Both sides agree to meet McDaid

Pat Hickey, President of the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI), has agreed to meet the Minister for Sport, Dr Jim McDaid, in an effort to resolve the ongoing gear conflict surrounding the Sydney Olympics.

And it now appears increasingly likely that the Minister will make a compensatory offer to the Athletics Association of Ireland (AAI) as the OCI continue to reiterate their sole rights to all athlete clothing of the Irish team during the Games.

Dr McDaid intervened in the conflict between the OCI and the AAI on Saturday, calling for separate meetings with both organisations. The AAI have already agreed to the request and yesterday Hickey confirmed that the OCI had also scheduled a meeting.

"We gladly accept the invitation from the Minister to sit down and finally conclude this matter," said Hickey. That meeting with the OCI is also set for April 11th and Hickey was quick to suggest the most likely outcome.

"We have the full backing of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on this and there won't be any negotiation on our contract to wear the OCI gear. I believe that the best way out is for the Minister to compensate the AAI for their loss."

That figure is likely to be somewhere around the £100,000 mark - one estimate of the Olympic value in the AAI's contract with Asics. The OCI contract with Adidas is worth some £600,000.

Hickey also revealed yesterday that the IOC have made further references to their stance on the matter. One letter dated last December 17th, sent from IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch to the International Amateur Athletic Federation President Lamine Diack, was seen by The Irish Times yesterday and included a strong reference to the matter of Olympic gear resting solely with the national Olympic councils (NOC's).

It stated: "The decision regarding the make of (this) uniform will be left to the NOC's, in keeping with the Olympic charter and as reiterated during the most recent meeting between the IOC Executive Committee and the Council of the IAAF".

Another letter from Samaranch to Diack dated January 13th this year included a reference to the Atlanta Games and the previous conflict with the OCI and the Irish athletics body (then BLE): "On this occasion there was only one misunderstanding which occurred with an NOC and a national federation and we would hope that this does not happen in Sydney."

It was also learnt yesterday that UK Athletics, the British national governing body who have an endorsement deal with Reebok, admitted no marketing rights to the Olympic Games and instead it rests solely with the British Olympic Council (who have their own deal with Adidas).

According to Hickey, it is the gear conflict alone which is the only issue to be discussed with the Minister and not other matters contained in the OCI's athlete contract which was first released into the public domain last week.

"This is more or less the same contract we've had since the Barcelona Games in 1992," he said. "And I don't understand what all the fuss is about. Not for one second do we want to stand in the way of any additional income an athlete might make surrounding the Olympics. The only obligation is that they wear our Adidas gear during the Games.

"The main thrust of our contract is for the duration of the Games only and there has never been a conflict of interest with it before. There is a clause referring to matters up until the end of the year but that is a legal provision to cover us in certain mishaps and we've never actually implemented it."