OLYMPICS OIREACHTAS COMMITTEE HEARING: IT STARTED out with some plaudits but soon got down to the more disturbing issues surrounding Ireland's Olympic participation. What is going on with the Olympic Council of Ireland? Why were there two reviews of Beijing? How has showjumping become such an embarrassment and when will Athletics Ireland ever sort itself out?

These were the main questions put to John Treacy, chief executive of the Irish Sports Council, at yesterday’s hearing before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Sports. It followed up a hearing before the Beijing Olympics, and addressed some of the concerns that have arisen in their aftermath.

Treacy, naturally, was commended for the Sports Council’s role in the success of the boxers in Beijing, but was fairly well grilled when it came to some of the wider concerns of the committee. Deputy John O’Mahony, who still doubles as the Mayo senior football manager, was aghast at the ongoing tensions between the Sports Council and the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI).

“Everyone here wants to know why we had two reviews of Beijing,” asked O’Mahony. “Not only does it seem like a waste of money, but the impression is that each review just criticised the other body.

“My impression is that there looks to be a huge duplication of roles. The OCI take over the team after they walk into the Olympic village, and in GAA terms, that would be like me taking a team to an All-Ireland, and then the week before the final, a whole different backroom team takes over.”

Deputy Mary Upton was even more scathing of the difficulties between the two bodies: “Reading the two reports was like reading about two different events. Why aren’t heads being banged together?

“I’ve also seen some correspondence regarding the situation with Athletics Ireland, which makes for very disturbing reading. They’ve already spent over €100,000 in legal fees, which is a complete and absolute waste. Why isn’t it resolved? We’re here to talk about Beijing, but built into that, and a very important part of that, is Athletics Ireland.”

Deputy Mary White and Senator Jerry Buttimer both raised similar questions about the OCI: “I’m also confused and perplexed as to why the OCI present one picture in their review, and the Sports Council present another picture in theirs,” asked Buttimer, “and why there is this huge tension, huge chasm, between the two organisations?”

Deputy Michael Kennedy raised the issue of two successive doping cases involving showjumping at the last two Olympics, and “the sense of embarrassment” that resulted from this, while Deputy Olivia Mitchell felt the tension between the Sports Council and the OCI “adds to the perception that sport is riven by petty differences”.

In his response, Treacy first underlined the fact Beijing was Ireland’s most successful Olympics since 1956, with separate athletes winning medals, and that “we got performances right across the spectrum”. That was a thinly-veiled rejection of the OCI’s review, which suggested Beijing had failed to deliver on expectations. Treacy then stated the Sports Council play no role in the monitoring of anti-doping in showjumping, which seemed to put that issue aside, but in terms of the relationship with the OCI, he said the “door was always open”.

“We invited them to co-operate in our report, and they declined,” he added. “That is very unfortunate. There was no issue with the OCI after Athens, but things have changed since the start of this year. Their PR strategy was to criticise the Sports Council.

“But this was fixed before, and can be fixed again. The Sports Council is always open to working with the OCI, and we would like to engage with them. But there is a degree of frustration there when a lot of the engagement is criticism of us.”

The problem with Athletics Ireland, said Treacy, was an “internal issue”, but that the Sports Council, as custodians of state funding, have a responsibility to ensure that funding is used wisely, including the process of appointments. “We have to keep good governance, and hopefully it will be resolved shortly,” he said.

Deputy O’Mahony didn’t seem overly convinced: “You have to be impressed with the level of planning, etc, but at the end of the day, are you talking with Pat Hickey? Or is it that the Minister has to come in and settle it once and for all?” In fact nobody left the hearing overly convinced, with Deputy Upton calling for the Sports Council and Athletics Ireland to attend a separate hearing in the near future.