The 82nd annual Virginia Show kicked off this morning (Wednesday, August 20) at the Showgrounds, Virginia, Co. Cavan.

The weather forecast looks promising with dry spells expected to prevail for the day.

Today's event will see are almost 500 classes showcasing the best of Irish agriculture from horse, sheep, beef and dairy classes as well as stockperson contests.

The Diageo Baileys Champion Cow competition returns to the Virginia Show for its 40th event.

The champion cow will be rewarded with a first prize of €3,000, the Virginia Milk Products Cup and the grand title of Diageo Baileys Champion 2025.

As well as the overall title, there are sections for:

Best Heifer in Milk;
Best Junior Cow.

This year's Diageo Baileys Champion Cow will be judged by Giuseppe Beltramino from Italy and the serious business of 'The Baileys' gets underway at 3:00p.m.

There are a range of category prizes to be won also such as:

Best Protein award;
Best EBI award;
Best Exhibitor-Bred award.

In the beef breed sections, some of the key attractions include the Liffey Meats Super Beef Bullock and the Carnaross Mart All-Ireland Male and Female Weanling Championship.

This year, these classes have attracted entries from as far away as Donegal and Offaly.

In the home industries section, there are three national finals being contested:

The All-Ireland Fleetwood Paints Amateur Art;
The Lisgrey House ICA Guild Skills of the Year (theme is Halloween);
The Quality Onion All Ireland Final.

The end of summer showcase offers a broad range of other attractions and aims to be a fun-filled day out for all the family.