Dunlop and Booth receive MBEs in King's Birthday Honours

Michael Dunlop celebrates with a trophy following victory at last week's Isle of Man TT

Michael Dunlop and Neil Booth have spoken of their immense pride after being awarded MBEs in the King's Birthday Honours.

Dunlop, 36, is regarded as a road racing great as the record holder for the most number of wins and podiums at the Isle of Man TT, making it 33 victories just last week.

The Ballymoney man comes from a family synonymous with motorcycling and tragedy, with his father Robert, brother William and uncle Joey all tragically passing away while pursuing the sport they loved.

Michael has remained committed to racing as, in addition to his exploits on the Isle of Man, he has enjoyed success at the North West 200, claiming his first victory just days after his father's death in 2008 when topping the podium in the 250cc race.

His most recent outing at the North West saw him secure a hat-trick of wins to bring his tally to eight overall and further cement his legacy in the sport.

He now follows in the footsteps of his uncle Joey, who was also made an MBE in 1986 before being presented with an OBE 10 years later.

"This is a wonderful honour for me and for my family," he said.

"I am proud to represent Northern Ireland sport, and motorcycling in this country.

"Our team has had another brilliant year, with a hat trick at the NW200, and smashing into the record books again at the Isle of Man TT.

"To be the not just the most successful rider in the history of the TT, but also to have the record number of podiums and to have won on the biggest number of manufacturers is extremely special.

"I am humbled to be awarded this honour from the Palace."

'This award is for the entire sport' - Booth

Neil Booth (right) with Paul Daly and Neil Mulholland following their silver medal finish in the triples at the 2014 Commonwealth Games

County Antrim bowler Booth has spoken of his "delight", having been awarded an MBE.

The highly-decorated 57-year-old enjoyed a remarkable career on the green and has since brought that expertise into his role as coach of the Irish men's team which opens its 2025 Mainstream International Programme with a test match away to Bowls Jersey over the weekend.

Booth will go there with an added spring in his step after news of his recognition was made public on Friday and he admits he was a little shocked when first contacted.

"I saw the letter outside the door with 'Cabinet Office' on the front and started to think I was going to be extradited, but I was delighted when I opened it up," he said.

"I can't imagine what the whole occasion will be like, but I'm really looking forward to it. We'll make a weekend out of it but I imagine I'll be pretty nervous."

Booth recently collected the High Performance Coaching Award at the Sport NI Sportmaker ceremony at Titanic Belfast and this will sit alongside a host of medals and honours collected down through the years.

The Portglenone man is a three-time medallist at the World Championships which includes gold in the fours back in 2004 when the Championships were held in Ayr.

Booth is also in possession of four Commonwealth Games medals, including gold from the 1998 edition in Kuala Lumpur and bronze in Manchester 2002 - both in the fours - while taking silver medals in the triples in the Melbourne Games of 2006 and again in Glasgow 2014.

As a coach, he helped guide Northern Ireland's men to the men's fours title at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, with Gary Kelly taking silver in the men's singles.

In 2020, he completed a charity challenge when playing bowls in 52 clubs throughout Ireland to raise awareness of mental health issues, which underlined his commitment to help others.

The awarding of an MBE is the crowning glory and Booth reflected on a superb career, but insists he will accept the award on behalf of the entire sport.

"I've probably played at that high level from he late 80s, early 90s, all the way through to 2014," he added.

"Since then, the coaching role has gone really well and the men's team is second in the world at the minute, which is exceptional. I'm just delighted as this says a lot about the sport in general. It's come on leaps and bounds over here, so this is an award for the entire sport, as much as it is for myself."