The 'business' of sport must not outshine Olympian ideals

The Olympic Games of Rio de Janeiro, the first to be held in South America, ended in the early hours of this morning.

The relative highs and lows and the general success or failure of the 31st Olympiad will no doubt attract much commentary in the days and weeks to come and it seems inevitable that much of what occurred beyond the spheres of sporting competition will dominate those headlines.

Ironically Irish ‘actors’ were central - as active participants or aggrieved parties - to many of the more negative aspects of the Games and perhaps the omens in that regard were clear at an early stage when the Olympic diving pool turned a very Irish green.