Kevin Galvin
Two South-East venues will host Government test events in July, as the details of the plan to exit the current lockdowns continue to trickle in.
Today the Taoiseach announced that a programme of test events in music and sport would take place, giving events organisers and immunologists an opportunity to see how the logistics of hosting post-pandemic events with crowds will work.
The Irish Open at Mount Juliet in Kilkenny will be one of the test events selected, running from the 1st to the 4th of July. The venue near Gowan was due to host the event last year before the pandemic cancelled events across the board.
It's expected that now 2,500 people will be in attendance for each day of the tournament, in extremely exciting news for the county's tourism sector.
Across the border, Semple Stadium in Thurles will also play a key role in the GAA's return to crowds, by hosting the first intercounty championship match with spectators on July 3rd, almost two years after the last.
However, it's not yet clear how many fans will be allowed inside the ground, when Cork and Limerick open up their Munster Senior Hurling Championship campaign.
While Kilkenny and Tipperary's camogie sides will have extra motivation to make it to the Division 1 final, while Carlow are still in the fight to make it to the Division 2 encounter, with the league finals day to take place in front of 5,000 fans at Croke Park.
