The Cormac Trust was set up after the sudden death of Tyrone GAA star Cormac McAnallen on 2nd March 2004 from a rare heart condition. Cormac had captained Tyrone at Minor and U21 level and at the time of his death was captain of the Senior team, and had only just celebrated wining the Dr McKenna Cup – the first of what should have been many trophies for his county.

The Cormac Trust was set up with four key objectives:

• To raise awareness of sudden cardiac deaths in young people, and its causes;

• To promote cardiac screening for young people, especially for athletes;
• To provide education and information to raise awareness at government level and among other authorities as to the value of providing facilities for the screening of young people;
• To provide automated external defibrillators (AEDs) for sports clubs in the local region, for the use of the entire local community, and to train people in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and the use of defibrillators.

Sudden death within the young occurs at an alarming rate and whilst Cormac was in exceptional physical condition when he died, SADA is not confined to athletes. More generally, heart disease is a more common cause of death than is perceived and The Cormac Trust has gone along way to creating greater awareness not only of SADS but of heart disease in general.

The Trust has worked hard to generate awareness through various initiatives as well as the provision of defibrillators – so far over 100 defibrillators have been provided to local sports clubs and councils across Northern Ireland. Without doubt, Cormac’s profile and his sporting achievements within GAA, has given The Cormac Trust recognition throughout Ireland – encouraging more screening and a greater focus on heart related issues.

The fight against SADS is an ongoing one and whilst awareness is one thing, there is a greater need for screening and a greater need for an understanding of exactly what causes SADS and how it can be prevented. Governments on both sides of the border have a responsibility to ensure that SADS related deaths are significantly reduced and major sporting bodies like the GAA also have a responsibility to ensure the well being of all those participating.

The Cormac Trust will continue to generate greater awareness of SADS and heart related illness and hope to fund a research programme which will potentially lead to a greater understanding of the illness.

For further information please visit www.thecormactrust.com