At a recent meeting of all the clubs and organisations affiliated to Motorsport Ireland, the National Governing Body officially appointed Art McCarrick as the first Sport Development Officer (SDO)aspart of their strategic plan for Irish motorsport.

The appointment was greeted with overwhelming enthusiasm by those in attendance who see the role as having a significant impact on the future success of motorsport in Ireland. Tasked with promoting participation and excellence in motorsport throughout the country, Art will liaise with all the motor clubs to understand what it is that makes them successful now and how he may be a source of help in developing initiatives that will encourage greater involvement in the sport among their local communities. In order to achieve this, Artwill also create programmes designed to make motorsport more accessible to greater numbers of people.

Art McCarrick, Sports Development Officer, Motorsport Ireland: “I am looking forward to taking up the position and I hope to bring a level of enthusiasm to this job that will be infectious to those that I am dealing with on a daily basis. I look forward to learning from the experience of the clubs and others around me and believe that together we will be able to make a positive impact on Irish motorsport. In particular, I hope to encourage the creation of mentoring programmes within the motorsport family that will enable some of our younger supporters to participate in this exciting and rewarding sport.”

Art McCarrick is a Sligo native and a lifelong fan of motorsport. He had a well established background in tourism and education before he became heavily involved in motorsport over the last 4 years, largely in a PR and business capacity through his work with various drivers and Rally School Ireland. He was also a presenter on many of the Motorsport Ireland TV broadcasts of events throughout 2014.

Martin Mckenna, President, Motorsport Ireland, said: “As motorsport in Ireland continues to grow in popularity I firmly believe that the position of SDO will develop into one of the most important positions within our organisation. Art is a very approachable yet determined individual who will no doubt establish the relationships with participants, organisers and local communities that will see our sport grow significantly. “

Alex Sinclair, CEO, Motorsport Ireland, said: “The appointment of Art as SDO is a significant step towards the future development of motorsport in Ireland. We are excited about the prospect that the appointment could have in helping our hard working volunteer organisations to promote our sport on a grass roots level. There is significant scope within the role  with local communities and we look forward to seeing this bear fruit over the coming months and years.”