A successful Cúl Camp organised by Gaelic Games Europe took place in Vannes, Brittany last week.
By Cian O’Connell
Thursday proved to be particularly rewarding for Gaelic Games Europe Youth Officer Pearse Bell in Vannes, Brittany.
A Cúl Camp for children with additional needs proved to be a real success story for everyone involved. The reaction has been extremely positive, and Bell is delighted that similar events will take place in the future.
“There is an organisation in France, it is like a school they go to, the organisation helps them with their education and motor skills, it is called IME in English,” Bell explains.
“I'm always interested in how to be able to coach kids, looking at different ways of coaching. So, I thought this would be an amazing opportunity to do this little training session with them.
“One of the girls in our club put me in contact with them, she works with this crew. She put me in contact with their sports coach. I said why don't we do a little Cúl Camp with them.
“We had 12 kids, and we had six adults, five people from their organisation and myself. It was brilliant, really enjoyable.”
Gear was provided and in a fun environment there was plenty of joy for all of the participants and helpers. “They've an attention span of maybe 20 minutes, but we managed to get an hour out of it,” Bell says. “The kits they got brought them right into it straightaway. Some of the kids with autism like a toy and one kid was amazed with the bag.
“It was very insightful for me, just seeing how to coach a kid, to try to get them to kick a ball. It was a really fantastic experience.”
It proved to be an enjoyable Cúl Camp in Vannes.
Bell highlights the inclusivity of the GAA and an informative course by the Ulster council last week. “Even on the Wednesday night I was on a webinar course run by Ulster GAA about autism and inclusion for all,” Bell reflects.
“Ciarán McLaughlin ran it, I was really blessed to be on that course because it gave me an awful lot of insight. Things like putting arrows on the floor so kids know where to go. I took that from Wednesday night, when it came up, and it was invaluable.
“It meant that within the hour you could get so much done by putting the tape down, just little bits like that help you. It was really good. For me, it is coach education, but it is also educating people on a greater need because these kids shouldn't be left on their own with no enjoyment.
“On Friday, I got an email from the organisation saying the parents couldn't believe the kit, that somebody would do so much for their kids. They were all French with no connection to the GAA whatsoever.
“Even their guys said that other sports don't reach out to them, I was saying to them about the GAA - it is where we all belong. It is more of an integration sort of organisation instead of a segregation. He couldn't believe that we got the free kits which were offered by Gaelic Games Europe.”
Bell hopes to offer further courses. “We're going to try to do one of these, every two months - we will try to keep it going,” he says.
“They couldn't believe it that as a sports organisation we're so advanced. There should be no segregation. That is the beauty about the GAA, the more I'm in it, the more I see that.
“It isn't just about the games or who wins an All-Ireland, it is about integrating, about getting kids out playing.”