The final of the 2022 Rose Of Tralee takes place tonight, with 33 hopefuls are competing for the crown.
After all Roses appear on stage, the four judges must make a unanimous decision about who they want to win.
Meet the judging panel below:
Mary Kennedy
This is former RTÉ presenter Mary Kennedy’s 12th year on The Rose of Tralee judging panel, and her eighth as chairperson.
The 67-year-old started her broadcasting career back in 1978, and is best known for presenting the regional news programme Nationwide.
She retired from RTÉ in December 2019, and went on to compete in Dancing With The Stars in January the following year.
Mary recently hosted a six-part series called Guaranteed Irish on TG4.
Orla Burke
Orla Burke Kiersey won The Rose Of Tralee back in 1997, representing Waterford.
The mum-of-three works as a psychologist and psychotherapist.
She told The Munster Express: “To this day people still come up to me and say ‘you did that for Waterford’ and say that they remember where they were the night I won. It gave such a lift to Waterford and Waterford people took such great pride in it.”
Charlie O’Sullivan
Charlie O’Sullivan is the recently retired Deputy Chief Executive of Kerry County Council.
Prior to joining Kerry County Council in 2000, the Cork native worked with local authorities in Kildare, Carlow, Laois and Dublin.
Charlie is a UCC and Trinity College Dublin graduate, and has two daughters with his wife Mary.
Carmel McGillicuddy
Tralee native and businesswoman Carmel McGillicuddy of Ballygarry House Hotel completes the judging panel for The Rose Of Tralee 2022.
She hopes to bring her astute approach and strong sense of social responsibility to the panel, while “honouring the rich heritage of a competition that celebrates the very best of Irish women”.
The final of The Rose of Tralee International Festival will air tonight at 8pm on RTÉ One, with a break for the Nine News.
The festival will also available to watch for free, live and on-demand by audiences in Ireland and around the world on RTÉ Player.
