Bumper day for Mayo’s Irish shearers at the 'Olympics of Shearing'
Westport man wins the Intermediate at The Golden Shears World Championships
It was a triumphant start for Mayo sheep shearers in New Zealand as Westport’s Joseph Scahill won the Intermediate competition at The Golden Shears World Championships.
He came through a 70-shearer strong heat to get into the last 18. He qualified in 6th place for the semi final and 4th for a place in the final before peaking at the right time to take the Intermediate crown.
He becomes the first Irish winner at the Golden Shears World Championships since David Kingston in 1998.
The Prospect man turned 21 yesterday so this win will be another reason to celebrate.
He has been shearing since he was 17 and has been in New Zealand since November. It is his second season there and he has had three shearing seasons at home in Mayo.
His proud father, Joe, told The Mayo News that Joseph “has put in the hard yards, and they have paid off and he has put in a lot of dedication to that job.”
Ones to watch
Claremorris man Adam Killeen (20) made it through a strong field of 65 competitors to the Senior Semi Finals, which will take place this coming Saturday.
Drummin brothers James and Martin Hopkins will be the latest Mayo men to represent Ireland at this World Championships and are due to compete tonight in the in blade shearing category.
The next round of competition will start at 8pm Irish time tonight and can be streamed through the Golden Shears website.
The skilled sportsmen efficiently remove the fleece from the sheep without double cutting the wool fibre or causing injury to the animal or self, all at speed. Judges closely watch, monitor and assess these key aspects.