Minister for Sport, Thomas Byrne: ‘The Olympic Games have proved to be a watershed moment in Irish sport’

The Paris Games represent a golden opportunity for Irish sport – we won’t let it go to waste

In 1924, Jack B Yeats made history when he won Ireland’s first Olympic medal at the Paris Olympics for his painting ‘The Liffey Swim’. 100 years on, in that same city, history has once again been made by our Olympians after we watched on in awe and jubilation at the performance of Team Ireland.

Ireland has changed a great deal since our first standalone appearance at the Olympics in 1924.

Our sporting landscape hasn’t been immune from that change and today it covers a rich diversity of sporting disciplines and traditions. Ireland now possesses a deep sense of confidence in our ability to compete at the highest levels.

The Olympic Games are proving to be a watershed moment in Irish sport. It was the privilege of a lifetime to be in the stands in Paris and see Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy take home the gold in the lightweight double sculls.

I am under no illusions as to what these Olympic Games mean for Irish sport. The next generation of Irish athletes are being inspired by the performance of Team Ireland, from boxing to gymnastics, athletics to swimming, show-jumping to rowing, and across so many sporting disciplines. So what is the Government doing to match that ambition?

As a Government, we have backed Team Ireland and our high performance athletes by investing €89 million in funding through Sport Ireland for the Paris Olympics-Paralympic cycle, marking a more than 50 per cent increase on the investment made for the Tokyo Olympics-Paralympic cycle. I am determined to see that funding grow as we already gear up for the LA Games in 2028.

Some might also ask, what’s next for high performance sport? Since 2021, Ireland has had a plan in place for our high performance sport system under our High Performance Strategy 2021-2032, led by Sport Ireland. Under the High Performance Strategy, we have a long term plan in place with ambitious, yet achievable, targets set out and these targets are underlined by sustained Government investment.

Coaching is a key focus of our High Performance Strategy and we must never lose sight of the team behind Team Ireland. Without our coaches, success in sport at all levels would not be possible and I am very mindful of this reality when looking at how Budget 2025 can best support the ambitions of our athletes. Direct funding to athletes is also a key focus of the High Performance Strategy and under the International Carding Scheme, a record €4.4 million in State funding was provided to individual athletes and teams in 2024.

The journey of any Olympian or Paralympian begins at the grassroots. It starts at their local sports club or facility. My mission as Sport Minister is to see Ireland develop as a ‘Participation Nation’, where every person, of every ability, can participate in sport and I never lose sight of the importance of investing in grassroots sport.

With that in mind, this September I look forward to announcing €250,000,000 in grants to support the development of local sports clubs and facilities under the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme. This quarter of a billion investment will represent the largest-ever investment in sports facilities across the country and I can assure everyone that Meath clubs will be big beneficiaries. I have worked with many local clubs in the application process.

Our National Sports Campus at Blanchardstown is a focal point for high performance sport and in looking to the future, I was thrilled to recently announce the approval of a new National Velodrome and Badminton Centre. Once completed, our National Sports Campus will be home to Ireland’s first indoor cycling track and a state-of-the-art badminton centre. 133 athletes travelled to compete for Ireland at the Paris Olympics and I want to commend and thank each and every one of them for doing Ireland proud. Meath was well represented by Cian O’Connor, Jennifer Lehane, Kathy Baker, Cathal Doyle, Sarah Ennis and others with strong links to the county, including Andrew Coscoran, Chay Mullins and others.

I also want to acknowledge the commitment of the Olympic Federation of Ireland, Sport Ireland, the Sport Ireland Institute, together with the coaches, family members and friends of our athletes. There is a team behind Team Ireland and they deserve our thanks.

We will not let this watershed moment in Irish sport go to waste. We will build on our existing plans and continue with our ambition to make sport for all, a reality for all. And for those who will miss having the Olympics on our screens, we still have the Paralympics to look forward to, where we will of course be cheering on Culmullen's own Kerrie Leonard in the Archery!

- Thomas Byrne is Minister of State for Sport, Physical Education and the Gaeltacht and Fianna Fáil TD for Meath East.