Q: What was the moment you realised this was a challenge on an entirely different scale?
A: It would have been Thursday, March the 12th when the lockdown was finally announced. That was a bit of a moment. It had been with us for a number of weeks but then it was finally like, ‘right guys, what we have been talking about is actually going to happen’. We were prepared anyway. Our team of 40-odd people are well versed, many of whom work remotely all the time. It was easy for us to transition from the office to remote working and life carried on.
Q: Has anything in your past professional experience been a help in dealing with this?
A: I’ve seen most things now from births to deaths to serious injuries but we had a devastating office fire in Athletics Ireland in August 2018. I was only in the job a couple of months and the place was burned to the ground so, I’ll be honest, that was pretty catastrophic for a number of reasons and it obviously happened very quickly. We probably learned an awful lot from that fire as an organisation, so much so that it wasn’t a massive upheaval for us in managing the Covid-19 progression into remote working and all the rest of it because we had been through all that so recently in out history. The learning from it was you just have to stay calm, control the controllables, and that’s what we did.
Q: How has the crisis affected Athletics Ireland and the wider sport in a business sense?
A: Very severe, I’ll be honest. There’s no competition going on. There is no recreational running. We run 20 events throughout the year of our own as a profit-making venture, like the Great Ireland Run. All of that business has taken a massive hit and obviously the sponsorships that are linked to those respective events. It is difficult times for us. As an NGB we are forecasting being down €1.5m this year alone. We conservatively estimate that we have 350 clubs and if they lost ten grand each that’s €3.5m. It’s had a huge impact on our sport. On the positive side there’s never been more people walking and running. Fingers crossed, when we can get the business back up and running there will be a demand for those sorts of activities. The Federation of Irish Sport has called for a government resilience fund.
Q: Your native New Zealand has just announced an innovative and detailed €147m package for the sector there which will aid all levels, big and small. Will it take something similar here?
A: That would certainly help. All sports are hurting but there is still a lot of water that has to go under the bridge yet. I would have to say that the government have been very good in the supports they have put in place. The Wage Subsidy Scheme has been a massive boost to us all without which we would be in real jeopardy. Government needs some time to absorb what is going on. Things are happening at such a fast pace that I would hope there would be some form of resilience fund, or however we put it, to support all businesses. And not just those in sport because we all need it, that’s for sure.
Q: How has the ‘return to limited activity’ gone in athletics clubs around the country this week?
A: It’s still very early days yet. It’s lots of very strict limitations within the guidelines, like the 5km radius from the club and groups of four. So for the average club with a large juvenile cohort that means no activity, really, for them yet. It’s only really focused on 13 years and above but you will find a lot of clubs have been very conservative.
I think they are doing the right thing. They want to make sure that they have good systems and structures in place because it’s all about containing this Covid-19. We don’t want to spread it anymore and I have to congratulate everyone I have spoken to. We’ve had lots of questions and everyone has been really sensible, taking Phase 1 really slowly. Assess how it is going and we’ll take it from there.
Q: Do you see any overseas models in your sport or elsewhere which might be applied here?
A: I have a regular call with my equivalent in New Zealand, Peter Pfitzinger, the CEO of New Zealand Athletics. They are a few weeks ahead of us but, again, there’s no magic bullet here. Social distancing is key, contact tracing and hygiene. I can’t think of much more than three things at once and those are the three things that we need to be concentrating on right now.
Q: Reports are that the National Track and Field Championships are provisionally pencilled in for Santry in August. How confident are you that this will happen and how does the wider landscape look for competitive athletics nationally and internationally?
A: We have deliberately not announced any dates for competitions at this moment in time because we feel we need to get through the first two or three phases of the lockdown, exit them before we can be confident that events will go ahead.
We want events to go ahead and we are also mindful that we need regional events to go ahead at county level and provincial level before we can have national competitions so there is a lead-in required.
We do have some dates planned for August and September and hopefully we can make those.
Q: How does the one-year postponement of the Olympic Games affect Athletics Ireland in terms of its high-performance athletes, sponsorships, government funding etc?
