Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

I am glad to have an opportunity to speak on this Bill which is important in terms of the development of the sports and recreational industry. I use the latter term advisedly. I concur with the sentiments expressed by my colleague Deputy Glennon on the importance of sport as a medium to enable people to express themselves locally, nationally and internationally. Sport also enables people to develop their disciplinary expertise in playing for the sake of it and not necessarily expecting to win all the time. One should be magnanimous in victory while also being able to accept defeat when it comes. Sporting endeavour is an important part of a human being's development.

I do not want to dwell on the negative aspects of some recent incidents but I believe that if sport is adequately funded and plays a central role, the unsavoury events we decry from time to time will fade into the distance to be replaced by something more positive and people-driven than some other antics we have seen.

The concept involved in this legislation is a good one. Deputy Glennon said that Campus Stadium Ireland overshadowed its contents, which is quite correct. I do not want to go down that route, however. I am glad that we have got to this juncture whereby we now have an opportunity to establish a centre of excellence in which everyone can become involved. Everyone will be able to participate in the venture as well as seeing where they are going and ascertaining the extent to which they can progress. That is critical, especially in the international sphere where we triumph occasionally. One such recent triumph was achieved by Derval O'Rourke, which was an excellent performance. She deserves all our congratulations, as do some of her colleagues who also participated in Moscow and did very well.

I hope the developments envisaged by the Bill will give an opportunity to young athletes to become involved and develop their full potential. In this way, they will recognise the ability of sport and recreational activities generally to portray the country in a different light both here and abroad. No amount of debate here can do other than pay a simple tribute to the importance of those aspects of sport.

The centre of excellence concept is a good one as long as a number of matters are observed, as I presume they will be. For example, there is no sense in having the requisite buildings and other facilities unless we have managers, trainers, dieticians and other experts to enable us to compete internationally. There is no reason we cannot do so. Many other countries as small or smaller than ours have done so repeatedly in the past.

In the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s, when Ireland was relatively under-developed, we still had people who excelled in track and field events, including athletics. I will not bore the Minister by going through a list of them but there were a good few Munster people involved and we recognise their endeavours. Sport has been lifted to a new plane in the era of semi-professionalism, which puts greater stress and strain on competing countries. Some people say that these developments are not necessarily good for sport. Deputy Glennon is an expert in rugby who played at international level but I am not sure that semi-professionalism has done much good for that game. If one looks back at some of the rugby matches played in times gone by, well known players from all over the country could still have shown a clean pair of heels to anybody around today, notwithstanding the degree of professionalism that is emerging. In other sports, likewise, there are several similar illustrations.

Sport is a medium for promoting the country's culture and tourism and has tremendous potential in this regard. In the not too distant future the Ryder Cup competition will be held in my constituency. I hope that those involved in all sporting categories will take full advantage of the situation to promote their own sports. Ireland should be promoted as a location where sport is pursued open-handedly with due regard for young amateur participants.

Coverage of major sporting events can be of immense benefit to tourism. One cannot possibly measure the degree of positive advertising that can be gleaned from a major sporting event such as the Ryder Cup. My constituency has a long-established association with the racing industry, which I am sure will play a role in the presentation of various events accompanying the Ryder Cup competition. That will benefit not only County Kildare and its racing industry but also the country as a whole where sporting pursuits are encouraged. Australia, New Zealand and the United States take a keen interest in their own games, so we should not underestimate the degree to which we can promote this country positively through the medium of sports.

Previous speakers referred to the GAA which has lived up to its responsibilities admirably. One may say that because the GAA is active in every parish it is easier for it to do so. Nonetheless, it is active at all levels in virtually every town and village. GAA clubs have provided social facilities as well as sporting expertise and training. The GAA deserves recognition for having provided the wider community with a large volume of social support. In the context of this Bill, due regard must be had for the GAA's work and the even greater contribution it will have to make in future as our population increases.

Our population was low for 150 years for obvious reasons which I will not go into now. The fact remains, however, that the population will increase considerably beyond anything we can anticipate.

