The All-Ireland championship will be held on Friday night, from 8pm, in The Kings Head on High Street.
Following a parade of flags for each of the 15 countries from Eyre Square at 2.15pm, accompanied by St Patrick’s Brass Band and Drumadore, led by the city’s Mayor and Town Crier, this year’s competition will take place on Lower Cross Street from 3pm on an outdoor stage hosted by The Latin Quarter.
On Friday night at the Kings Head, the Irish winner will receive the John O’Dowd Memorial Trophy, in memory of a great ambassador for the city of Galway who worked for Fahy Travel for 38 years, and was chairman of the Marketing Institute of Ireland, amongst other accolades. The Best Presentation Award at both the Irish and World Oyster Opening Championships is the John Holland Award, sponsored by Galway Bay Seafoods, named after the late festival judge and committee member.
The event is sponsored by Galway City Council, Port Of Galway, The Latin Quarter, Bord Iascaigh Mhara, Kelly Oysters, Galway Bay Seafoods and the Radisson Red Hotel.
The festival celebrating Galway Bay’s native shellfish, which claims to be one of the oldest oyster festivals in the world, began in the 1954 in Clarinbridge, but moved to Galway city in the 1980s. This summer it was rated as the second best food festival in Europe by an international travel website, and The Sunday Times previously described it as “one of the 12 greatest shows on earth”.
