Multiple European gold medallist Aisling Hickey will be honoured by Tipperary United Sports Panel

Multiple European gold medallist Aisling Hickey will be honoured by the Tipperary United Sports Panel when she receives an Annerville award, sponsored by Bulmers, at the awards ceremony at the Talbot Hotel Clonmel this Saturday night.

Aisling, who hails from Rossmore, boasts an impressive 22-year career in racquetball, having commenced her journey at the age of eight.

Her dedicated pursuit of excellence has resulted in the remarkable achievement of being the only woman in Ireland to clinch the All-Ireland Open Singles title for eleven consecutive years.

At last year’s European Championships in Hamburg she won four gold medals, having dominated every category that she entered, in the Open (Senior) Category, which is the highest category in Europe. This surpassed her previous achievement of winning three gold medals at her first European championships.

She became the European Singles champion for the second time, having previously won the title in 2013, when she defeated her Irish team mate and doubles partner Antonia Neary by three games to nil in the final, having overcome another Irish teammate, Katie Kenny, in the semi-finals.

She followed up that win by teaming up with Antonia Neary in the Ladies Doubles division, where they triumphed against the Irish duo of Katie Kenny and Majella Haverty.

She continued her success in the ladies team division, where she led the Irish team to a 3-0 victory over their formidable German opponents, with a decisive win against Yvonne Mesecke in the final.

Aisling then joined forces with Johnny O’Keeney for the mixed doubles competition, claiming her fourth gold medal when they outplayed Majella Haverty and Joe Devenney in the final.

A seasoned competitor, in the past she has also represented Ireland in the World Championships on six occasions—three as a junior and three as a senior, winning two bronze medals in the World junior event and securing a commendable 17th place overall in the world senior rankings.