A: I don’t think that’s as difficult as the domestic participation side of things. We have an in-house team that manages all that. There was certainly some unknowns about international competitions up until recently but most of those decisions have been made now so there is clarity. It’s back to the athletes now. High-performance athletes have taken a break in most instances now because track and field competitions are certainly not taking place this summer so it is a case of refocus, reset the goals and get back to work and go again. I firmly believe it can be an advantage for Irish athletes in that it gives us another 12 months to prepare. We have some really exciting young athletes coming through and that extra year will bode well for them and for our qualification opportunities.
Q: There have been some silver linings amid all this and you have mentioned the bump in numbers running. Do you expect this to feed into athletics in a more concrete manner?
A: That is a silver lining. In every recession there is a great surge in athletic club membership so we are hoping that the extra hundreds of thousands of people out running at the moment, according to the recent Sport Ireland literature, will translate into more members in our clubs. There is a real desire from people to get out and be sociable, to get back into the clubs. Look, we are hopefully only a few weeks away from that. That’s the positive side. We have been through a tough time but we are close to really getting back into it. Let’s be cautious, let’s be patient but let’s be optimistic as well because I can certainly see light at the end of the tunnel.
Q: What’s your message to your members/clubs/units right now?
A: The message is to keep moving, keep the faith. We want competition, we will be back delivering events and competitions as soon as possible and we are working hard for our stakeholders because athletics is all about participation and competition
The Federation of Irish Sport has called on the Government to introduce a resilience fund for sport “immediately” in response to the crippling effects of the Covid-19 crisis.
A statement issued on behalf of the federation’s members – 81 national governing bodies and 29 local sports partnerships – has spelled out in stark detail how the pandemic has wreaked a “devastating” financial impact on myriad sporting organisations in Ireland.
“The fact is that many of our 13,000 clubs and sporting organisations may not survive the financial impact of Covid-19 without financial assistance now,” the Federation warns.
Accompanying statements from CEOs of various Irish governing bodies reiterate how the sporting lockdown has left their sports in such a precarious position.
Bernard O’Byrne of Basketball Ireland warned it was “highly likely that some clubs will cease to operate” and added that urgent, meaningful Government support was “crucial”.
Sarah Keane of Swim Ireland revealed that many swimming pools were facing a scenario where they would retain 80-100pc of running costs while operating at only 30-40pc capacity, with a “potentially catastrophic” impact on swimming, leisure centres and hotels.
And Hamish Adams of Athletics Ireland forecast a revenue loss in 2020 of €1.5 million, leaving his organisation under “severe financial stress”.
The full statement from the Federation of Irish Sport reads: “There has been no organised sport in Ireland for 10 weeks. The stark reality is that the knock-on effects of Covid-19 financially for all sports organisations in the country are devastating.
“Within the last week, we have seen a number of our major team sports talk publicly of losses up to 70% of their turnover. Unfortunately, we are also seeing these type of percentages in revenue losses right across the sporting landscape in Ireland. All sports have been impacted.
“While we welcome the setting up of the Return to Sport Expert Group, its remit is very specific which is to assess the consistency of the various protocols being prepared by NGBs to return to sport in Ireland. The Federation believes however that in addition to this Group, that sport needs a separate Task Force similar to the one Government has set up for the Tourism Industry.
“We need innovative thinking, swift action, and investment at local and national level providing business and administrative supports to Irish Sport to help sustain it through this unprecedented emergency and the recovery.
“The fact is that many of our 13,000 clubs and sporting organisations may not survive the financial impact of Covid-19 without financial assistance now. We are calling on the Government to introduce a Resilience Fund for sport immediately.
“While the government are to be commended not alone on their support for the charitable sector but also for the €250 million fund set up for small business, the reality is that sport needs similar support. Sports clubs across all sports are in most cases small businesses as well as social enterprises – in some cases not that small either!
“It is all too easy to forget that sport in Ireland is today an industry that employs some 40,000 people (supported by some 500,000 volunteers) and which also accounts for €2.7 billion in consumer spending. It also is worth €500 million to our tourism industry.
“The Covid-19 Irish Sport Resilience Fund needs to be established by Government as a matter of urgency. Similar funds were introduced by Sport England and Sport New Zealand a number of weeks ago.
