an ISU Championships.

McAnuff And Ryan Race At Canadian International Invitational

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Over the weekend, Irish short track speed skating national team members Sean McAnuff and Ava Ryan competed in a series of races at the Canadian International Invitational (6-8 December) in Montreal, Canada.

Ryan made her debut for Ireland at the event and she participated in three individual distance categories, as well as part of an international team in the 3000 metres relay that won a silver medal. Her final overall ranking for the competition was 49th. She also recorded a qualification time for the next month’s International Skating Union (ISU) World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Bormio, Italy.

McAnuff also took part in 500, 1000 and 1500 metre races in Montreal. He was ranked 35th overall and January will also be a busy month for him with the 2020 ISU European Short Track Speed Skating Championships coming up in Debrecen, Hungary.

Results for the competition can be found here.

 

 

Sean McAnuff Rounds Out Montreal World Cup

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At his second International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup Short Track of the season, Irish skater Sean McAnuff raced this weekend at Maurice-Richard Arena in Montreal, Canada.

McAnuff began the competition with the heats of the 1000 metres (1) where he was drawn in Heat 4. He recorded a time of 1:30.831 to place fifth. The following day in the repechage quarterfinals he was penalised and was classified 46th overall for the distance.

McAnuff also contested the 500 metres in Montreal. For the heats, he lined up in Heat 2 and posted a time of 42.804 for fourth place. In the repechage quarterfinals, he came third in Heat 3 in a time of 42.779. He was 35th in the overall classification for the distance.

Full results for the ISU World Cup Short Track are available here.

Sean McAnuff Lines Up For Montreal World Cup

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For the second week in a row, Sean McAnuff will compete at an International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup Short Track Speed Skating event this weekend (8-10 November) when he races at the Maurice-Richard Arena in Montreal, Canada.

The Irish short track speed skater is coming off the back of racing in Salt Lake City, United States of America last week in what was his season opener. He will step on to the ice for the preliminary rounds on Friday 8 November with racing opportunities also over the course of the following two days.

You can follow the ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating live on the ISU’s YouTube channel, the results page and on social media using the #WCShortTrack #ShortTrackSkating and #UpAgain hashtags.

Sean McAnuff Completes Salt Lake City World Cup Season Opener

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Irish short track speed skater Sean McAnuff competed over the weekend at the International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup Short Track Salt Lake City to begin his season of racing at the Utah Olympic Oval.

McAnuff started the competition with the heats of the 500 metres where he lined up in Heat 1. He finished fourth in a time of 42.826, just over half a second off his personal best. In the repechage quarterfinals, he also came fourth in Heat 4 while bringing his time down once again to 42.658. Overall, he finished 40th for the distance.

McAnuff also participated in the 1000 metres heats where he was drawn in Heat 4. Half way through the race, contact was made between him and another skater on a corner and he was subsequently disqualified. Unfortunately, this also meant he could not skate in the repechage.

Full results for the ISU World Cup Short Track are available here.

Sean McAnuff In Salt Lake City World Cup Season Opener

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Sean McAnuff (22) will make his season debut as Ireland’s sole representative at this weekend’s International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup Short Track Speed Skating in Salt Lake City, United States of America (1-3 November).

McAnuff concluded last season with a 38th place at the World Championships debut in Sofia, Bulgaria. This season he will be aiming to build on this performance and move up the global standings.

“I am looking forward to this coming season,” he said. “I am excited to begin racing this weekend in Salt Lake CitySe.”

The weekend’s event in Salt Lake City will be the first of six World Cup events across three continents. McAnuff will compete in two individual distances – the 500 metres and the 1000 metres.

The event will be live streamed on the ISU Skating Channel (geo blocking may apply in certain territories) and for the first time ever, live streams will be available in certain territories on social media platforms, follow us on social media to find out more.

For further information on Short Track Speed Skating, visit https://www.isu.org/short-track.

2019-2020 Irish Speed Skating Team Announced

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The selection of the Irish National Speed Skating Team Team for the 2019-2020 season has been made by the Board of Directors of the Ice Skating Association of Ireland (ISAI).

The ISAI has selected the following members to compete in International Skating Union (ISU) speed skating events for the 2019-2020 season:

Speed Skating

Tara Donoghue

Short Track Speed Skating

Ava Fradlin-Ryan
Ryan McAnuff
Sean McAnuff
Liam O’Brien

Tara Donoghue continued to make history last season by becoming the first Irish speed skater to participate in the World Junior Speed Skating Championships. She also set a number of new Irish records and personal bests over the course of her competitive assignments.

Ava Fradlin-Ryan is the first female short track speed skater to be named to an Irish national team. She trains under Simon Cho, 2010 Olympic medallist, at the Potomac Speed Skating Club in Maryland, United States of America.

Ryan McAnuff started a degree in medicine at the University of Limerick last year and balanced his studies with training and competition. At the European Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Dordrecht, Netherlands, he smashed his 1500 metres national record by four seconds.

Sean McAnuff joined his brother Ryan at those Europeans and they became the first Irish ice skaters to compete in the same category at an International Skating Union (ISU) Championships. Sean capped off his season by making his World Short Track Speed Skating Championship debut in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Liam O’Brien is selected for the Irish national team for the first time. He currently trains at the Canterbury Olympic Ice Rink in Sydney, Australia with coaches Scott Weekes and Maggie Holland.

You can find out more about our national team members here.

Sean McAnuff Takes On Short Track Worlds

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Sean McAnuff carries Irish hopes that this weekend’s International Skating Union (ISU) Short Track Speed Skating World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria (8-10 March). Read more