SAILING at Schull Community College has officially found its second wind.

The West Cork school has been crowned 2025 School of the Year by the Irish Sailing Association – a nod to the work led by teachers Clodagh O’Driscoll and Geraldine Hurley.

‘There was great excitement. It’s the first time we have won the award. We felt privileged to get the nomination and win it. The school is delighted with it,’ O’Driscoll told The Southern Star.

‘We have a very long tradition of sailing in the school. I’m a past pupil myself and there is a great legacy there. It hit the doldrums for a couple of years but it has undergone a resurgence in the last four years. From that point of view, it’s on the rise.

‘It does bode well for sailing in West Cork. It is a minority sport and we live on the coast. It would be a pity not to avail of the resources at our disposal.’

Clodagh O’Driscoll with the award.

The honour came just days after another major achievement at the Munster Schools Team Racing Championship. Fifteen Schull Community College (SCC) teams competed across 60 races in a full day of mixed sailing conditions, with four Schull sides finishing in the top six.

Both SCC Sharks and SCC Seals recorded perfect win rates across their races, with the Sharks ultimately taking gold and the Seals securing silver. SCC Orcas and SCC Marines (fifth and sixth) narrowly missed out on bronze. The success reflects the growing strength of the school’s racing programme.

Schull Community College teacher Clodagh O’Driscoll with Jacob Collins (left) and Daniel Copithorne.

Behind the scenes, significant work continues with support from staff members Sinéad Scully and Tim Lowney, as well as Luke O’Connor from the Fastnet Marine Outdoor Education Centre (FMOEC). Tony Sheehan trains the fourth-year students, while parents and members of the wider community have also played a vital role on the competitive side. Chief among those are Clinton Copithorne, Oli O’Driscoll and Kelvin Harrap.

‘We’d call upon help from our principal Sarah Buckley and deputy principal Brendan Drinan. We even have past pupils who come back and do sessions when they’re around. They are very appreciative of what we did for them when they were sailing. Dave Harte, who is now retired from the FMOEC, gives his expertise too. It’s a huge team effort,’ O’Driscoll explained.

With momentum building, the focus now turns to the upcoming National Team Racing Championships. Schull will also host the Fastnet Trophy this April for the second year running.