Later this morning in Dublin the dream of a World Sports Team will become real for Eamonn Sayers.
Sayers runs the Guinness Enterprise Centre in Dublin and is a first cousin of Stuart Mangan, the rugby player who died in 2009 16 months after suffering a catastrophic broken neck in a rugby match.
The coming together at that time of so many sporting stars to help raise €2 million for Mangan proved the inspiration that Sayers will today deliver in the form of a community of sporting people from around the world who will give their time, effort and leadership to helping ease the lives of those who suffer terrible injury through sport, and those who support them.
The network has been growing over the past two years and will today become something more than a positive attitude. The charity will raise money and awareness and become a focal point for sports stars who want to give back something to those who have been struck down in pursuit of their sporting dream.
At a time when professional sport is fighting back from accusations of living in a rarefied world of excess, the World Sports Team will be part of a growing movement that is seeing a greater profile and awareness being given for the work that sporting stars are doing.
In the US, a new website called Athletes Give has been created to provide a searchable database and donation mechanism for activities that global sports stars are lending their name to.
In Ireland the Rory McIlroy Foundation is the latest high profile example of how star appeal can shine a light on charitable works that need publicity as well as direct funding to do good.
IRUPA and the Gaelic Player Association encourage charitable involvement through a number of different programmes and sport has always been willing to answer a call when it comes.
The World Sports Team aim is to make the connection easier to establish in the first place and we wish Eamonn and his team the very best of luck today and into the future.
