All the red carpet photos from the Goss.ie Women of the Year Awards 2023

A host of famous faces stepped out for the second annual Goss.ie Women of the Year Awards this weekend.

The inspirational awards ceremony took place on Sunday, October 1st, at the Royal Marine Hotel in Dun Laoghaire.

Hosted by broadcaster and entrepreneur Gráinne Seoige, the event celebrated women across multiple genres – including business, the arts, social justice and sports.

Two special categories called Local Hero and Local Businesswoman also honoured women put forward by Goss.ie readers who have made an impact in their local area.

A host of well-known faces attended the event – including Rosanna Davison, Miriam O’Callaghan, Muireann O’Connell, Cecelia Ahern, RuthAnne Cunningham, Emer O’Neill, Norah Casey, Aoife Walsh, Katie Hannon, Ellen Keane, Hannah Tyrrell, Linda Keating, Jenny McCarthy, and Soulé to name a few.

Members of the Republic of Ireland Women’s National Football Team were honoured with a special  Women of the Year award during the ceremony.

The team, lead by captain Katie McCabe, made history earlier this year when they qualified for the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia.

2023 will forever be remembered as the year that Ireland came together to support these amazing women, and it’s safe to say they won the hearts of the nation.

Businesswoman of the Year went to Sharon Cunningham and Orlaith Ryan, who co-founded the speciality pharmaceutical company Shorla Oncology in 2018.

Popular singer-songwriter RuthAnne, the woman behind the viral wedding anthem The Vow and Irish Women in Harmony, was awarded Artist of the Year.

One of Ireland’s most well-known broadcasters, Miriam O’Callaghan, who has helmed RTÉ’s leading current affairs programme Prime Time since 1996, took home The News Industry Award.

In sports, Irish sprinter Rhasidat Adeleke was awarded Sportswoman of the Year, following another incredible 12 months for the 21-year-old in the world of athletics.

The Writer of the Year award went to Liz Nugent, whose fifth crime novel Strange Sally Diamond received rave reviews in 2023.

The winner of Rising Star was Niamh Donnelly, the co-founder and Chief Robotics Officer of Akara Robotics, an AI company focused on delivering innovative robotic solutions in healthcare.

The Best Start-Up award went to ReFunk, which was established by friends Anna Sheehan, Ellie Waters, Meredith Davis and Ellen Ryall in 2020. The sustainably-focused business connects conscious customers with freelance upcyclers who breathe new life into old furniture.

Meanwhile, Therese Coveney and Cathy Smith, Founder and Programmes Manager of The Together Academy, went home with the Trailblazer of the Year Award. Their unique social enterprise cafés provide young adults with Down syndrome specialised certified training, on-the-job experience, work placements and a critical social support network.

The Local Businesswoman award, nominated by Goss.ie readers, was won by Dara Shortt, who founded Comfort Homecare in response to the growing need for person-centred care in the comfort of their own homes.

And finally, the Local Hero award went to Ciara Jones, who has been branded an “unsung hero in the autism community”.

Nominated by a fellow parent in the autism community, the mother-of-three has been advocating for autistic people since her son Gavin was diagnosed with autism back in 2011 when he was almost two years old.

Check out more photos from the awards show below: