Things to Do in Galway
Activities and Family Activities in Galway

Sport in Galway includes a diverse heritage, with a history in sports ranging from horse racing, Gaelic games, soccer and rugby to rowing, motorsport, greyhound racing and others. The Galway Races are known worldwide and are the highlight of the Irish horse racing calendar. Over the years it has grown into an annual festival lasting seven days.

There are several golf courses that serve Galway city. Bearna Golf Club, Galway Golf Club, Cregmore Golf Club and Galway Bay Golf Resort are all situated within 8 kilometres of the city centre. The Galway Lawn Tennis Club, in the Salthill area of the city, has facilities for tennis, squash and badminton spread over 22 courts.

Nearby Salthill has a 25m competitive swimming pool in the Leisureland complex and three competitive swimming clubs are Shark Swimming Club, Laser Swimming Club and Galway Swimming Club train there. There is also a handball and racketball club while there are several martial arts clubs throughout the city. There is a 25m pool at NUI, Galway as well as one at Renmore's KingFisher Club.

Sailing on both sea and lake are popular, as is rowing in the River Corrib with seven clubs providing the necessary facilities and organising rowing competitions. These clubs include: Gráinne Mhaol Rowing Club, Tribesmen Rowing Club, Galway Rowing Club, Coláiste Iognáid ('The Jes') Rowing Club, St. Joseph's Patrician College ('The Bish') Rowing Club, NUIG Boat Club and Cumann Rámhaiochta Choláiste na Coiribe.

Near the city centre, on College Road, the Sportsground has greyhound races every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night. It was refurbished by the Irish Greyhound Board, Bord na gCon, and the facility is shared with the Connacht rugby team.

In motorsport, the Galway International Rally was the first international rally to be run from the Republic of Ireland. Throughout its history it has attracted star drivers from all over the world. The 2007 event was won by twice World Rally Champions Marcus Grönholm and Timo Rautiainen.

Moycullen Basketball Club have been a flagship basketball club in Galway for a number of years and currently compete in the Superleague, the top division in Irish basketball. They are the first Galway or Gaeltacht team to ever compete in the Superleague which is a semi-professional league. Galway Hockey Club have both men's and ladies' hockey teams with a vibrant youth section and is based at the Regional Sports Centre in Dangan.