“As is the case in both those countries, support will be needed for club and community sports organisations as well as sports organisations funded through Sport Ireland. This financial assistance must help sports organisations facing particular financial difficulty and support organisations in getting back to business and adapting to the new reality as restrictions lift.
“There has been a significant fall off in income, as the normal revenue sources such as subscriptions, gate receipts, sponsorship, summer camp and coach education income have dried up.
“At the same time, running costs including insurance and facilities maintenance all continue to be incurred. Most sports clubs are not-for-profit organisations with minimal reserves, and they are now also facing substantial costs to be able to implement return to sport protocols in accordance with public health guidelines.
“This at a time when physical activity and exercise has never been as important to maintain both physical and mental well-being. Irish Sport is supporting the Government call in this regard with sports organisations of all types being innovative in their use of digital channels to encourage activity and maintain a sense of community.”
The following statements from individual CEOs are also included…
Sarah Keane, CEO, Swim Ireland
“Whilst we have been operating at full speed providing different engagement opportunities for our members (over 2,000 people will have undergone some form of training/learning with us in May alone), we are very concerned about our clubs and getting our members back into the water. We are particularly concerned about the ability of swimming pools to open and be viable whilst adhering to physical distancing protocols. Many are facing a scenario of retaining 80-100% of the running costs whilst operating at only 30-40% of capacity. The impact of this on swimming, leisure centres and hotels, and therefore our sport and physical activity, is potentially catastrophic.”
Hamish Adams, CEO, Athletics Ireland
“The financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has been extremely severe on our business. We are an NGB that prides itself in terms of revenue generation through our recreation, competition and sponsorship ability. In a normal year, we generate approximately 60% of our income from these sources and 40% is granted by Sport Ireland. However, this year we are forecasting a decrease in total revenue in the area of 30% of turnover. This represents over €1.5 million loss to our organisation. Additionally, our clubs, county boards and provinces are also hurting financially due to significant losses, as no recreational events or competitions are taking place. As an organisation, we are under severe financial stress at this time and we greatly appreciate the government Wage Subsidy Scheme and any future support packages.”
CiaranGallagher, CEO, Gymnastics Ireland
“Gymnastics Ireland membership consists of a network of clubs that operate as Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with turnovers ranging from €50k p/a to over €1million p/a and catering for 36,000 individual members. We recently surveyed our clubs and the findings show the devastating impact Covid-19 has had on them. For instance, each month our clubs are not trading – this equates to a loss of €2.4million within the club network. We have approximately 1,500 people employed in the sport nationally and, at present, 88% of club network staff have either been laid-off or furloughed. Only 4% of our clubs believe they can make it through the next 3-6 months under current conditions, with many having concerns about their ability to start back up from a financial perspective.”
Bernard O’Byrne, CEO, Basketball Ireland
“The National Basketball Arena in Tallaght has been closed since March 13th, with all income immediately ceased and bookings over the coming months cancelled. This represents a huge hit on the income of Basketball Ireland and to exacerbate things further, our insurance company insists that the ‘Business Disruption’ clause in our policy does not cover this loss of earnings. At club level, we have surveyed our 48 National League clubs and almost universally, the feedback is that clubs will struggle to re-start financially. Gate receipts will be down due to expected restrictions and the late start of the season, but the major impact will be to sponsorships. Local businesses especially are signalling great difficulty in honouring agreements. It is highly likely that some clubs will cease to operate, and this will cause great disappointment in local communities. Overall, urgent meaningful government financial assistance for sport is crucial. Otherwise, the fabric of sport, and indeed society, will be fractured and may crumble in many cases.”
Matt McKerrow, CEO, Cycling Ireland
“The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant financial impact on Cycling Ireland, with the cancellation of events nationwide, and the cessation of all club activities. In 2019, Cycling Ireland’s total income was €4.5 million, with almost one-third coming from membership. The restrictions have resulted in a decrease in the number of members – in particular racing members – for March and April, by 33% and 84% respectively. Cycling Ireland continues to be supported with grant income from a number of agencies including Sport Ireland, Sport NI and DTTAS. Cycling Ireland operates on a not-for-profit basis, with all membership invested into the development of the sport, getting more people on bikes and delivering success on the world stage.”
