Search
04 Apr 2026
Search
04 Apr 2026
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
The Finnegan family from Carrigallen scored a unique treble as they brought home three All-Ireland badminton medals recently.
Clare, John & Threase Finnegan were all members of the Sligo Badminton Club team who struck gold at the All-Ireland Inter League Finals in Dublin.
On the day the provincial champions at each level play off against each other. Playing in the top division for Sligo Badminton Club, team captain and 2013 Leitrim Sports Person of the year John Finnegan lifted the highest trophy in League badminton.
He was joined by his sisters and teammates, Threase and Clare. The girls both have All-Irelands to their names in lower leagues but this was the one that top Irish badminton players dream about.
The victory was made all the sweeter by the fact that John and Clare both played on the Sligo team that reached last year’s final only to lose out narrowly to UCC.
This year, having defeated Leinster champions Kilmessan en route, Sligo faced the newly crowned Munster champions Lakewood in the final. After some desperately tight games, Sligo ran out 5-2 winners.
The three siblings have had to put in a very big commitment in terms of time and travel to train and play at the top level in badminton. Back home in Leitrim the family also play and train with Ballinamore Badminton Club, where the committee and coaching staff are putting in a lot of effort to train juveniles.
Hopefully, in the future, a Leitrim club will be able to field some top league teams. For any aspiring young players in Leitrim, the trio have shown that it is possible to reach the very top.
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
