Esteemed guests, Bill McLernon and Dr Alison Blake, joined the Doneraile Steeplechase Committee on Friday as the sod was turned on a significant project for the wider community, with the aim of honouring the foundations of the modern-day steeplechase.
The sod-turning in Doneraile on the R581, came as full planning permission was granted to the committee to put in place a sculpture and associated signage to commemorate the first steeplechase from Buttevant to Doneraile in 1752. Almost 275 years ago, the first steeplechase took place between Cornelius O’Callaghan and Edmund Blake, the ancestors of Bill McLernon and Dr Alison Blake, who turned the sod on the site where the sculpture is to be positioned.
Speaking at the sod turning, Willie Hallihan of the Doneraile Steeplechase Committee, explained that it was from this race in 1752, that the modern-day race lends its name and has since been committed to the English Dictionary.
Full story in this week’s Print & Digital Edition.
