More than half of specially funded Irish sports fell short of Olympic target

More than half of the Irish sporting bodies that received high performance unit (HPU) funds in the quest for Olympic gold did not hit their targets.

New figures confirmed by the Irish Sports Council show that despite the London games being seen as a major national achievement in the boxing ring, seven out of 13 HPU-supported sports fell far short of what they set out to achieve.

The Irish Examiner revealed on Saturday that each medal Ireland won at the London Olympics cost the taxpayer €6m, higher than the per-medal British spend, with a further €6.5m also spent on targeted athletes who failed to even qualify.