Latest news with #Ballymena-based
RTÉ News
6 days ago
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Irish athletics trailblazer Maeve Kyle dies aged 96
Maeve Kyle, a pioneering figure in Irish athletics and a former hockey international, has died at the age of 96. Kilkenny native Kyle racked up 58 caps for Ireland's hockey team before shifting her focus to athletics after meeting her future husband Sean Kyle in 1953. Kyle became the first woman to represent Ireland in track and field at an Olympic Games when she contested the 100m and 200m at Melbourne 1956 as a 28-year-old in a career that became even more remarkable for its longevity. The honour of representing her country came at a financial cost, with the Ballymena-based athlete required to stump up £200 to make the trip Down Under. Kyle went on to compete at Rome 1960 and Tokyo 1964, reaching the semi-finals in both the 400m and 800m in her final Games as a competitor. Two years later, Kyle claimed a bronze medal in the 400m at the European Indoors in Dortmund in what was then West Germany. Gold medals and records in multiple disciplines at World Masters level were attained in the following years, while the Ballymena & Antrim Athletics Club continued to flourish under her tutelage and that of her husband. Kyle enjoyed tenures as manager of both Team GB and the Ireland team, figuring in a fourth Olympics for Ireland when serving as a coach to the Ireland team at Sydney 2000. Voted into the RTÉ/Irish Sports Council Hall of Fame Award in 2008, Kyle was honoured by multiple athletics bodies on the Ireland of honour and in the UK, and was elected as a life vice-president of Athletics Ireland. Predeceased by her husband Sean in 2015, she is survived by her daughter Shauna and her granddaughter Indy.
Belfast Telegraph
18-07-2025
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
Wrightbus unveils new zero-emission prototype
The Ballymena-based company said it already had orders for the Far East and Europe lined up for its 6x2 Streetdeck. The company said it was the latest launch from the company in a 'record-breaking' year, in which it also announced a new electric midi-bus range as well as a next-generation hydrogen coach, diesel coach and a hydrogen double decker. Wrightbus now employs more than 2,300 people and is making 1,200 buses a year, which are mainly zero-emissions. CEO Jean-Marc Gales said the 6x2 was a 'triumph of engineering'. 'Our team has worked round the clock for the last two years to create this new zero-emission product,' he said. 'To design a chassis which copes not only with fixed axle and steering axle configurations but also enables increased battery capability without compromising on passenger numbers is a real triumph for our engineers.' Tests will be carried out over the summer, with a demonstrator model set for a customer in Hong Kong for 12 months. Mr Gales said there were also sales opportunities in Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. 'We are building momentum not just in our home territories but overseas as well, as news or our brand reaches all corners of the globe,' he said. He said there were more than 100 of its hydrogen buses headed for Germany, as well as fleets of hydrogen and battery-electrics around the UK. UK unemployment jumps to highest since 2021 as wage growth slows The company recently announced a £150m finance package from HSBC UK as it prepares to ramp up production. Mr Gales added: 'We've invested into our growth significantly over the last 12 months, with more staff in Ballymena and Malaysia, new facilities for our repowering business - NewPower - in Bicester, and a European service centre in Brühl to ensure we have operational capacity to exceed customer demand. "Wrightbus also supports 7,500 jobs in the wider supply chain so our growth is great for the wider economy too.' Wrightbus was rescued from administration by entrepreneur Jo Bamford in 2019.
