The Federation of Irish Sport is hosting its fifth Annual Conference on May 31st. This year’s event will be looking at the core issue of funding and how the nature of investment in Irish sport can be looked at from a different perspective.
The keynote address will be delivered by Sara Liebscher, Director of Athletic Advancement at the University of Notre Dame. Liebscher’s role involves fundraising for the development of the University’s world leading athletics programme and she will be offering valuable insight on the totally different way in which College Sport in the US reaches out through philanthropy rather than government subvention to keep programmes vibrant and well funded.
To put it in perspective College programmes in the US would have budgets of up to $160 million, or three times the annual sports budget distributed by Sport Ireland in core funding. That’s for one college.
How they go about raising that kind of money and the philosophy that underpins the effort will be a fascinating taste of ‘what could be’ for for Irish sport.
Liebschers’s motto, from when she was capyain of the University Basketball team and which she adopted from her coach at the time Muffet McGraw is “Don’t give up until you get where you want to be.” Wise words indeed.
This year’s Federation Conference will be held in the Havelock Suite at the Aviva Stadium and will run from 1230 to 6pm.
The event aims to give an opportunity for both the National Governing Bodies of Sport and the Local Sports Partnerships to share ideas, learn from expert panels, network, meet industry experts and engage in lively debate.
Among the others who will be speaking at the Conference are Jack Gleeson ,Executive Director, The Irish Sailing Foundation; James Wynne , Client Director – Onside Sponsorship Consultants; Dennis O’Connor, Director, 2into 3; Warren Deutrom, CEO – Cricket Ireland; Ciaran Gallagher, CEO – Gymnastics Ireland and Paul Green, Honorary General Treasurer Irish Judo.
Tickets for the Federation Conference can be bought here.
