Sport Ireland CEO says body 'regret' bad experiences had by rowers in High Performance programme

May will deliver these remarks as part of her opening statement during Wednesday’s Oireachtas appearance

Dr Una May. File picture

Sport Ireland CEO Dr Úna May has said the body regrets the experience of some athletes within the Rowing Ireland High Performance programme over the past decade.

Dr May has also insisted that Sport Ireland responded “immediately” and “appropriately” to all welfare concerns raised with them regarding rowers from the High performance programme.

The Sport Ireland chief executive will deliver these remarks as part of her opening statement during Wednesday’s appearance, along with other representatives from Sport Ireland and Rowing Ireland, before the Oireachtas committee on Sport.

Last Wednesday, the same Oireachtas committee was presented with documentation from clinical psychologist Dr Paul Gaffney which revealed that by early 2024 he was treating 12 current and former athletes from rowing’s High Performance programme.

The committee also heard that same day personal testimony from two of those athletes, Sanita Puspure and Monika Dukarska, outlining their traumatic experiences under Rowing Ireland former performance director Antonio Maurogiovanni.

Answers will be sought from Dr May as to the level of Sport Ireland knowledge of these athlete experiences and subsequent action taken.

“We acknowledge and regret the experience shared by some athletes in the Rowing Ireland High Performance programme and recognise the importance of individuals being able to tell their story,” noted Dr May.

“We want to reassure the committee and the wider community that Sport Ireland responded immediately, appropriately and promptly to any welfare concerns that were raised with us regarding rowing.

“We can speak to a number of interventions including; mentoring, mediation, meetings, resources and services.

“Frankly, there were issues in the Rowing High Performance programme. Any matters that were raised were addressed through available mechanisms, including direct dialogue with the leadership in Rowing.” 

While stating it was “appropriate” for Sport Ireland to allow a National Governing Body such as Rowing Ireland to deal with its own issues, Dr May did confirm that Sport Ireland was aware that Rowing Ireland did not engage in an independent culture review after the 2021 Tokyo Games, despite the expectation from Sport Ireland that one would take place.

Culture Reviews, explained Dr May, are a key mechanism in understanding and addressing issues within High Performance programmes.

“It is reasonable and appropriate for Sport Ireland to allow a National Governing Body time and space to address its own issues. Further intervention should only be considered when new information becomes available,” she said.

“In March 2021, new information did become available when the Clinical Psychologist contracted by Sport Ireland formally notified us of potential welfare issues in the Rowing Ireland High Performance Programme.

“Sport Ireland directly and repeatedly contacted the senior leadership of Rowing Ireland regarding concerns, its responsibilities regarding athlete welfare and performance staff and its duty to resolve issues satisfactorily.

“Issues took time to resolve as there were multiple constraints and complexities.”