Sport Ireland has announced an investment in its Women in Sport Programme of €4million over the two years 2021 and 2022.
The news follows on from the 2019 announcement of €3m funding for national governing bodies (NGBs) in women’s sport with particular focus on coaching and officiating, active participation, leadership and governance, and visibility.
In the funding breakdown, the Irish Rugby Football Union comes out on top with a total of €230,000 over the two years while Athletics Ireland and Swim Ireland will each receive €160,000.
Gymnastics Ireland, Hockey Ireland and Tennis Ireland all come out with €150,000 each over the two years while The Football Association of Ireland will receive a total of €64,000. In total, just over €3.2m will go to Women in Sport Programmes with the remaining €700,000 going to a Women in Sport Special Projects Fund.
A statement from Sport Ireland read: “In 2020, the sector delivered on a number of objectives set out in the Women in Sport policy and there were many projects of note throughout the year. The Women in Sport Leadership programme rolled out by Swim Ireland was completed by 100 women from 24 NGBs who were supported and enabled to step into positions of authority in sport; Rowing Ireland coordinated a bespoke coaching programme involving four NGBs for female coaches on the pathway to high performance coaching and programmes such as Golf Ireland “Level Par” and Tennis Ireland’s “Equal Advantage” were established to ensure equality and balance in the respective sports.”
“The appointment of Nora Stapleton as Women in Sport Lead in Sport Ireland, as well as the appointment of leads in many NGBs has led to the creation of a network with increased levels of information sharing, collaboration and delivery of joint initiatives amongst the sector,” said Sport Ireland chief executive John Treacy. “This network, along with the wider NGB sector are working hard to promote sport and physical activity to women and girls. The funding announced today will not only see a diverse range of sports available to the female Irish public but an increase in the visibility of females be that as role models on the pitch or playing field, on boards or in the media. It is important that we work together to achieve the ambitious targets and I would like to acknowledge the continued support of the Ministers and staff in the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.”
