Top international and Irish anglers will be in Longford for prestigious €11,500 competition

Excitement is building as this weekend the Lough Ree Lanesboro Angling Hub (LRAH) will host the King Of The Lake 2024 International Pike Festival, one of the biggest events of its kind in Europe.

This highly anticipated event, also known as “The King Of The Lake 2024,” promises to be an unforgettable experience for both international and Irish anglers.

Donal McAteer, the Admin Secretary for the LRAH King of the Lake 2024 said the popularity of the event continues to expand: “The festival is going from strength to strength with more International visitors every year and huge crowds from around the island.

“At an entry fee of only €150 per boat, this event offers not only the safest but also the most enjoyable competition of the year,” Donal said.

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With €11,500 in cash prizes and over 40 prizes on offer the event is an opportunity for anglers to fish the entire Lough Ree lake.

The competition regulations mean that lure fishing, fly fishing and dead baits are the only methods allowed. Anglers may only use two rods. There must be at least two people in each boat and a maximum of three anglers and a maximum of four rods fishing at a time.

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On day one there will be prizes for the longest cumulative three fish caught on the day, while the day two prizes are for the longest cumulative three fish caught on the second day.

The overall winners will be decided based on the cumulative length of the longest three fish caught, over both days.

The King Of The Lake 2024 prioritizes four key aspects: Safety, Friendship, Family, and Fishing. The event aims to promote angling and outdoor recreational tourism in Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands while emphasising sustainable angling practices through catch and release, water safety and use of life jackets on the water for all who use our waterways.

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Donal says the competition reinforces the locality's tourism significance: “It’s important to shine a light on the pike fishing tourism market in Ireland which plays a significant role in the economy, supporting over 1,100 jobs directly and indirectly and generating more than €45 million in tourism spending annually.”

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The King Of The Lake 2024 is a non-profit competition aimed at showcasing what Lough Ree and her surrounding areas have to offer.

The King Of The Lake 2024 International Pike Festival takes place this Saturday, September 28 and Sunday, September 29.

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