Gardaí urge ploughing fans to start journey early

GARDAÍ have advised motorists going to the National Ploughing Championships in Athy, Co Kildare, not to be complacent about their travel plans.

The three-day event, which President Mary McAleese will officially open tomorrow, is costing over €3 million to stage and is expected to attract in more than 180,000 people.

Part of the 700-acre site— which has been turned into a sprawling fully serviced temporary town — is where the first championships were staged in 1931.