Gareth Scahill (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State very much for facilitating today's statements on sport. Like previous speakers, I reiterate the health benefits of investing in sport. We have often spoken in this Chamber about revitalising and regenerating rural Ireland and what a rural economy needs to survive. Sporting facilities are what a community needs to survive. I am not so old that I do not recall getting changed for soccer and Gaelic games in the back of cars. Likewise, I can remember togging out for football games in converted containers with a few planks. We have come a long way. The investment the Department has made in facilities nationwide has added to that. We have reaped the benefits as a country as we have seen improvements in the level of skills and in participation. It is great to have a discussion about gender balance and getting more women involved in sport because that was not the conversation ten or 15 years ago. We welcome that whole conversation.

I would like to tie in with something Senator Rabbitte mentioned about swimming pools. I am lucky enough to come from a part of the country where for most of my life we have a 33 m outdoor swimming pool open for the three months of the summer. It has been a benefit to our community healthwise but also from a water safety point of view and teaching people the life skill of swimming. That has been far reaching. We have not reached the heights of Mona McSharry yet but if we can extend the pool to 50 m, who knows what the potential for that will be.

At the end of 2024, Roscommon as a county was approved for funding of €5.5 million from the large-scale sports infrastructure scheme. It was for the development of the Dermot Earley Centre of Excellence by Roscommon GAA. The chairman, Brian Carroll, and the entire Roscommon county board deserve massive credit for that. That was something we achieved without having a Minister of State with responsibility for sport in the constituency, which is welcome.

Ireland has always punched well above its weight. That is because of our deep-rooted passion for sport and the high level of participation that we have. Irish athletes are renowned for their grit, determination and ability to perform under pressure. We are looking for the same commitment from the Department of sport, that is - grit, determination and ability to perform under significant pressure. The Minister of State should not feel the pressure here today to provide more money but if he could, we would appreciate it for all of our constituencies.

I cannot speak about sport without acknowledging some of our renowned athletes in Roscommon. In my town, Aoife and Lisa O'Rourke are two internationally recognised boxers. Bringing Katie Taylor back to perform in Croke Park has been mentioned. Lisa, who was recognised in 2022 as the young sportsperson of the year, also plays midfield for Roscommon. We might have an international boxer performing in Croke Park before Katie Taylor at some stage.

We have also had discussions here about supporting people like Alex Dunne in Formula One and other athletes who are flying the flag for Ireland further afield who are not getting recognition. I am glad I got to speak after Senator Flaherty as I am going to speak about two people who I am going to claim for Roscommon, namely,Jake and Luke Bermingham, who are leading the way in freestyle kayaking. Jake is 16 and is ranked seventh in the world in the junior men's category and Luke is 14 and he is ranked fourth in the world in the junior category. We must look at additional sports that are off the mainstream radar and support them because that is how we will get more participation across society.