Mayo GAA stalwart Dr. Mickey Loftus has passed away aged 93

Tom Shiel

Tributes are being paid this evening to former GAA President Dr. Michael (Mickey) Loftus who passed away today (Saturday), aged 93.

A native of Crossmolina, Dr. Loftus was a member of the Mayo senior football panel which won the All-Ireland final in 1951. He was a sub on the team and did not play on the day.

His league and championship career spanned four years – 1949 to 1953 – at senior level.

After his retirement from playing, Dr. Loftus, who ran a medical practice in north Mayo, served as a referee at club and county level. He refereed the All-Ireland finals in 1965 and 1968.

Dr. Loftus was chairman of the Connacht GAA Council and the Centenary Committee which organised the Association’s 100th anniversary celebrations in 1984. He subsequently served as President of the GAA from 1985 to 1988.

As well as being a medical doctor, he was coroner for north Mayo for many years. His daughter-in-law, Dr. Eleanor Fitzgerald, is the present coroner in the district.

During his long, varied and successful career, Dr. Loftus was outspoken on the issue of alcohol abuse. He maintained that alcohol abuse is as devastating to local communities in Ireland as alcohol was in the past.

Most upsetting of all, he insisted, was the devastation caused in families by the loss of a loved one in accidents caused by drink. Dr. Loftus strenuously questioned the level of involvement of the drinks industry in major sporting events and festivals.

Funeral details will be announced later.