Yesterday evening Brazilian media started to run with a story that Pat Hickey was to have his passport returned and be free to travel back to Ireland for medical treatment.
Like so much in this story since it broke in August the media proved well informed and it was through this source as opposed to a court hearing or official notification to Hickey himself that the news was broken to him.
It will not be immediate. Arrangements need to be made for payment of a court bond of 1.5 million Brazilian Reals, equivalent to a little over €410,000. This would be forfeit if charges against Hickey proceed and he was not to return to Brazil to face trial.
Extradition
There is no suggestion that this would be the case but there is no extradition treaty between the countries and the Judge who sanctioned the release of the passport made reference to his not having any connection to Brazil but this being less important than the treatment of his ill health.
Kevin Kilty, Stephen Martin and Dermot Henihan took some weeks before their passports were returned having been taken by authorities ahead of their being questioned in regard to the allegations at the time of ticket touting and conspiracy.
All three are now back in the country though Kevin Kilty is one of a number of members of the Executive Committee to have resigned in recent months. John Delaney and Ciaran O’Cathain are others.
His position as Honorary Treasurer has been filled by Billy Kennedy from the sport of Cycling. A statement on the OCI website at the time of his appointment last week stated “We wish him well in his new position and as a former Bank Manager we can be sure our finances will be in good hands.”
Extraordinary General Meeting
Hickey himself ‘temporarily’ stepped aside as President of the Olympic Council following his arrest. It is not yet clear whether this will remain the case or whether he will seek to resume his duties and attend the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Olympic Council which has been notified for January.
The completion and publication of a Grant Thornton Report into ticketing arrangements, which was to form a key part of the Government’s enquiry into matters surrounding the Olympic Council was suspended on foot of a threat of an injunction by Hickey on ground that it would influence court proceedings in Brazil.
That Inquiry, headed by Justice Moran is currently seeking submissions from members of the public or families of competitors around issues they might have had with tickets for Rio. The closing date for submissions is November 30th.
Read more the suspension of the Grant Thornton Report
Another report by Deloitte into governance of the OCI proved a damning indictment of the practices that have held sway in recent years and recommended sweeping changes including limiting the tenure of office of Members.
Hickey’s return will be greeted with relief on humanitarian grounds. He has been harshly treated in terms of legal process that we would see as normal here, and as a 71 year old citizen of Ireland.
That will be tempered by nervousness among some within Irish sport who may be less willing or open to seek changes in the way the OCI is managed and run if he is sitting in at the EGM as would appear likely.
Mounting Bills
The Olympic Council informed members last month that the bill to date on reports around the crisis that followed Hickey’s arrest is currently at €750,000. This was laid firmly at the foot of the three person Crisis Sub Committee in an open exposure of a group that appears very divided.
The legal bills for Hickey in Brazil are also being met by the OCI and they will only be repaid if the case goes to trial and he is found guilty.
It is unclear whether the OCI will be responsible for the bond or whether this may be met by any of the International Olympic Committee, the European Olympic Committee or the Association of National Olympic Committee’s all of whom have, very belatedly, expressed support for Hickey in the past few weeks.
The OCI did not yet issue any formal statement since last night’s news broke. The Minister closest to the situation, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Shane Ross will be launching the next phase of the development of a new National Sports Policy at the Aviva Stadium later this afternoon. His advisers will have him well prepared to answer questions arising from the courtrooms of Rio.
