FIGHTING IRISHMEN EXHIBITION SET TO BE A KNOCKOUT AT CROKE PARK THIS SUMMER

ICONIC MUHAMMED ALI GLOVE FROM AL LEWIS FIGHT NIGHT ON DISPLAY AT UNIQUE EXHIBITION HOSTED BY THE GAA MUSEUM AT CROKE PARK - TUESDAY 18 MAY TO END AUGUST

The unique and intriguing legacy of Fighting Irishmen will be illustrated in an exhibition which opened on Tuesday 18 May, at the GAA Museum, Croke Park.

The exhibition, entitled The Fighting Irishmen: Celebrating Celtic Prizefighters 1820 to Present, tells the story of Irish emigration and assimilation to eventual success and world wide acclaim through the sport of boxing. Curated by Jim Houlihan, the exhibition will be on display in Croke Park from Tuesday 18 May through Tuesday 31 August, in association with the Irish Arts Center in New York.

The exhibition offers all visitors, and boxing enthusiasts alike, a unique glimpse at the role that prize-fighting played in the history of Irish America and Ireland; it features an array of robes, gloves, boxing bags, prints, photographs, paintings and film footage of Celtic prizefighters from 1820 to the present day.

Intriguing objects on display include pieces from sporting greats such as John L. Sullivan, Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney, Barry McGuigan, Freddie Gilroy, Bobby Cassidy, Gerry Cooney, Wayne McCullough, Billy Conn, John Duddy, Bernard Dunne and many more. The exhibition includes the Olympic medals won by Michael Carruth, Kenny Egan and Wayne McCullough as well as the European and World Medals won by Katie Taylor.

Perhaps the most unique item in the exhibition is the late, great Irish fighter Dan Donnelly's mummified right arm. Actor Liam Neeson, Honorary Chair and long-time supporter of the Irish Arts Center, has also loaned personal items from his amateur boxing career to the exhibit, including the gloves given to him by Olympic boxer Freddie Gilroy.

Finally, given the connection between Croke Park and Muhammad Ali, who famously fought Al Blue Lewis at the venue in 1972, it is fitting that the exhibition includes a signed glove and shorts worn by Ali that night.

Speaking ahead of the exhibition opening, Barry McGuigan said, "This exhibition is truly unique and is one of a kind. Prize-fighting played a huge part in the history of Irish Americans and their story of settlement in the US, and boxing has brought much success to Irish Sport, so it's great to see this wonderful homage to Irish Sport being remembered in Croke Park."

Jim Houlihan echoed his sentiments and said, "The exhibition has already proved popular with audiences in New York and Boston, and it also showed, to much acclaim, at the Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh last year. Croke Park is such an ideal venue to host an exhibition of this sort, and I'd encourage all visitors to the stadium over the course of the summer, to check it out. Some items worth seeing include a signed Muhammad Ali glove and his shorts from the famous fight night against Al Blue Lewis, which took place in Croke Park in 1972, whilst Michael Carruth's Olympic Gold medal from 1992 will also be on show," he stated.

The exhibition will open this evening at the GAA Museum in Croke Park, and Irish boxing luminaries such as Barry McGuigan and Michael Carruth will be present, alongside US Ambassador, Dan Rooney and RTE's Jimmy Magee.

Fighting Irishmen Exhibition will run in the Ash Suite, Cusack Stand, Croke Park Stadium, Dublin 3, from Tuesday 18th May until Tuesday 31st May.

Admission
Adult - €5.00/Concession - €4.00/Child - €2.50/Family €12.00
Discount tickets to include Croke Park Stadium Tour are also available

Irish Arts Center
Founded in 1972, Irish Arts Center is a New York-based arts and cultural center dedicated to projecting a dynamic image of Ireland and Irish America for the 21st century, building community with audiences of all backgrounds, and preserving the stories and traditions of Irish culture for generations to come. Our multi-disciplinary programming is centered around three core areas: Performance - including live music, dance, theatre, film, literature, and the humanities; Exhibition - including visual arts presentations and cultural exhibitions that tell the evolving Irish story; and Education, with dozens of classes per week in Irish language, history, music, and dance. Located in New York City, a global capital of arts and culture, Irish Arts Center serves as a dynamic platform for top emerging and established artists and cultural creators to reach a New York, national, and global audience, and as a gateway for other institutions to access first-rate Irish and Irish American culture.

The GAA Museum, Croke Park
Established to commemorate, recognise and celebrate the GAA's enormous contribution to Irish sporting, cultural and social life since the association was founded in 1884; the GAA Museum is the national custodian of all the archives and artefacts of the GAA. The GAA Museum looks at the birth and growth of the GAA at home and abroad, and the unique role the association played in the national movement and cultural revival in Ireland. Furthermore it is dedicated to promoting an appreciation of the values, culture and history of Gaelic Games.

These aims are pursued through preserving, interpreting and exhibiting our heritage and honouring those who have made an outstanding contribution to our national games. The vast collection of artefacts which include hurleys, jerseys, trophies, medals, programmes, publications and banners illustrate the development of Gaelic Games whilst preserving and presenting the unique heritage of the Gaelic Athletic Association.

Some examples of this are as follows:

· The original Sam Maguire Cup; first awarded to Kildare in 1928
· The original Liam MacCarthy Cup; first awarded to Limerick in 1923
· The original Fitzgibbon Cup and Sigerson Cup, Tommy Moore Cup, Bob O'Keeffe & O'Duffy Cup
· Medals Collections of Christy Ring and Jack Lynch
· 1947 All-Ireland Football Final, held at New York's Polo Grounds
· Jersey worn by Kerry's Bill Casey
· Souvenir programme from the match
· 1960 All-Ireland Senior Football Final between Down and Kerry
· Seán O'Neill's jersey and football boots
· Football used in final, signed by members of the Down team and management

For further information please contact:

Media Enquiries:
Nora Lawton/Jennifer Gleeson, WHPR, TEL: 01 6690030
[email protected] or [email protected]

GAA Museum
Ms. Joanne Clarke
Cusack Stand, St. Joseph's Avenue,
Croke Park, Dublin 3
Phone:+353(0)18192349
Fax: +353 (0)1 819 2324
www.crokepark.ie/gaa-museum

Irish Arts Center
Mr. Aidan Connolly
Ms. Pauline Turley
553 West 51st Street, New York, NY 10019
(212) 757-3318
www.irishartscenter.org Tweet

Most Read Stories