Harry Hermon, CEO, Sailing Ireland
“As with other sports, many Sailing Clubs and watersports activity centres across the country have been severely impacted financially by the efforts to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Although our coastline and inland waterways qualify as an ‘outdoor amenity’, allowed to resume in Phase 1 today, it is unfortunate that as a result of continued overheads that have needed to be paid through the restrictions without an income to support them, and with the limitations around social distancing and travel restrictions of the early phases of reopening, there are significant numbers whose doors still remain closed. Those that have managed to open for watersports activities, have done so in a very limited capacity, and we hope they will still be operational when restrictions are fully lifted.
Matt English, CEO, Special Olympics Ireland
“Special Olympics is grateful for both the core financial support received from Sport Ireland and Sport Northern Ireland and the more recent Covid-19 schemes announced like wages subsidy and some other schemes announced by the Department of Rural Community Development. However, the cancellation of our Collection Day in April and countless other community-based fundraising events will be very damaging and will significantly dent our hard-fought-for reserves. Sport will play a huge part in improving the physical and mental well-being of the nation. Any stimulus funding would be hugely welcomed.”
The Federation of Irish sport has called for a ‘Resilience Fund for Sport’ and the creation of a task force to specifically focus on the survival and reignition of sport organisations nationwide
In a statement, issued on behalf of their members, 81 National Governing Bodies and 29 Local Sports Partnerships the federation admitted that there is a start reality on the way for sport bodies nationwide.
“There has been no organised sport in Ireland for 10 weeks. The stark reality is that the knock-on effects of Covid-19 financially for all sports organisations in the country are devastating. Within the last week, we have seen a number of our major team sports talk publicly of losses up to 70% of their turnover. Unfortunately, we are also seeing these type of percentages in revenue losses right across the sporting landscape in Ireland. All sports have been impacted”
While welcoming the setting up of the Return to Sport Expert Group, the Federation believes that in addition to this Group, “sport needs a separate Task Force similar to the one Government has set up for the Tourism Industry. We need innovative thinking, swift action, and investment at local and national level providing business and administrative supports to Irish Sport to help sustain it through this unprecedented emergency and the recovery”
The fact is that many of the 13,000 clubs and sporting organisations in Ireland may not survive the financial impact of Covid-19 without financial assistance. The Federation are calling on the Government to introduce a Resilience Fund for sport immediately.
“While the government are to be commended not alone on their support for the charitable sector but also for the €250 million fund set up for small business, the reality is that sport needs similar support. Sports clubs across all sports are in most cases small businesses as well as social enterprises – in some cases not that small either! It is all too easy to forget that sport in Ireland is today an industry that employs some 40,000 people (supported by some 500,000 volunteers) and which also accounts for €2.7 billion in consumer spending. It also is worth €500 million to our tourism industry.
This at a time when physical activity and exercise has never been as important to maintain both physical and mental well-being. Irish Sport is supporting the Government call in this regard with sports organisations of all types being innovative in their use of digital channels to encourage activity and maintain a sense of community”
THE SPORTING BODY that represents over 100 sporting organisations in this country has called on government to provide “innovative thinking, swift action, and investment at local and national level to help sustain sport through this unprecedented emergency”.
In a statement released this morning, the Federation of Irish Sport whose membership consists of over 100 National Governing Bodies and Local Sport Partnerships, asked for a government task force to be set up.
Their statement read: “There has been no organised sport in Ireland for 10 weeks. The stark reality is that the knock-on effects of Covid-19 financially for all sports organisations in the country are devastating.
“Within the last week, we have seen a number of our major team sports talk publicly of losses up to 70% of their turnover. Unfortunately, we are also seeing these type of percentages in revenue losses right across the sporting landscape in Ireland. All sports have been impacted.
While we welcome the setting up of the Return to Sport Expert Group, its remit is very specific which is to assess the consistency of the various protocols being prepared by NGBs to return to sport in Ireland.
“The Federation believes however that in addition to this Group, that sport needs a separate Task Force similar to the one Government has set up for the Tourism Industry. We need innovative thinking, swift action, and investment at local and national level providing business and administrative supports to Irish Sport to help sustain it through this unprecedented emergency and the recovery.
“The fact is that many of our 13,000 clubs and sporting organisations may not survive the financial impact of Covid-19 without financial assistance now. We are calling on the Government to introduce a Resilience Fund for sport immediately.
