THE targets set post-Athens were realised and, in some cases, exceeded according to the Irish Sports Council’s review of the preparation of athletes and their subsequent performances in the Beijing Olympics.

There is no easy fix to ensure Irish athletes match ever-increasing international sporting standards, it was claimed today.

SHAMED former Olympic hopeful Cathal Lombard can only be made pay back a fraction of the State sports grants he received before he was banned for a doping offence.