Paraic Brady (Fine Gael)

I hope that chess will be recognised as a sport rather than a game. Chess is a competitive sport where two players are deeply enthralled in a mind game that takes a serious amount of concentration for a number of hours. It is a global game. It has Olympic recognition and chess has been recognised as a sport by the International Olympic Committee since 2002. It was an event at the Asian Games and before the Pan American Games, Russia has been trying to bring it in as an Olympic sport. It has European recognition. Only three countries in Europe do not recognise it: Ireland, Belgium and Sweden. I find that bizarre, to say the least. It is not only a mental sport but also a sport that blind people and those with partial sight can play if they can see the board. It is a very inclusive sport. I hope the powers that be and the sporting bodies in this country might look at this and recognise chess as a sport.

During the Ukrainian war, people from Ukraine have come to this country and they have improved the game of chess significantly. Some 150,000 children are taught it annually in our schools. Only soccer is ahead of it with regard to participation worldwide. I believe it needs to be recognised as a sport, not a game.