Latest news with #MichaelLynch
Irish Examiner
03-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
The Obstacle Course Racing world champs are coming to Limerick
In a massive boost for anybody who has ever arranged the deckchairs into a fiendish circuit on the lawn, Limerick is to host the 2026 Obstacle Course Racing World Championships, just two years before the sport makes its Olympics debut in Los Angeles 2028. The Fédération Internationale de Sports d'Obstacles (FISO) has confirmed the event will take place at Limerick Racecourse from August 7-9, 2026. More than 4,000 athletes from over 60 countries are expected to compete, with the University of Limerick serving as the official Athlete Village. Those numbers make it one of the largest international sporting events staged in the region, with organisers predicting a €2.8 million boost to the Mid-West economy. The sport has long evolved beyond its humble origins out the back of every house in the world. And Obstacle Course Racing is now one of the fastest-growing sports in the world, blending speed, strength, and strategy over a range of natural and man-made obstacles — including walls, rigs, rope climbs, carries, and crawls. Obstacle Course Racing is one of the fastest-growing sports globally and has now been elevated to Olympic status for Los Angeles 2028. Credit Shannon Region Conference and Sports Bureau. The World Championships in Limerick will feature a range of formats, from short and explosive 100m and 400m sprints to 2–3km technical courses, a 15km endurance race, and high-energy team relays. Sergej Dikun, President of OCRA Ireland, described the announcement as a landmark moment for Irish sport, 'Hosting the World Championships just two years before the sport's Olympic debut is a huge moment for Ireland. We're honoured to bring the global OCR community to Limerick — and to showcase the passion, people, and places that make the Mid-West Region so special.' Michael Lynch, CEO of Limerick Racecourse, looks forward to the repurposing of his arena. 'We are delighted to be working with the event stakeholders towards delivery of this prestigious event. This is a proud moment for us. Limerick Racecourse offers a potentially spectacular setting for OCR, and we can't wait to see it transformed into a world championship arena.'
New York Times
20-06-2025
- New York Times
Bayesian Superyacht Is Raised From Bottom of Mediterranean
The hull of the Bayesian superyacht breached the surface of the Mediterranean Sea on Friday as cranes pulled it up from the seabed off Sicily, where it had lain since it sank last August, killing seven people. As a portion of the dark-blue hull of the yacht, which belonged to the British tech mogul Michael Lynch, was raised from the waters, it carried with it the hope of providing answers to a mysterious tragedy. Italian investigators are still trying to find out what caused the sinking of the $40 million superyacht — which its makers had deemed 'unsinkable' — during a storm 10 months ago, while a converted tugboat anchored in the same cove weathered the gale just fine. The mystery has compounded the grief of the family and friends of the seven people who perished: Mr. Lynch; his teenage daughter, Hannah; four of Mr. Lynch's friends, including a prominent lawyer and his wife; and the sailboat's cook. Theories and accusations have proliferated since the sinking. The company that owns the yacht's builder accused the crew of making a chain of fatal errors. A preliminary investigation by British maritime authorities found that the boat had likely been knocked over by an intense gust of wind and noted that the Bayesian's signature feature, a gigantic single mast that was one of the tallest in the world, increased the vulnerability of the boat to capsizing in high winds. The New York Times published findings similar to those of the British authorities last year in its investigation of the accident. The hull, inside which six of the seven bodies of the victims were previously found, the deck and some of the boat's vents and railings became visible for a few hours for the first time in months on Friday. Steel straps attached to maritime cranes pulled it from more than 50 yards below the surface of the sea, where it had lain on its starboard side. TMC Marine, the company organizing the recovery of the vessel, said that the boat's aluminum mast had been removed on Tuesday. On Saturday, the boat is set to be fully brought to the surface and out of the water, with seawater pumped out of the hull, TMC Marine said in a statement. The authorities had established a strict security perimeter in the air and sea around the work site during the vessel's recovery, TMC Marine said.
