What have physicist Niels Bohr, mountaineer Edmund Hillary, Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi and our own John Joe Nevin got in common?
They all appear on bank notes. Well, sort of.
Nevin’s silver medal heroics at London 2012 have prompted Mullingar’s marketing committee to redesign the “Gar”, the official tourist currency of Mullingar.
James Joyce’s picture will be ditched in favour of an image of the visage of the 23-year-old bantamweight.
Mullingar Chamber of Commerce president Pat Whelan explained the decision to honour Nevin on the Gar, saying: “We are all very proud of John Joe in Mullingar, he really shone through in London and has been a credit to us all, and with the new Gar being distributed it will be a real attraction to tourists and a boost to the local economy.”
Nevin was contacted in London last week for his approval on the move and was delighted at the prospect of having his profile on the local currency.
An additional 25,000 Gars will now be distributed in the tourist networks in the town.
The Gar is accepted in over 100 retail outlets, hotels, restaurants and coffee shops offering discounts on a selected line of goods, or on all items, and is distributed to tourists when they arrive in the town.
