The Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) has withheld the selection of the three men’s marathon qualifiers for Rio after the controversy which marred last week’s nomination by Athletics Ireland.
While the three Irish women's marathon qualifiers were included among the further 16 athletes formally selected by the OCI this morning, the three men are conspicuous by their absence: it follows an appeal against the process which saw Belfast-based runner Paul Pollock nominated by Athletics Ireland ahead of former Moldovan athlete Sergiu Ciobanu, even though Ciobanu had run the faster qualifying time.
An independent body of Athletics Ireland rejected Ciobanu’s appeal last Friday, although it now appears that might not be the end of the matter. He still has the right to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), and in the meantime a petition calling for Athletics Ireland to reconsider their three-man selection will be delivered to the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Shane Ross, OCI president Pat Hickey, and Georgina Drumm, President of Athletics Ireland.
According to a statement from Athletics Ireland, “the task of the Independent Appeals Committee was to determine whether there was an error of fact or a procedural deficit when the selectors came to their original decision; none was found.”
Against that backdrop, however, came Ciobanu’s claim that his previous nationality came into play, that he “felt like the fact I was born in Moldova is what cost me my place” and that “I feel like if I was born in Ireland, in the sticks, I would have been selected.”
Athletics Ireland also rejected that suggestion, and have stuck firmly behind their three-man selection of Kevin Seaward, who was always the fastest qualifier with his 2:14:52 from Berlin last September, followed by Mick Clohisey (who ran 2:15:10 in Seville in February), and then Pollock, even though Ciobanu was the third fastest qualifier, his 2:15:14 run in Berlin last September, 24 seconds faster than Pollock’s best of 2:15:38, also in Berlin.
No such worries for the three Irish women's marathon qualifiers - Lizzie Lee, Fionnuala McCormack and Breege Connolly now officially selected by the OCI, along with 50km race walkers Robert Heffernan, Brendan Boyce, and Alex Wright.
Joining those six athletes in this morning's announcement is boxer Katie Taylor, who secured her qualification for Rio at last week's World Championships in Astana, plus rower Sanita Puspure in the women's singles sculls, triathletes Aileen Reid and Bryan Keane, and six sailors in four boat classes, including three first-time Olympians in Saskia Tidey, Andrea Brewster and Finn Lynch.
Puspure secured her place in Rio with a confident second place at the Olympic Qualifying Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland last month, with both Reid and Keane qualifying through the lengthy world-ranking points system.
“We are formally selecting 16 more athletes from four sports,” said OCI Chief Executive Stephen Martin, “and we will continue to work with their national federation high performance support teams, and the Institute of Sport to ensure they have the best possible support to maximise their potential in Rio.”
Last month, the OCI announced their initial selection of 14 athletes, from boxing, gymnastics, rowing and badminton: with the men’s hockey team already qualified, it’s expected the final Irish team will feature 14 sports and approximately 85 athletes.
Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) 2016 Rio selections to date:
Athletics Ireland
Robert Heffernan - 50km Men’s Race Walk
Brendan Boyce - 50Km Men’s Race Walk
Alex Wright - 50Km Men’s Race Walk
Lizzie Lee - Women’s Marathon
Fionnuala McCormack - Women’s Marathon
Breege Connolly - Women’s Marathon
Irish Athletic Boxing Association
Katie Taylor - Women’s 60Kg
Michael Conlon - Men's Bantam Weight
Paddy Barnes - Men's Light Flyweight
Joe Ward - Men's Light Heavyweight
Stephen Donnelly - Men’s Welter Weight
Brendan Irvine - Men's Flyweight
David Oliver Joyce - Men’s Lightweight
Rowing Ireland
Sanita Puspure - Women’s Single Scull
Sinead Lynch - Lightweight Women’s Double Scull
Claire Lambe - Lightweight Women's Double Scull
Paul O’Donovan - Lightweight Men’s Double Scull
Gary O’Donovan - Lightweight Men’s Double Scull
Sailing Ireland
Annalise Murphy - Laser Radial
Finn Lynch - Laser
Ryan Seaton - 49er
Matt McGovern - 49er
Andrea Brewster - 49erFX
Saskia Tidey - 49erFX
Triathlon Ireland
Aileen Reid - Women’s Triathlon
Bryan Keane - Men’s Triathlon
Badminton Ireland
Scott Evans - Men’s Singles
Chloe Magee - Women’s Singles
Gymnastics Ireland
Kieran Behan - Artistic Gymnastics All Around
Ellis O’Reilly - Artistic Gymnastics All Around