In those circumstances, the degree to which sporting organisations can contribute to social inclusion, the promotion of the country's culture and the well-being of individual communities is significant and I hope it will receive due recognition.

Track and field events are lonely sports, as anyone involved will state. In sports such as cross-country running, people train on their own. It is quite boring and requires a great degree of devotion as well as expertise and athletic ability. While the sport's organisation is available and supportive, support is also necessary from the State through the institutions we are discussing. It affords the State an opportunity to encourage and provide facilities for young people to allow them to develop their skills and advance.

When I attempt to ask questions of the Minister on such matters as preparing for the Olympic Games I am usually refused because another organisation has responsibility. There is no reason we cannot compete effectively in the Olympic Games if we have the right training, preparation, promotion, opportunities and selection of the most suitable people. That would not serve to exclude others, as the ability to recognise those with specific talent is critical and is the work of a centre of excellence.

Another role of a centre of excellence is to liaise with organisations throughout the country. It is pointless to have such a centre, and the sport development that goes with it, if it is isolated in Dublin, does not relate to the rest of the country and is not involved in a meaningful and promotional way with all centres of education at all levels, such as universities, third level and second level institutions.

A centre of excellence must be able to identify at the earliest possible stage the sporting potential of young people. One cannot tell someone at 25 or 30 years of age that if he or she had been spotted in time, he or she could have been a great 100 m sprinter. That is of no benefit to anyone. The necessary technique is to identify such people at five, seven or ten years of age and develop them from there. That is what the best people do and I hope it can be done in the course of this development. Like everything else, the concept of the Bill is good and has great potential. Its success depends on what is done within the confines of the proposal. It may be very good and of significant benefit to the country in ways such as those mentioned by previous speakers. However, it will be useless if it is not followed up.

I am sure the Minister knows in each sport it will be necessary to identify how best to promote, facilitate, prepare, train, and ensure the availability of the best coaches. It will also be necessary to ensure that when people want to progress, they are encouraged to do so and are reasonably assessed, by which I do not mean that they are put down, but that they are given a reasonable assessment of their ability so they can progress in the knowledge that they have a reasonable chance against certain competitors. I cannot understand how we can send people into the international arena who have never had a time even remotely close to their competitors. It is disheartening for the people concerned. Time, energy and effort should be put into increasing their speed to enable them to compete well, readily and evenly with their contemporaries. It would be hugely beneficial to their confidence and that of the country and to the development of sport generally.

The Minister's Department covers many positive areas in which people like to be involved. People like to kick a football, play rugby and hurling, swim, get involved in track and field events and participate in sports. It is important we recognise it is also a means of promoting tourism and the image of the country. Deputy Glennon reminded me of Italia '90 and previous European competitions when hordes of Irish supporters travelled all over the world with their faces painted green, white and gold. We became recognised as a nation of good-humoured human beings who could go anywhere, have a few jars, enjoy ourselves and laugh it off.

A peculiar development beset the country recently. We still have a few jars, perhaps more than we should on many occasions. However, we do not seem to have the same ability to laugh at ourselves and deflect the barb when it is thrown, resulting in some unsavoury scenes. I do not want to dwell on that unnecessarily. However, it is a development in our society which requires attention and sport is the best means of deflecting it. The Minister will recognise this is not a criticism of anybody. It is a simple fact of life that as we evolve and become wealthier, we tend to become more self-centred and of the opinion that we are superior. We are not. We are all human and should try to behave as normal, supportive human beings. Anything we do should reflect well on ourselves and our country. If we do not always win, we should be able to state it is only a game and not a life or death issue. The discipline that goes with sport allows us to recognise that and put it to good and positive effect in terms of how the country is viewed abroad.

The concept of the Bill is good. I hope all sporting groups will have an opportunity to develop to the best extent possible. I hope the influence of the centre will spread throughout the country in an inclusive and all-embracing way, as a result of which our athletes will have the support, back-up and recognition they and the country deserve.

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