Members of IMART project team and mixed ability players from host club Sunday’s Well RFC along Minister Simon CoveneyIt has been 4 years in the making, has sought off stiff competition from other would-be host countries, waited out a global pandemic, and spent endless hours working tirelessly with the EU, IRFU, Munster Rugby, Cork City Council, IMAS, and others in an effort to bring this event to Cork, but IMART 2022 is finally coming to Ireland.
The International Mixed Ability Rugby Tournament (IMART) and Mixed Ability Week (MAW), which had originally been scheduled for June 2020, will be played in Cork between 5th & 10th of June 2022. This will be the 3rd edition of the worldwide Mixed Ability rugby showcase promoted by International Mixed Ability Sports (IMAS) and supported by the IRFU. The first ever MAW will see new sports like Football, Rowing and Boxing showcased, during this week knowledge workshops and international conference will provide the opportunity for this European Erasmus Plus for Sport supported event to spread the word and work of Mixed Ability Sports to a wider audience.
In the region of 1000 players both with and without disabilities, from 28 teams and 14 different countries such as England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, , Italy, Spain, Belgium, Canada, Argentina and Chile will come together to play rugby under same World Rugby laws as the XV a side game with only minor adaptations such as uncontested scrums.
This year’s event is made extra special by the fact that it will host the first ever Women’s Mixed Ability Rugby tournament in Cork, sponsored by KPMG.
Speaking at the launch James Healy of IMART 2022 Committee and player said,
“IMART 2022 will be the biggest tournament to date with 24 men’s teams competing for the overall Winners Trophy as well as the much-coveted Spirit Trophy and 4 women’s teams fighting it out to take home the inaugural winners and Spirit trophies .
Not only it one of the most important events in the global mixed ability sporting calendar, but it is a major coup for Ireland and especially for Cork as it will provide a huge boost to the local economy”.
Munster Rugby Captain, Peter O’Mahony, who is involved in IMART 2022 had this to say,
"I’m proud to support the International Mixed Ability Rugby Tournament coming to Ireland for the first time. Mixed Ability gives everybody the opportunity to be a rugby player regardless of size, shape or ability. This is an incredible opportunity to celebrate our core values, welcoming teams from around the world to experience our legendary Irish hospitality!"
Alan Craughwell, founder of the first Mixed Ability rugby team in Ireland, ‘Sunday’s Well Rebels’, and of Mixed Ability Sports Ireland, spoke of the ethos of IMART and how it’s representation in Cork began,
“Mixed Ability rugby and Mixed Ability sports are providing real opportunities for people with and without disabilities to experience social inclusion. Sunday's Well Rebels became part the rugby family at 'The Well' in 2014, when I approached the club with the idea. Since then, the team has flourished. From the early days of 13 players, we now have more than 50 active players. It is a great example of real inclusion to see players with and without disabilities training, playing and, of course, socialising alongside each other every Friday night and feeling like valued members of Sunday’s Well rugby club.”
The Mixed Ability Model – championed by IMAS and promoted by Mixed Ability Sports Ireland – encourages social inclusion by removing barriers to participation for people who feel unable to join mainstream grassroots clubs or groups due to physical or learning disabilities, mental health issues, size, shape, age, prolonged inactivity, or a perception of ‘not being good enough’. It is hoped that the IMART and MAW events in Cork this year will enhance interest, participation and interaction of people of all abilities in the sport across Ireland and beyond, and help to build new connections between grassroots clubs, educational institutions, communities and local authorities.
Liam Maher, Manager of the Sunday’s Well Rebels, spoke of their plans to showcase all that Cork has to offer to the 1000 strong participants, as well as organisers and spectators who will flock to the event,
“There has been a lot of work in the background – not just in preparing the bid for this global tournament, but in getting recognised for Mixed Ability Rugby as an official part of the rugby game. We have been working with the IRFU since the Rebels were set up in 2014, and thankfully we have recently received much-deserved recognition for this forward-thinking, inclusive and inspiring sport.
Cork won the bid in part due to Ireland’s international reputation as a rugby powerhouse, but also because we have a reputation in Mixed Ability sport. Mixed Ability is about valuing everyone’s potential and celebrating what’s at the heart of true sport - participation, passion and fun!”
