O’Donoghue urged to save bid for 2005 Cross-Country Championships

SPORTS Minister John O’Donoghue is the only person who can save Ireland’s bid to hold the 2005 European Cross-country Championships in Cork, and last evening, Liam Hennessy, international secretary of the Athletics Association of Ireland, appealed to him to rescue the event.

The AAI had sought funding in the region of €300,000 to stage the event, but Hennessy admitted yesterday that it now looked, following discussions with Fáilte Ireland, that they would get nothing like that. "We are asking the minister to come to our assistance or otherwise we can never seriously consider a bid for an event such as this or, indeed, any other event," he said.

"Fáilte Ireland appear to be looking at this on a purely commercial basis, but you cannot equate the European cross-country championships with the Ryder Cup or other professional events. In this case, nobody gets paid. The athletes don't get paid, the officials don't get paid and there are no gigantic TV rights. It is a purely voluntary enterprise involving mainly local people.

"But it is an enterprise with a huge spin-off not just for athletics but for Cork, for Munster and for Ireland in terms of prestige and in terms of exposure."

It had been planned to stage the championships in Cork to coincide with the Capital of Culture and there had been unqualified support from the committee behind that as well as from Cork City Council, the management of Cork Racecourse, Mallow Council, Cork County Board of the AAI and Cork City Sports Committee, the organisers of the country's premier international athletics meeting.

"We won't get another opportunity like this," Liam Hennessy insisted. "If this falls through for want of financial aid then the possibility of being seriously considered for a bid for any athletics event in the future would be nil.

"We have gone so far. We have put everything in place. Our bid has been very well received, but it looks like foundering for want of meaningful support. It will be very disappointing for everyone and particularly for Irish athletics and the people of Cork who will be denied the opportunity of seeing two of their own world stars, Sonia O'Sullivan and Mark Carroll, competing at the highest level in their native county."

"Cork has never hosted a major event Dublin and Limerick have hosted the World Cross-country Championships and there is a big sporting tradition in the county. And, in 2005, as the Capital of Culture, will be the focus of Europe. Over the coming year, Ireland will hold the presidency of the expanding EU and all of those new nations would be competing in those championships in 2005, so the whole concept seems to make a lot of sense."

If the bid is withdrawn at the last minute it will be huge embarrassment to the Athletics Association of Ireland a body-blow to athletics which, right now, is celebrating one of the most successful years in the history of the sport, having medalled at every major championship across the world.

It would cost in the region of €650,000 to stage the event and it is understood that the AAI sought €300,000 from the Government.

"Obviously if we got any meaningful amount, we would have to consider going ahead with the bid," Liam Hennessy said. "We must have the documentation before the EAA by September 19 and then we will make our presentation to a full meeting of the council in October. There is still a lot of work to be done but that is all dependent on us getting the financial support from the minister."