Sports Council refuses to fund IABA post

THE PLOT thickens in the increasingly confused drama at the top of amateur boxing in Ireland. Yesterday the Irish Sports Council (ISC) said unequivocally they would not fund the positions of chief executive or high performance director following the completion of an Irish Amateur Boxing Association (IABA) selection process for a high performance candidate.

It had been reported that the governing body would nominate the current president, Dominic O’Rourke, as the high performance director, a position that had not been officially filled since Gary Keegan departed after the Beijing Olympic Games.

Since then the current head coach, Billy Walsh, has successfully carried out the role, albeit unofficially.

A short statement from the ISC made it clear they were unhappy with the way the most recent selection process was conducted by the IABA, and suggested that best practice may not have been observed.

There is no suggestion the IABA acted inappropriately.

“Earlier this month the Irish Sports Council wrote to the IABA stating that it was not prepared to fund the positions of CEO and director of high performance in 2010, as it was unhappy with the recruitment process for the two posts,” the ISC said.

“The council was not part of the selection procedures and has no role in ratifying, endorsing or supporting the appointments.”

It is believed the IABA did conduct a final interview process in which there were three candidates for the high performance job: Dominic O’Rourke, Billy Walsh and a coach believed to be a relative of 1992 Olympic gold medallist Michael Carruth.

O’Rourke was chosen, a decision which astonished many observers.

If the decision is carried through, Walsh would answer to O’Rourke, who as a four-time winner of the Irish coach of the year award is a highly respected figure but has little experience in running a high-performance unit.

From St Michael’s, Athy, O’Rourke would have had a strong influence on the careers of Olympian John Joe Joyce, Irish Senior champion Eric Donovan, EU champion David Oliver Joyce, and Roy Sheahan, a former EU and Irish Senior champion.

The question now, short of a standoff between the IABA and ISC, is how the association can proceed with making what are salaried appointments to positions for which there is no money available.

The other unknown is the logic behind overlooking Walsh for a job in which he has demonstrated a uniquely successful track record.

Most recently Walsh, with Jim Moore, led an Irish team of nine to the 2009 European Union Championships in Denmark.

The team earned unrivalled success in winning three gold medals, three silver and three bronze, and was chosen as the best team in the tournament, making Ireland the top amateur team in the EU last year.

From an Irish squad and high performance stand point, the successful methods of Keegan and Walsh that earned Ireland three Olympic medals in Beijing in 2008 have been carried through to the current line of boxers.

There was no comment available from the IABA yesterday.