Athletics Ireland announce 2014 grants for Irish athletes...

Athletics Ireland has just released a list of athletes who qualify for grants from the Irish Sports Council for 2014. The criteria is based on..."their performances at major championships and their ability to deliver medal opportunities in the future".

The selected athletes are...
Robert Heffernan Podium (€40k)...(2013 = €40k, 2012 = €40k).
Fionnuala Britton World Class (€20k)....(2013 = €20k, 2012 = €20k)
Ciarán Ó Lionáird International (€12K)...(2013 = €20k, 2012 = €20k).
Derval O’Rourke International (€12K)...(2013 = €12k, 2012 = €40k).
Jessie Barr International (€12K)...(2013 = €12k, 2012 = €0).
Brian Gregan International (€12K)...(2013 = €12k, 2012 = €0k).
Laura Reynolds International (€12K)...(2013 = €12k, 2012 = €0k).
Brendan Boyce International (€12K)...(2013 = €12k, 2012 = €12k)
Mark English International (€12K)...(2013 = €0k, 2012 = €0k).
Paul Robinson International (€12K)...(2013 = €0k, 2012 = €0k).
Rose-Anne Galligan International (€12K)...(2013 = €0k, 2012 = €0k).

Those who got grants in 2013 and will get nothing in 2014 are...Tori Pena (Pole Vault), Linda Byrne (Marathon & Cross Country), Mark Kenneally (Marathon), Ava Hutchinson (Marathon & Cross Country) and Caitriona Jennings (Marathon).

In 2013, one person got €40k, three got €20k and ten got €12k.
In 2014, it's one €40k, one €20k and nine €12k.

Considering that Rob Heffernan is the current 50km race walking world champion, he was always guaranteed to get the maximum amount. Fionnuala Britton won the European Cross Country Championhips in 2011 and 2012 as well as finishing 3rd in the European Indoor 3000m in Sweden last year. She also has a very good chance of getting a podium finish at the next European Cross in December.

Two athletes who may feel particularly hard done by are Ciarán Ó Lionáird and Derval O'Rourke. Ciarán won a bronze medal in the 3000m at the European Indoor Championships last March. Derval finished 4th in the 60m hurdles at the same championships and may potentially be moved up to bronze as the Turkish athlete Nevin Yanit tested positve for taking banned substances later in the year.

While the European Indoors may not be 'world class', it is still a major championships. Winning a medal there is a pretty major achievement for any athlete. In fairness to some of the others getting the €12k grant, several of them are unlikely to ever get to a standard of a European podium finish and it just seems unfair to have Ó Lionáird and O'Rourke at the same level. Surely any athlete that gets a podium finish at any major athletics championships should expect to get at least the higher grant of €20k the following year?

This is from Ciarán Ó Lionáird's Twitter account...
"You wonder why kids in Ireland don't want to do athletics? Medal and you're cut. What does that tell young dreamers? Terrible message."
"Despite a Euro Indoor medal and fastest indoor 1500 in Europe in 2013, I've been cut by 40pc in @irishathletics funding. No words really."

2014 Grants for Irish Paralympic athletes
Podium (€40,000) – Michael McKillop, Jason Smyth, Orla Barry
International (€12,000) – Catherine O’Neill, Heather Jameson, Deirdre Mongon, Nadine Lattimore, John McCarthy.

Previous posts...
2013 grants
2012 grants
2011 grants