Some stats from the 2017 Athletics Ireland AGM

Athletics Ireland held their 2017 AGM at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Santry on the 29th of April and the minutes of the meeting are now available HERE. The details may be of interest to anyone who is a member of an athletic club.

Some info from the minutes...

1) The numbers in attendance were a bit low with 82 present. There were no representatives from some counties like Waterford, Tipperary, Clare and Kilkenny.

2) On the financial side, Athletics Ireland had a surplus of €3k based on a turnover of nearly €4.7 million and that is after having a €12k surplus in 2015 and a €3k loss in 2014. For an association with such a large turnover, €3000 is very small. In fact, it represents just 0.06% of turnover. While it's positive that it was in the Black, it wouldn't take much to push it into the Red. For example, any legal issues regarding Irish team selections could easily wipe out any surplus.




3) Commercial Income dropped from €208k in 2014 to €167k in 2016 which would be a cause for some concern.

4) Income from membership registrations has gone from €815k in 2014 to €909k in 2016 as club membership around the country has grown.

5) The planned budget for 2017 shows a reduction of €14k in income and a reduction of €33k in expenditure resulting in a planned surplus of €20k.

6) The Irish Runner magazine which is owned by Athletics Ireland made a profit of €26k in 2014 before rising to €37k in 2015. In 2016, it dropped back to €29k.

7) Athletics Ireland spent a significant amount on Coaching & Development in in 2016. Last year, the income from Coaching & Development was €113k in contrast to the €221k spent resulting on a net cost of €108k.

8) Athletics Ireland have set a target of 70,000 members by 2020. Based on current growth, that looks unlikely. In 2014, membership grew by 4,875 followed by 2,206 in 2015 and 1,763 in 2016.

 At the end of 2016, it stood at 58,296. Based on the recent growth pattern which is slowing, a figure around 63,000 seems more likely by 2020.

9) The membership profile shows no new suprises with 89% of the total membership being either in the juvenile category (most likely aged 14 or below) or in the master category (aged 35 and above).

The vast majority of the masters category would be termed 'recreational runners' as opposed to being officials, coaches or track athletes. Considering that a lot of the seniors (20-34 year olds) would also be recreational runners then there must be only a few percent at most involved in track & field i.e. athletics.

10) This stat I found to be suprising. 54% of the Athletic Ireland membership are female! 

In general, most adult clubs tend to have more men than women although the multitude of Couch to 5k programmes would have seen a lot more women joining clubs recently. If it's not adult women then this would suggest that young girls outnumber young boys in most athletic clubs? Perhaps boys are more attracted to team sports like soccer, football, hurling and rugby?

11) The grant from Sports Ireland now accounts for 42% of funding as opposed to 56% in 2011. Obviously the less dependent the association is on external grants, the better.

Overall, the 2016 report is generally positive. Membership is growing albeit at a slower pace. The finances are in the Black although just. The association spent €221k on Coaching & Development in 2016 which as an investment in the future is positive. The finances however do show that Athletics Ireland isn't a bottomless pit and is limited in what it can spend money on. 

Link...
1) 2016 AGM