Five Olympic and seven Paralympic Athletes are to get the maximum Sport Ireland funding of €40,000 this year after the individual grants were announced yesterday at the Sport Ireland National Sports Campus.

They are at the top of a pyramid which consists of an overall 90 athletes who will get grants ranging from their ‘Podium’ Level through ‘World Class’ at €20,000 and ‘International’ at €12,000.

The three different categories are intended as a reflection of the athlete’s opportunity to feature as a medallist, finalist or contender at major championships this year.

The five Olympic athletes to win the top level of funding are Thomas Barr in Athletics, Annalise Murphy in Sailing, Joe Ward in Boxing, Gary and Paul O’Donovan in Rowing.

Paralympic athletes to secure the same level include Jason Smyth, Michael McKillop, Niamh McCarthy, Noelle Lenihan, Orla Barry and Ellen Keane. Katie-George Dunleavy and Eve McCrystal get a joint grant of €60,000.

There is a specific set of grants totalling €200,000 which will go towards the Team Ireland Golf Scheme. This grant is awarded to the Confederation of Golf in Ireland for the running and administration of the Scheme.

Sport Ireland’s investment in this Scheme facilitates direct player support of €130,000, ranging from €4,000 to €20,000 across a panel of 12 players, and indirect player support including the Challenge Tour Event and the provision of a training base in Quinta do Lago, Portugal.

Gavin Moynihan and Stephanie Meadow will receive the largest individual grants within this scheme of €20,000.

Read more including reaction to the Team Ireland Golf Grants

In terms of a sport by sport breakdown, the success of Paralympic athletes on a global stage is reflected in their total grants of €352,000 over 14 athletes.

Cycling comes next with €250,000 to 11 individuals and two team grants.

Rowing takes the bronze with nine athletes and one programme being awarded €212,000.

Athletics has 11 individuals garnering €184,000, while boxing has ten in receipt of €174,000. Swimming gets four ‘World Class grants, including for Oliver Dingley and Mona McSharry, in a total of €152,000

Sailing is the only other sport to breach €100,000, while Gymnastics, Taekwondo, Judo, Triathlon, Table Tennis, Pentathlon, Shooting, Badminton and Canoeing also share in the overall funding.

A grant of €45,000 has been set aside for Hockey Ireland with a note that discussions are ongoing with a view to enhancing this as both the Men’s and Women’s teams prepare for major Championships this year.

€50,000 of the 2018 funding has been retained to be allocated at a later stage in the year.

In addition to the direct investment, athletes will have access to science, medicine and lifestyle support services at Sport Ireland Institute.

“Today’s substantial investment through the International Carding Scheme will support our most talented sports people and I want to commend every athlete who has qualified for funding in 2018,” said Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Brendan Griffin.

“They have earned the support through exceptional performances and they are excellent ambassadors for Irish Sport as they continue to represent our country around the world.”

“I also welcome the investment in the Team Ireland Golf Scheme which supports our golfers. Golf plays a significant role in Irish Sport and is also very significant from a tourism perspective. Events such as the 2018 Irish Open, which will be hosted in Ballyliffin Golf Club in Donegal, continue to promote Ireland as a golf tourism destination.”

The International Carding Scheme will continue to evolve under the direction of the Performance Director of each sport throughout this Tokyo cycle and beyond.

Earlier this year Sport Ireland announced €7m to be invested directly into the high-performance programmes of 20 National Governing Bodies. Investment will also be made to the Olympic Council of Ireland and Paralympics Ireland. At the end of 2017, the Minister announced €380k in targeted funding for major events due to take place in 2018, with €320k of this allocated to 4 high-performance sports.

“2017 was an excellent year for Irish sport with impressive European and World performances at senior and junior level,” added Sport Ireland Chairman Kieran Mulvey.

“In order to sustain this success, it is vital that our athletes are well supported. The Tokyo Games are just on the horizon with qualification getting underway.”

“Sport Ireland will continue to work closely with the Olympic Council and Paralympics Ireland and continue to provide support as we build up to the 2020 Games.”

 

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Image Credit: Brendan Moran, Sportsfile