The Sport Ireland High-Performance Funding Announcement was made yesterday at Trinity College Dublin, and after the event, I had time to sit once more with Minister Patrick O’Donovan.
Time was limited, but we had a chance to address two issues: where Boxing stands at the moment in relation to funding and the Olympics, and the power of sport to positively impact behaviour in light of the current debate around the Netflix show Adolescence and the effects of toxic masculinity.
SfB: Looking at the numbers and the sports, one that stands out is the continued support for boxing.
It is in a strange spot regarding the world boxing game and the Olympics. The funding allocation is only for one year as opposed to almost all the rest getting a four-year ‘runway’. Is this something which causes you anxiety when it comes to long-term funding?
PO’D: Well, there are two points, really. First of all, boxing is a sport that has, has really driven Ireland’s capacity to win medals at several Olympic games and worlds and Europeans.
So as a sport, you know, Ireland and boxing have a strong attachment.
The second thing is how boxing reaches into communities that other sports don’t reach into.
And we must continue to support that.
And there are communities and young people for whom it is an essential part of their life. And it has provided them with a great outlet and discipline that they might not otherwise get.
Um, so there’s communities all over this city and the country. I know several boxing clubs in my own part of the world that are really providing the next generation of young Irish athletes with a form of leadership that they might not otherwise get.
It also has a high-performance element. And you know, you’re right. It is in a bit of a strange place at the moment because nobody seems to be certain as to where it’s going to go regarding the Olympic games.
But wherever that is, it will still be a strong presence in Ireland.
Even when I was minister of state the last time there were governance issues, but there’s none of those issues that can’t be overcome. Ultimately, the beneficiaries here are youngsters, whether they’re in Dublin or Limerick or wherever seeing an opportunity to do something.
It is an intrinsic Irish sport, and it is right to continue to be invested in.
SfB: That connection between what’s happening on the ground and the grassroots and that in the higher levels is important. What happens at the top level tends to colour the public’s perception.
PO’D: It does, but you can’t have the top without the bottom. You can’t have a pyramid without a base. While there’s only a handful of athletes will get to a podium at an Olympic games, there are tens of thousands who will always aspire to that.
They’re the young men and women who make up clubs, whether it’s a rowing club or a basketball club or wherever. They’re the bedrock, their parents, their volunteers, and the coaches on which all of these high-performance athletes build their successes.
And without them, we have nothing. Uh, so we need to do, you know, we need to do both.
Today’s a 27 million Euro investment into high performance. Uh, but there’s also ongoing government investment into large scale sports infrastructure, community sports infrastructure. We have transformed the type of facilities that are around the country for all sports.
SfB: Okay. Can I ask you just one more and it’s more a sort of a long term issue.
I know you’ve got kids. I’ve got kids as well. There’s been an awful lot of talk about this Netflix program, Adolescence and the sort of pressures and influences on young boys and young men.
You were kind enough to speak at one of our events when you were minister of state for sport, talking about the impact that government can have on women in sport and women in leadership roles.
Is there potentially a point at which young men and young boys can benefit from that same level of focus to allow sport to help them out of those negative positions?
Well, absolutely, because sport provides great discipline. There are rules and, and there are warnings and you can’t get away with things that you might otherwise get away with.
But you know, it’s not all about sport.
I mean, if you saw the scenes that developed in the Dáil yesterday, which was predominantly a group of men roaring and shouting at a woman, you don’t have to go to Netflix to see adolescents.
Could that be seen as normal behaviour? This isn’t normal behaviour. There isn’t a workplace on the planet where you can go in and, and berate somebody in the fashion that happened in this instance.
And it’s screened all over phones and everything else. And this is the kind of macho male dominated masculine, very rough culture. It’s not just a sports thing.
SfB: With sport being a language that is kind of universal and universal across generations, do you think that sport may have a part to play in actually changing this?
PO’D: Absolutely it does, because again, it has a code and there’s discipline and there are consequences.
And unfortunately for an awful lot of people at the moment, discipline and code and consequence does not exist.
In sport you either play by the rules or you’re put off, or you’re suspended, or there is a consequence that will make you think.
As a teacher I worked in an environment where you had 35 or so eight year olds in, in a classroom, and if you lose control, you know you are gone. Um, so sport is, is a great mechanism to show that these are the rules and this is the consequence.
Further Reading for Sport for Business members: Sport Ireland Core Funding for 2025
SPORT FOR BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE
Boxing and male behaviour are ironic bedfellows for an interview, but there are links that weave them together. Similarly, there are threads to draw on that can help sport help society. It is good that the Minister is saying that none of the issues cannot be overcome on the sporting side.
Societal change may prove more challenging, and the fact that last week we reported on 60 per cent of men under 35 thinking feminism had gone too far is something to be genuinely worried about. But we have to keep trying.
WHAT’S UP NEXT?
We will have conversations tomorrow with High-Performance Chair Olive Loughnane and an analysis of the Direct Athlete Support funding.
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