Special Olympics Ireland is calling on Co. Donegal to get “Freezin’ for a Reason” in one of Ireland’s most unique fundraising events this spring.
Donegal’s Polar Plunge will take place on Saturday 4th March at 11am at Rathmullan Strand, Rathmullan, and invites families, sports clubs, businesses and individuals to bravely plunge into icy cold waters to raise funds to send athletes to Austria for the Special Olympics World Winter Games 2017 later in March.
While the Polar Plunge is a worldwide Special Olympics event, it was initiated in Ireland by the Law Enforcement Torch Run and is now a nationwide annual fundraising event with the support of Community Policing Units from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and officers affiliated with the LETR.
Commenting on the Polar Plunge, Paul McGee, a LETR affiliated officer stated: “We were thrilled to get a date back in the diary for this event. It’s important that people in Donegal get their chance to contribute to such a great cause.
“I’ll be heading to the Special Olympics World Winter Games with the LETR in Austria next Month and I want to be able to say that Donegal played its part in helping support Team Ireland’s 26 athletes at the games in one of the biggest undertaking in their lives.”
€50,000 was raised last December from similar plunges in Galway, Cork, Wexford, Dublin and Louth, and Special Olympics Ireland are hoping that the event in March will be just as popular with potential plungers. While the event has traditionally taken place in December since its inception in 2008, rescheduling to March has brought with it a unique challenge.
Commenting on this, Special Olympics Ulster Regional Director Shaun Cassidy said: “When we were looking at new dates for the Polar Plunge we discovered something remarkable about the waters of Lough Swilly. The air around us might be milder in March, but sea temperatures rise and fall at a different rate so the water will actually be almost two degrees colder than they were in December at around 9.1°C. What that means is that anyone who gets involved in Rathmullan can say they took on the Polar Plunge in the most extreme conditions you’ll find in Ireland.”
Those who think they are brave enough to take the Polar Plunge can register at www.specialolympics.ie/polarplunge. Registration costs just €15 with plungers asked to raise an additional €35. The full €50 goes directly to supporting athletes with intellectual disabilities in sport and competitions. Plungers who raise more than €50 will also receive a complimentary Polar Plunge t-shirt.
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