BBC News
22-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
World Football Ange Postecoglou: Australia's path-finder
Ange Postecoglou is the first coach from outside Europe or South America to win a European trophy, but what does that achievement mean for Australian football? Former Australia goalkeeper Mark Bosnich and journalist Michael Lynch tell World Football's Mani Djazmi about the significance in the context of Australian sport, and chart Postecoglou's rise from immigrant to European winner. Photo: Ange Postecoglou, Manager of Tottenham Hotspur, celebrates with the UEFA Europa League trophy after his team's victory in the UEFA Europa League Final 2025 between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United at Estadio de San Mames on May 21, 2025 in Bilbao, Spain. (Credit: UEFA via Getty Images)
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Yahoo
First major piece of Bayesian superyacht recovered from seabed
Salvage crews have recovered the boom from the $40 million Bayesian luxury yacht, which sank off the coast of Sicily in August 2024, killing seven people, including British billionaire tech tycoon Michael Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah. The boom, which was connected to the 72-meter (236-foot) mast—one of the tallest on any sailboat—is the first known piece of debris to brought out of the water. On May 9, a 39-year-old Dutch specialist diver Robcornelis Maria Huijben Uiben died in an underwater explosion when trying to detach the boom from the vessel, Italian Coast Guard officials said. The recovery of the boom will be part of the forensic investigation into the diver's death, officials told CNN. The 55.9 meter (184-foot) yacht, which still has 18,000 liters of fuel onboard, went down in a sudden storm on August 19 while moored near Porticello, Sicily near Palermo. Fifteen people, including nine crew members, survived. British investigators, who were on the scene days after the accident, published a 'desktop' report last week in which they concluded that the ship sank due to structural problems with the vessel. Italian investigators have publicly dismissed the findings and have told local reporters that until the vessel can be examined once out of the water, no conclusion into the cause of the sinking can be determined. The ship is lying on its starboard side on the seabed, meaning no images have been taken of that part of the vessel to determine its condition. An official with Smit Salvage, which is part of the salvage team led by TMC Marine, told CNN that the hatches appear open, meaning the crew may not have battened down the hatches as the storm approached. One of the crew members posted a video of the storm in the distance, which investigators say shows that they were aware of the weather, according to the British report. No one has been charged with any criminal culpability in the accident, but the ship captain James Cutfield and two other crew members are under investigation for their role in the deaths of the passengers, which included one crew member. The vessel is thought to contain watertight safes in which Lynch kept highly encrypted hard drives. Investigators have told CNN that they cannot verify the existence of any safes or contents until the ship is brought out of the water. The timetable to lift the yacht from the seabed some 50 meters below the surface of the water originally stated that the mast and boom would be left on the seabed until after the hull of the luxury yacht is pulled out of the water. The boom was instead brought out first to aid in the investigation into the salvage diver's death. It is unclear when the mast, which is being cut from the vessel, will be pulled from the water. The hull of the yacht is scheduled to be brought up between May 26 and May 28, weather permitting. Once emptied of water, the wreckage will be lifted by crane to the port of Termini Imerese where it will be sequestered and examined by officials. A full report is expected by the end of the summer.
CNN
20-05-2025
- CNN
First major piece of Bayesian superyacht recovered from seabed
Salvage crews have recovered the boom from the $40 million Bayesian luxury yacht, which sank off the coast of Sicily in August 2024, killing seven people, including British billionaire tech tycoon Michael Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah. The boom, which was connected to the 72-meter (236-foot) mast—one of the tallest on any sailboat—is the first known piece of debris to brought out of the water. On May 9, a 39-year-old Dutch specialist diver Robcornelis Maria Huijben Uiben died in an underwater explosion when trying to detach the boom from the vessel, Italian Coast Guard officials said. The recovery of the boom will be part of the forensic investigation into the diver's death, officials told CNN. The 55.9 meter (184-foot) yacht, which still has 18,000 liters of fuel onboard, went down in a sudden storm on August 19 while moored near Porticello, Sicily near Palermo. Fifteen people, including nine crew members, survived. British investigators, who were on the scene days after the accident, published a 'desktop' report last week in which they concluded that the ship sank due to structural problems with the vessel. Italian investigators have publicly dismissed the findings and have told local reporters that until the vessel can be examined once out of the water, no conclusion into the cause of the sinking can be determined. The ship is lying on its starboard side on the seabed, meaning no images have been taken of that part of the vessel to determine its condition. An official with Smit Salvage, which is part of the salvage team led by TMC Marine, told CNN that the hatches appear open, meaning the crew may not have battened down the hatches as the storm approached. One of the crew members posted a video of the storm in the distance, which investigators say shows that they were aware of the weather, according to the British report. No one has been charged with any criminal culpability in the accident, but the ship captain James Cutfield and two other crew members are under investigation for their role in the deaths of the passengers, which included one crew member. The vessel is thought to contain watertight safes in which Lynch kept highly encrypted hard drives. Investigators have told CNN that they cannot verify the existence of any safes or contents until the ship is brought out of the water. The timetable to lift the yacht from the seabed some 50 meters below the surface of the water originally stated that the mast and boom would be left on the seabed until after the hull of the luxury yacht is pulled out of the water. The boom was instead brought out first to aid in the investigation into the salvage diver's death. It is unclear when the mast, which is being cut from the vessel, will be pulled from the water. The hull of the yacht is scheduled to be brought up between May 26 and May 28, weather permitting. Once emptied of water, the wreckage will be lifted by crane to the port of Termini Imerese where it will be sequestered and examined by officials. A full report is expected by the end of the summer.
