A spirit of determination, pride, and belief 

For the past two weeks, I’ve focused on the Olympics, and there’s certainly no harm in continuing that conversation, is there? These weeks have brought immense pride in Ireland’s achievements and have shown us just how far we’ve come.

As I write this, the nation is still buzzing with excitement over the women’s 4x400m relay final where we narrowly missed a medal. We were in contention because four incredible women gave their all earlier in the week, even without their star runner, Rhasidat Adeleke. But on Saturday night, she was back, and our team delivered their best performances. They ran so fast that we found ourselves in fourth place, battling for third—a potential medal in a sprint relay, something unheard of for Ireland. And just the night before, we were on the cusp of another medal.

Rhasidat Adeleke finished fourth in the 400m Olympic final with a time of 49.28. She gave it her all and made history for Ireland. A top-class athlete from Dublin, Rhasidat is a source of immense pride for us all. Dublin Cumann na mBunscol proudly shared photos of her competing for her primary school, St. Mark’s, in the annual Santry sports, where she was a three-time schools hurdles champion. Even at a young age, this proud Dub was showing her potential. All of Dublin, and indeed the whole of Ireland, shared in her pride as she spoke of her disappointment at missing out on a medal—not for herself, but for Ireland.

Rhasidat embodies the new Irish Olympic spirit—a spirit of determination, pride, and the belief that we can compete with the best in the world. She represents a modern outlook, benefiting from improved funding and coaching. We’re fortunate that she’s studying in the USA, receiving top-tier coaching. But it’s worth noting that two of the four women on the relay team are not in a position to fully focus on their running because they have to work. Other nations have athletes who can dedicate themselves entirely to their sport. Unfortunately, in Ireland, we haven’t perfected the system yet—the top financial support our athletes receive is €40,000 per year. Competing at such a high international level suggests that this should be more.

I loved these Olympics—those who represented us were fantastic. For those who don’t remember June 1990, at least you got to share another Italia ’90. My generation is so lucky—we had two, and it’s not over yet.

I’m confident about the future—we’ve seen what we can achieve. We proved ourselves in the pool, on the track, in the gym, in the ring, with the oars, and on horses—be they jumpers or a pommel. Until recently, we only knew about racehorses and clothes horses. It would be marvellous if we could build on this momentum, and I believe we will.

There is a tremendous appetite for sport here in Ireland, and we’ve been succeeding against the odds. In reality, RTÉ isn’t great when it comes to sports coverage. Yes, GAA gets excellent coverage, horse racing gets some attention, and so do soccer and rugby. But when I was a child, there was a programme on RTÉ every Saturday called Sports Stadium—we experienced everything: athletics, rallying, racing, football, hurling, handball, soccer, basketball, swimming, diving, gymnastics, you name it, we saw it; not necessarily live, but always interesting. Mick Dunne and the “goals and saves of the year” still stand out in my mind. I’d love it if they considered bringing it back. Sky might dominate the sports rights, but I’m sure there are ways and means.

I’ve said it for the past two weeks, and like Mrs. Gilhooley, “I'm not in the habit of repeating myself,” but I will this time: we need more investment. Tracks for track and field are essential, pools are important, and centres of excellence for various sports are a must-have, but so too is top-class coaching.

We need to bring the best to Ireland or keep the best in Ireland. Boxing understands this, and we’ve been fortunate with some of the coaches they’ve had, like Nicholás Cruz from Cuba. Billy Walsh was home-produced but ended up in the USA, and now we have Zaur Antia, seen as the best there is—he’s been involved in Irish high performance for the last 20 years. It’s no surprise that Ireland is such a great boxing nation. Talent plus coaching plus funding equals a fighting chance at medals. Talent without great coaching is just a wasted opportunity.

I’m looking forward to Ministers Catherine Martin and Thomas Byrne making an announcement soon on funding for sport. Like many GAA club administrators, I’m eagerly awaiting the Sports Capital Grant announcement (no pressure Senator Murphy), but I’m also curious to see what the Olympic dividend for sport in Ireland will be after these Games. Primary school funding must be part of that model. Every school should have a space for physical education, at the very least a proper sports hall, which should also be available to local sports groups outside school hours, and a specific budget for equipment. “Mens Sana in Corpore Sano” as the Greeks used to say—a healthy mind in a healthy body.

Roll on, Los Angeles.