Reflecting on the Physical Education Association of Ireland Conference 2024 in PESS, UL – dr brendan O’keefe.

In this blog I will reflect on the Physical Education Association of Ireland (PEAI) Conference that was hosted on Saturday October 5^th in the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences.

On Friday night we gathered in the Castletroy Park Hotel for our Annual General Meeting. This was followed by what was one of the highlights of the weekend, a keynote address by one of Ireland’s greatest ever athletes, Paralympian Jason Smyth. Jason had the audience at his finger tips as he reflected on his personal journey, emphasising the crucial role of his PE teacher in fostering his love for athletics. This was followed by a panel discussion on past, present and future directions for Physical Education in Ireland, chaired by Professor Ann MacPhail with guests Dr Wesley O’Brien, Brian O’Reilly and Clodagh O’Halloran. Intriguing insights were offered by all, with introduction of LCPE in 2018 collectively seen as the most significant development for our subject over the past two decades. Another standout highlight of the weekend would follow in the presentation of the Michael Darmody award to the great Úna Moynihan, such a deserving winner of this prestigious award. Her colleagues in MTU Kerry deserve huge credit for keeping this one under wraps and Úna’s genuine surprise when PEAI stalwart Conchúr Ó Muimhneach announced her as the recipient, followed by a fantastic acceptance speech, will live long in the memory. Local musician Dan Quigley was the perfect backdrop for the reminiscing and craic that followed long in to the night.

The buzz around PESS on Saturday last was evident from 8:00am as the 200+ attendees and Confernce exhibitors assembled for the main conference day. The event was opened by Minister Thomas Byrne and former Chief Inspector for Physical Education with the Department of Education, Tony Weir, gave an exceptional keynote address on the Evolution of PE in Ireland. Over thirty practical workshops were delivered throughout the course of the day on all things physical education from LCPE to CBAs, gymnastics and dance to resistance exercise, sport psychology to Longterm Atheltic Development. Another highlight of the weekend would follow as facilitator Meghan Scully was joined on stage by Paralympian Róisín Ní Ríain, Olymian Mags Cremen, and two-time all Ireland hurling winner Paul Flannagan, for a panel discussion on the theme of  ‘From the PE Hall to Peak Performance’. This proved to be another highlight of the weekend as we got a deep insight to the journeys of these excpetional atheltes, and the pivotal role played by PE on these journeys. We had some entertaining atendee challenges throughout the day from handgrip strength tests, to long jumps and vertical jump for various spot prizes, adding to the fun atmosphere.

I want to acknowledge the exceptional work of the PEAI Executive in preparing what was a very memorable conference. Alan Finnegan, Gráinne Power, Simon Cullen, Katie McAuliffe, Aoife O’Mahony, Peter Keaney, Gráinne Phelan, Garrett Coyle and John Murphy, were all instrumental in the coordination of the event. I also want to extend a sincere thanks to Steve Clothier, DJ Collins and Daragh Collins, along with PESS admin staff, who were all pivotal in organising the Conference. Do follow our social media channels on X, Instragram and Facebook for more highlights and action shots of Confernece 2024, as well as to keep up to date with our ongoing events and projects.

We are already looking forward to 2025.

Le meas,

Brendan O’Keeffe

President, Physical Education Association of Irleand

Associate Professor of Physical Education, University of Limerick