Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence, Micheál Martin, TD, in conversation with Maud Pradella of Paris Gaels at Fesport Festival at the Cháteau de Vincennes during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile.
An Tánaiste Micheál Martin TD was in attendance as Gaelic games took part in an exhibition at an Olympic fan zone in Paris today.
The Gaelic games coaching and demonstration event was held at Chateau de Vincennes fan zone as part of the Paris 2024 Olympic experience and a showcase of indigenous European sports and featuring players from Paris Gaels GAA Club.
INSEP (Institute National du Sport, de l'Expertise et de la Performance) were orgainsers of the event supported by Sport Ireland and with Niall Burgess, Ireland’s ambassador to France, also attending.
GAA Director General Tom Ryan said: “It is a great privilege for the GAA to be extended an invite to be here and for Gaelic games to have this level of exposure.
“The Olympic Games is the biggest event in world sport, and a festival of sport and so for our games to have an opportunity to take part in some small way in such a prestigious occasion is important and we are grateful to the Government and Sport Ireland and our hosts in Paris for making this possible.
“Gaelic games have a global reach, and it is wonderful to see people get a chance to discover and experience our great games that we are so enormously proud of.”
On average 10,000 people a day have been visiting the fan zones where 10 different European countries have been given an opportunity to showcase their native games.
The Gaelic games demonstration will take place again tomorrow afternoon in Paris.