Davis's firm in the red due to cost of Olympic Games

A COMPANY spearheaded by independent presidential candidate Mary Davis went into the red last year due to the costs from holding the 2010 Special Olympics Ireland Games.

Special Olympics Ireland Ltd was established to promote Special Olympics in Ireland for athletes with an intellectual disability.

During the presidential election campaign, Ms Davis confirmed that her annual salary for her role as head of Special Olympics Europe Eurasia was €165,000.

The figures show that Special Olympics Ireland Ltd recorded a loss of €99,893 last year compared with a surplus of €817,035 in 2009. The filings list Ms Davis as chairwoman of the company. The returns show that the company incurred costs of €1.6 million last year under the heading of “central games and events” and generated €625,165 in games income.

Last year, the company staged the 2010 Special Olympics Ireland Games in Limerick, where 1,900 athletes with intellectual disabilities from the island of Ireland participated. The records also confirm that Special Olympics Ireland was represented by a team of 35 athletes in five sports at the 2010 European Games at Warsaw, Poland.

Revenues generated at Special Olympics Ireland last year increased by 6 per cent to €7.73 million in spite of monies raised from fundraising, donations and sponsorship decreasing by 22 per cent from €2.75 million to €2.14 million.

However, the figures show in one day last year – on Special Olympics Ireland’s national flag day – the company raised over €600,000 through the work of 2,000 volunteers.

The main factor behind the company increasing its revenues in 2010 was the €625,165 in games income and there was no income under that heading in 2009.

The company’s Health Service Executive (HSE) income dropped from €120,130 to €114,190. Grant income from the company’s main funder, the Irish Sports Council, dropped by 10 per cent from €2.6 million to €2.3 million.

The figures show that the numbers employed by the company increased from 83 to 88, with staff costs decreasing from €3.7 million to €3.5 million.

The filings confirm that the organisation is cash rich, holding €9 million in cash at the end of 2010.