Government backs Olympic bid

Ireland's hopes of staging the 2003 Special Olympics Summer Games received a considerable boost yesterday with the announcement by Dr Jim McDaid, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, that the Government has approved grant assistance, up to a maximum of £5 million, towards the cost of implementing a host bid.

That bid will be submitted to the headquarters of the Special Olympics in Washington, where it will be considered alongside offers from Argentina and two American states, Missouri and Oregon, to host the Games. All bids must be submitted this week and a decision on who will host the Games will be made next summer. Argentina could prove to be Ireland's chief rival in the contest, given that the Special Olympics International, the official governing body, has expressed an interest in holding the Games outside the United States for the first time.

The estimated cost of hosting the Games is £16 million, but Dr McDaid said he is confident that the £11 million shortfall, after the Government's grant is deducted, can easily be raised through fundraising (£4.5 million) and sponsorship (£6.5 million).

"I would call on commercial interests, particularly those with links in Ireland, to come forward as soon as possible with the necessary sponsorship and financial support, which is absolutely essential to the success of this project," he said, adding that three companies - Telecom Eireann, Guardian PMPA and Toyota Ireland - have already pledged a combined £1.5 million to the bid. "The Special Olympics Summer Games will be the biggest sporting event in the world in the year in which they take pace," he said. "It would be the biggest international sports event ever to take place in Ireland - the 2003 Games will involve 7,000 athletes and coaches from over 160 countries, participating in 19 sports. Conservative estimates of the benefits to the Irish economy of hosting the Games are out at over £21 million."

While conceding that the bid was a "mammoth undertaking", Mary Davis, National Director of Special Olympics Ireland, insisted she was "entirely confident" that Ireland could win the right to stage the Games. She was also confident that Ireland could meet the requirements of what she says is a "major part of the evaluation process used by Special Olympics" - the quality of the accommodation and sporting venues on offer. "In terms of accommodation we will be utilising Mosney Holiday Centre, which has a capacity for 2,000 beds, and four universities - Trinity, UCD, DCU and Maynooth."

"In terms of sporting venues, while Dublin might not have all the facilities to match our rivals, we will reach the minimum standards by utilising and refitting facilities such as the Point Depot and the RDS, together with existing venues such as Croke Park (for the opening ceremony), UCD, DCU, the other universities, the National Basketball Arena, the Badminton Centre and the Phoenix Park."

A Bid Steering Group was established by the previous government to oversee the preparation of Ireland's hosting bid and the Minister paid special tribute to the role played by former Tanaiste Dick Spring in "bringing the bid to fruition" and Julie O'Neill, assistant secretary at the Department for Tourism, Sport and Recreation. "I look forward to a widespread positive and immediate response to Ireland's bid and as a result, ultimately, to a favourable decision being given by Special Olympics International next year," he said.