Phuket - More than two hundred Irish are heading for the idyllic resort of Phuket in Thailand this weekend for the annual Asia Gaelic Games, writes Miriam Donohoe.
Irish communities based in countries all over Asia are participating in what has become the largest Irish sporting event in the region, with every county in Ireland represented. Teams are representing Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Australia, South Korea, China and Malaysia.
The main competitions will be seven-a-side women and men's Gaelic Football, and the puck fada. There will also be an exhibition hurling match. Japan and Hong Kong are the current holders of the women and men's Asia Gaelic Games titles.
The patron for the games is the Ireland Fund of Japan. It is hoped to raise $12,000 with half going to an Irish-based charity nominated by the Ireland Fund and the other half to Father Joe Maier's Human Development Centre in Bangkok.
The centre co-ordinates 31 kindergarten schools for 4,500 slum children aged from three to six years old. In addition, Father Maier's centre provides vocational training, support for AIDS sufferers and hospice care for older children. Father Maier will be in Phuket for the finals on Sunday.
According to one of the organisers, Mr Peter Ryan, First Secretary at the Irish Embassy in Seoul, the games are a great chance for the Irish community in Asia to get together.