Eamonn Coghlan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is welcome. It is only a couple of hours since we had the pleasure of breaking some bread and congratulating the wonderful young athletes and magnificent volunteers to which Deputy Terry Brennan alluded at the national athletic awards.

I am pleased to be able to make a contribution to this debate. As the Minister of State is aware, my life has been dominated by sport which is still very much my life in terms of my contribution as a coach to the development of some of the young boys and girls who take part in athletics.

Ireland is a tiny little nation, but the majority of our sports people have done us proud throughout the world for many decades. Only the other day in the Seanad I made reference to the fifth gold medal won by young Katie Taylor at the world boxing championships in South Korea. I made reference to the fact that a statue of her should be put up in Bray. However, with reference to the cross which was knocked down on Carrauntoohil last week, perhaps the cross on Bray Head should be replaced with a statue of Katie Taylor to serve as inspiration for the youth of Ireland.

Our sports stars are world-renowned. They are known by their first name - Ronnie, BOD, Sonia, Rory and Pádraig. At home we talk about Henry, the Gooch, D. J., Oh Ah and Keano. Everyone seems to know about these wonderful sports stars and their great achievements. They are high achievers and have been from the time they were young. This is because of the tremendous amount of hard work they do and have done since their teens morning, noon and night and through the harsh depths and cold of winter.

It was always done with non-stop dedication. Any time they went through a bad patch they always sought the positive side of things. They had the vision and ambition to succeed at the highest level. They knew how to enjoy the thrill of victory and endure the agony of defeat and always came through on top of their game.

Sports tourism is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the tourism industry, and I understand that at the recent European summit on sports, which took place in Ireland, there was a call for the establishment of a national bid unit here. The unit would be under the auspices of the Minister of State's Department and would give us the opportunity to attract major sporting events to Ireland, such as the Rugby World Cup in 2023. I am not just talking about bringing sports events to Ireland; this is about making Ireland a tourist attraction. I refer to everything from the amount of money that visitors spend here to the exposure this island gets around the world on television.

Sport is not just about winning at Croke Park, in the boxing ring or at a major international golf event. The importance of sport is in how it impacts on society, our health and our well-being. Sport develops social skills and confidence and increases the self-esteem of young men and women. Sport teaches us what hard work and ethics are all about; it teaches us how to win and how to lose. It is important to instil a good education in young sports people before and through their teenage years. They must learn of health, well-being and the importance of nutrition.

Points for Life is a pilot programme that I initiated in Wicklow schools based on a motion passed in the Seanad a number of years ago. Thanks to the support of the Minister of State in funding this initiative, the Department of Education and Skills implemented the programme and the evaluation was completed by the physical education, physical activity and youth sport research centre at the University of Limerick. Unfortunately, when the results of the evaluation were published they supported what we already know: the fundamental motor skills of young people in Ireland are in very poor condition. There was a marked improvement over the six months of the pilot programme but, unfortunately, the young boys and girls who participated are still below the 25th percentile, which is not good.

The national governing bodies are doing a phenomenal job on sports participation, and not just at elite level. As mentioned at today's lunch, the number of recreational athletes and joggers has been increasing, particularly in the age range from 25 to 35 years and older. This applies not only to my sport but to triathlons too, so perhaps it is only when people reach their 20s that they realise they have missed out on something.

I welcome the Sport Ireland Bill and the merger of the Irish Sports Council with the National Sports Campus Development Authority, as it will be great to bring Irish sports under one umbrella. The Minister of State mentioned volunteers, without whom this country would be in a sorry state. The Minister of State estimated the financial value of contributions made by volunteers to be around €1 billion.

Sports capital grants always seem to benefit the three big sports: the GAA, soccer and rugby. They get most of the funding down the line, not just grants to national governing bodies. I am biased on this issue. Athletics is a core subject in schools but, unfortunately, 15 counties out of 26 received no funding for athletics clubs. In Dublin some €8 million was distributed in sports capital grants, but only two athletics clubs received grants, each amounting to €40,000. Many small clubs and organisations make applications for sports capital grants but may not have the administrative capabilities of the big three organisations. I ask the Minister of State to consider giving such organisations a support mechanism. They apply for the grants every year and their volunteers need support. The Minister of State has applauded such volunteers for their contributions to the country.