Kieran's book on Skibbereen Rowing Club shortlisted for An Post award

‘SOUTHERN STAR’ sports section editor Kieran McCarthy’s first book, ‘Something in the Water: How Skibbereen Rowing Club Conquered the World,’ has been shortlisted for An Post Sports Book of the Year.

Published by the Mercier Press, the Skibbereen launch of the book will be held in the West Cork Hotel at 7pm on Friday next, November 1^st, when the author will be on hand to sign copies.

Skibbereen Rowing Club, founded in 1970 by a fisherman, a carpenter and a butcher will celebrate its 50^th anniversary next year and has punched well above it weight on the national and international stage.  It is a club that creates Olympians, with five Olympic rowers since 2000.

It moulded Ireland’s first-ever Olympic rowing medals at the 2016 Games in Rio, five world champions between 2016 and 2019 and over 100 club members.

Olympic rowers Gary and Paul O’Donovan may be the face of Irish rowing and Skibbereen Rowing Club, and have enormously increased the popularity of rowing in Ireland, but they're just one piece of a much larger jigsaw. Without their club and the people behind the scenes, they may have become Olympians or World Champion.  

Kerry native Kieran McCarthy has written a truly emotive description of what goes on behind the scenes to create an environment that allows locals to excel on the national and international stages. The story is told through the people and families involved, showing how relatable they are to people around the country. 

‘The Southern Star’ sports editor is no stranger to awards. He won the Local Ireland Sports Story of the Year in 2016 for his coverage of Skibbereen Rowing Club.  He was also awarded Ladies’ Gaelic Football Association Local Journalist of the Year in 2018. Now, he is in the running for the An Post Sports Book of the Year and you can vote for Kieran's book by following this link: irishbookawards.irish/vote2019/