Athletic Clubs in Limerick by size...Aug 2012

A few days ago, Athletics Ireland released their figures for club membership. What they show is that in the last 15 months since May 2011, the number of adults in athletic clubs in Limerick has increased from 287 to 393, a rise of 37%.

These are the athletic clubs in Limerick with more 10 or more adult members...

1) Dooneen AC are the largest club in the county with 105 members, an increase of 44% in the last 15 months.
2) Limerick AC now have 68 members, up 10% and stay in second spot.
3) West Limerick AC jump from from 41 to 64 adult members, an increase of 56% and move from 4th to 3rd largest club.
4) Limerick Country Club AC drop to 4th spot but still record a 25% increase in membership with 55 members.
5) The next three clubs all record an increase in membership......Bilboa AC at 39, Kilfinane AC at 19 and Kilmallock AC at 15.

While at first glance the growth in club membership in Limerick looks impressive, when you compare them to other counties then you begin to wonder why are they so small?

For example, the county of Limerick is in population terms the second highest in Munster after Cork. In terms of club membership, it is only ranked 5th out of the 6 counties. In fact, in terms of club size relative to the available population, you could double the membership of all of the clubs in Limerick and they would be roughly on a par with the clubs in Waterford.

Even looking through the race calendar, there are an obvious lack of races in Limerick relative to the other counties in Munster. There are obviously a lot of people running in Limerick as can be seen from events like the Great Limerick Run but for whatever reason, they don't see the need to join a club.

Looking forward, there is huge potential in Limerick for growth both in the number of races and in club membership. With Limerick County having a population of some 191,000, the clubs based near the city could certainly attract lots of new members if they wanted to.

Notice...Some clubs have a large number of Fit4Life members, some are more into track and field and some are more focused on other specific areas. The figures don't say or suggest which club is best, just which club happens to have the most adult members....although it is probably fair to say that if a club has a lot of members then it must be doing something right.