New Athletics Ireland start-up in coach funding

Ten coaches will benefit from the first tranche of Sport Ireland funding made available to Athletics Ireland and aimed directly at meeting some of the expenses associated in their coaching roles.

One of the worrying findings of the Tokyo Olympic review was that lack of funding and support around coaches, across all events, Athletics Ireland then highlighting that need as part of it’s Strategic Review, 2022-2028

Among those to benefit is Feidhlim Kelly, coach at the Dublin track club with distance runners such as Mark English, Andrew Coscoran, Hiko Tonosa, Michelle Finn under his guidance, and also Jeremy Lyons and Gerard O’Donnell, their expertise in the sprint group that includes Sophie Becker, Cillin Greene and Jack Raftery.

Five-time Olympian Rob Hefferan is also featured with his racewalking athletes Brendan Boyce and David Kenny.

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“The strategy is designed to enfranchise and support the coaches doing work on the ground,” explained Paul McNamara, Athletics Ireland high performance manager.

“We have identified those coaches making a difference on the ground. The total value contributed by Sport Ireland, above and beyond core [funding], specifically to support implementation of high-performance strategy, is €200,000.

“We’re not talking huge sums, full-time salaries; we’re talking a portion of a coach’s time to support maybe a day or day and a half a week, two days a week, we’ve invested €80,000 currently. Above cash payment, those same coaches will be prioritised at championships. By the end of the year the total outlay will be around €150,000.”

The targeted supported coaches will receive the financial support, plus prioritised support at major championships, and enhanced access to performance services. Further coaching support contracts to be finalised over the coming weeks.

“The feedback has been immensely positive, and we do feel this is first steps,” added McNamara. “These are almost all employed in full-time jobs. It’s not that they can’t necessarily afford to be trackside, it’s the justification of that outlay. That pressure is taken off but ultimately it’s intended to be money that supports what you are doing.

“A key phrase we use is the incremental professionalisation of coaching. Coaching is a profession in most European countries and in the US, it’s not necessarily a profession here. We’re contracting the time of very, very busy people. For those coaches who self-identify as wanting to be full-time, professional coaches it’s a stepping stone towards that.”

John Fitzsimons, qualified for the 800m at next week’s European Indoor Championships in Istanbul, welcomed the news, his coach Joe Ryan a full-time schoolteacher in Mullingar: “The sport deserves it, the coaches deserve it. these are some of the hardest working people in the sport,” he said. “They get great recognition but recognition doesn’t pay the bills.

Initially the priority is to provide direct support to coaches of targeted athletes tracking towards success in 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games, who in turn will have an enhanced capacity to engage with key athletes training and competition programmes, fostering greater integration and accountability towards shared performance goals.

The strategy is also out to identify and support coaches of priority performance training-groups, with a track-record of transitioning athletes into senior international competitors, strategically integrated and aligned with Dublin-based or regional hubs.

2023 Athletics Ireland High Performance Supported Coaches (athletes in brackets)

Rob Heffernan (David Kenny, Brendan Boyce)

Michael O’Connor (Kate O’Connor)

Drew and Hayley Harrison (Thomas Barr, Sprint Performance Group, UL Link)

Noelle Morrissey (Sarah Lavin, Ciara Neville

Feidhlim Kelly Mark English, Andrew Coscoran, Hiko Tonosa, Michelle Finn

Jeremy Lyons and Gerard O’Donnell Sophie Becker, Cillin Greene, Jack Raftery, Sprint performance group

Joe Ryan Cian McPhillips, John Fitzsimons, DCU Link

Emmet Dunleavy Daragh McElhinney, Keelan Kilrehill, UCD Link