Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 22 September 2026
337. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the amount of Exchequer funding allocated to Sport Ireland towards the cost of paying salaries of coaches of athletics within high performance units in each of the years of 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026, in tabular form. [67071/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraSport Ireland is the statutory authority tasked with the development of sport in Ireland, including participation, high-performance sport, anti-doping, coaching and the development of the Sport Ireland Campus.
National Governing Bodies of Sport (NGBs) are responsible for the development and administration of their respective sports at all levels. NGBs, including Athletics Ireland, are key delivery agencies for Sport Ireland and are central to the development, governance and delivery of sport in Ireland. This includes supporting participation, coaching, safeguarding, competition structures and the development of pathways from grassroots participation through to high-performance sport.
Sport Ireland allocates High Performance Programme Funding to NGBs to support a broad range of activities related to delivering a High Performance Programme. This includes camps, competitions, coaching, support services, administration, etc. Sport Ireland requires NGBs to spend their High Performance Programme funding in accordance with the Terms & Conditions of Funding and in a manner which reflects the programmes' priorities and needs annually and over the course of an Olympic/Paralympic cycle. NGBs retain independence and responsibility for the division of funding for the purposes allocated by Sport Ireland.
A summary of Sport Ireland funding to Athletics Ireland over the past three years is set out below in tabular form.
|
Athletics Ireland Funding Type |
2024 |
2025 |
2026 |
|
High Performance Programme Funding |
€841,666 |
€1,050,000 |
€1,103,000 |
|
High Performance Additional Funding (Paris Games related) |
€115,000 |
- |
- |
|
High Performance Coaching* |
€110,150 |
€280,000 |
€190,000 |
|
High Performance Pathway Funding |
- |
€43,200 |
€40,000 |
|
Direct Athlete Support (International Carding Scheme, Athlete Career Transition Programme, Additional Athlete Support) |
€645,000 |
€669,000 |
€689,000 |
*The allocation of High Performance Coaching to Athletics Ireland is direct to bespoke and targeted supports to assist the development and remuneration of coaches. However, this is not the sole investment in high performance coaching to Athletics Ireland as a portion of High Performance Programme funding is also expended on coach salaries and continued professional development.
