All 90 members of An Garda Síochána who have lost their lives in the line of duty will be remembered at a special event in Co Louth this morning.
Garda Tony Golden was murdered as he responded to a domestic violence incident in Omeath, Co Louth in 2015.
The following year, a memorial cycle was established to remember the late garda, who came from Ballina, Co Mayo but was stationed in Omeath.
Now in its tenth and final year, the Garda Tony Golden Memorial Cycle has been expanded to commemorate the lives of all 90 gardaí killed in active service, the most recent of which being Garda Kevin Flatley in May of this year.
This year's edition of the event has been titled 'Road of Honour’ with those taking part in the final leg of the charity cycle setting off from Geraldines GAA Club in Haggardstown this morning.
The organisers of the event have said they are on track to achieve this year’s goal of participants cycling a collective 45,000km between last Saturday and today, reflecting 500km for every member of the force on the Roll of Honour.
Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly met with a number of those taking part in the cycle earlier in the week and made a presentation to those who organised the event for the past ten years.
To date, the event has raised over €150,000 for charity. Past beneficiaries have included the Little Blue Heroes Foundation and Aoibheann’s Pink Tie while all money raised this year will go to the Irish Cancer Society.
Garda Neil O’Malley, who has been involved in organising the annual cycle since 2016, previously said they wanted to find a way to mark the tenth and final edition of the event.
He said: "It is in Tony’s memory, obviously, but we just thought because it is the last one, why not try to challenge ourselves by doing something to remember all 90 members of the force who lost their lives in the line of duty."
The final leg of the event will see cyclists, including Chief Superintendent Alan McGovern and many members of the force, completing either a 65km or 90km sportive around part of the Cooley Peninsula today.
