Pope’s gratitude for Limerick-made hip

WHILE Pope John Paul held many cherished memories of his visit to Limerick in 1979, workers in a city factory yesterday recalled how the Holy Father thanked their skills some years later for helping him maintain his hectic travel schedule.

The Pope fractured a thigh bone in a fall on April 29, 1994 and it was feared he would have to cancel all travel for months, or even a year.

After being rushed to the Gemelli Poly Clinic, he was put under the care of renowned orthopaedic surgeon, Professor Francesco Pipino.