While the government are to be commended not alone on their support for the charitable sector but also for the €250 million fund set up for small business, the reality is that sport needs similar support. Sports clubs across all sports are in most cases small businesses as well as social enterprises – in some cases not that small either!
“It is all too easy to forget that sport in Ireland is today an industry that employs some 40,000 people (supported by some 500,000 volunteers) and which also accounts for €2.7 billion in consumer spending. It also is worth €500 million to our tourism industry.
“The Covid-19 Irish Sport Resilience Fund needs to be established by Government as a matter of urgency. Similar funds were introduced by Sport England and Sport New Zealand a number of weeks ago.
“As is the case in both those countries, support will be needed for club and community sports organisations as well as sports organisations funded through Sport Ireland. This financial assistance must help sports organisations facing particular financial difficulty and support organisations in getting back to business and adapting to the new reality as restrictions lift.”
Sarah Keane, Swim Ireland’s CEO, added: “Whilst we have been operating at full speed providing different engagement opportunities for our members (over 2,000 people will have undergone some form of training/learning with us in May alone), we are very concerned about our clubs and getting our members back into the water.
“We are particularly concerned about the ability of swimming pools to open and be viable whilst adhering to physical distancing protocols. Many are facing a scenario of retaining 80-100% of the running costs whilst operating at only 30-40% of capacity. The impact of this on swimming, leisure centres and hotels, and therefore our sport and physical activity, is potentially catastrophic.”
The Federation of Irish Sports has called on the Government to urgently introduce a resilience fund to ensure the survival of its member organisations.
The Federation represents 81 national governing bodies and 29 local sports partnerships that organise sport and physical activities in Ireland.
With organised sport grinding to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, revenue streams have dried up for the majority of organisations with growing fears that many of them may not survive the crisis without immediate financial assistance.
A spokesperson said: While we welcome the setting up of the Return to Sport Expert Group, its remit is very specific which is to assess the consistency of the various protocols being prepared by NGBs to return to sport in Ireland.
“The Federation believes however that in addition to this Group, that sport needs a separate Task Force similar to the one Government has set up for the Tourism Industry. We need innovative thinking, swift action, and investment at local and national level providing business and administrative supports to Irish Sport to help sustain it through this unprecedented emergency and the recovery.
“The fact is that many of our 13,000 clubs and sporting organisations may not survive the financial impact of Covid-19 without financial assistance now. We are calling on the Government to introduce a Resilience Fund for sport immediately.
“Sports clubs across all sports are in most cases small businesses as well as social enterprises – in some cases not that small either! It is all too easy to forget that sport in Ireland is today an industry that employs some 40,000 people (supported by some 500,000 volunteers) and which also accounts for €2.7 billion in consumer spending. It also is worth €500 million to our tourism industry.”
The spokesperson added: “There has been a significant fall off in income, as the normal revenue sources such as subscriptions, gate receipts, sponsorship, summer camp and coach education income have dried up. At the same time, running costs including insurance and facilities maintenance all continue to be incurred. Most sports clubs are not-for-profit organisations with minimal reserves, and they are now also facing substantial costs to be able to implement return to sport protocols in accordance with public health guidelines.”
Swim Ireland CEO Sarah admitted concern “about our clubs and getting our members back into the water. We are particularly concerned about the ability of swimming pools to open and be viable whilst adhering to physical distancing protocols. Many are facing a scenario of retaining 80-100% of the running costs whilst operating at only 30-40% of capacity. The impact of this on swimming, leisure centres and hotels, and therefore our sport and physical activity, is potentially catastrophic.”
Hamish Adams, CEO, Athletics Ireland added: “The financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has been extremely severe on our business. We are an NGB that prides itself in terms of revenue generation through our recreation, competition and sponsorship ability. In a normal year, we generate approximately 60% of our income from these sources and 40% is granted by Sport Ireland. However, this year we are forecasting a decrease in total revenue in the area of 30% of turnover. This represents over €1.5 million loss to our organisation. Additionally, our clubs, county boards and provinces are also hurting financially due to significant losses, as no recreational events or competitions are taking place. As an organisation, we are under severe financial stress at this time.”
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
