Roisin Sweeney from SETU Carlow drove her way into the Student Sport Ireland Karting Championship history books on Wednesday February 28th by becoming the first female winner of the individual championship, after a dramatic days racing in Adventure Park in Cork. Dublin City University were crowned team championship winners.

The individual championship was closer this year than ever heading into the final round of the championship with three drivers separated by two pints as Roisin Sweeney was in front on 42 points with Patrick Farrell Dundalk IT the 2022-23 winner and Rory O’Shea MTU Cork, closely behind Sweeney on 40 points.

The drama continued during the heats as all three drivers qualified for the semi-finals after 4 heats, with Roisin Sweeney topping the qualification for the semi-finals while Patrick Farrell was seeded 6th overall after the heats and Rory O’Shea over coming some issues in heats to lie 10th in the seedings.

None of the three drivers won their semi-finals and Patrick Farrell saw his chances evaporate with a 5th place finish in his semi-final which meant his missed out on a final berth. Rory O’Shea finished second in the same semi-final to ensure 4th place on the grid for the final, and alongside him in 3rd would be Sweeney, after a dramatic spin on the first lap of her semi-final meant she had to carve her way through the field from 8th to 2nd to secure a final spot.

Roisin and Rory both found space from the start in the final and it was Sweeney who got the important lead in the race after one lap and after ten laps of careful driving in miserable conditions, with Rory O’Shea chasing all the way it was a famous first for Roisin Sweeney as she took the chequered flag.

Heading into the final round in Cork,  the team championship was almost in the bag already as Dublin City University were very consistent in getting several drivers into finals and semi-finals in previous rounds. They held a 32-point lead over Dundalk IT A after the opening two rounds and sat on 126 points with the Louth College on 94 points and Munster Technological University Cork A in 3rd on 81 points.

A strong team showing with Shane Murphy finishing 4th, Tom Lawlor finishing 4th, Aaron Lynch finishing 6th and Aaron Ingram making a semi-final guaranteed success for Dublin City University A. Dundalk IT A finished second overall on 134 points while SETU Carlow A pipped Munster Technological University Cork A by one point for 3rd spot on 129 points.

The full results for this year’s championship can be found here.