STATEMENT ON THE ADOPTION OF A NEW RULE BOOK BY THE IABA

The IABA can confirm that a new Rule Book was adopted at a meeting of the Board of Directors tonight, Wednesday June 14th, a copy of which is now available.

IABA Rule Book 2017

The new Rule Book incorporates:

1. All the Rio recommendations around High Performance from the report conducted by Kotinos Partners following the Olympic Games in Rio;
2. Amendments to the Disciplinary Rules to bring them in line with best practice; and
3. Updates to several provisions in the Rule Book that do not relate to the structure of the organisation for example, the establishment of new committees to be put in place although further detail on the composition of those committees is likely to be required

There are no proposed changes to the overall structure of the IABA included in the new Rule Book. The Board had originally intended that any new Rule Book would include a full review of the 2006 rulebook including but not limited to areas such as, Terms of Office, Elections, Postal Voting & the AGM.

Recommendations on these issues had been included in the draft Rule Book prepared by Sarah O’Shea and provided to the IABA on March 20^th 2017. As previously communicated, the draft was to be followed up by further meetings and discussions between the Board and representatives of Central Council. A delegation from Central Council have not however made themselves available to meet since receiving the draft in March.

The Board acknowledge that changes would also be required to the Memorandum & Articles of Association (“M&A”) to give effect to these structural changes and to ensure consistency with any Rule Book that is updated in this regard. The amended M&A have not yet been prepared as the Board had agreed that to save time and cost that this should be done once the draft Rule Book had been agreed between the Board and the Rule Book Committee of the Central Council.

The changes to the Rule Book were required not just to protect Sport Ireland funding but also Sport Northern Ireland funding as well as the Sports Capital Grants, OSCAR funding and other local authority support most of which goes directly to our 379 clubs nationwide.

The Board of Directors will therefore begin before the end of June, a series of explanatory and consultation meetings with clubs around the country on the changes made to the Rule Book to comply with the Sport Ireland requirements as adopted this evening and the further changes it must make to bring the overall governance of the IABA in line with best practice for a modern sporting organisation. The Board will simultaneously make every effort to reach agreement with Central Council on the changes that need to be made.

It is hoped that further changes to the Rule Book will be adopted by the membership at a National Convention later this year and the changes to the M&A made as is legally required at an AGM.

 

 

 

 

Beijing 2008 silver medallist Ken Egan has been included in the Olympic Council of Ireland (IOC) Athletes Commission. The IOC today announced their new team which will include the two-time European bronze medallist, EU champion and ten-time Irish Elite champion.

 

 

Olympic Council of Ireland announce details of new Athletes Commission

 

Following a nomination procedure the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) has today announced the composition of a new Athlete Commission for the period 2017-20. The role of the Commission is to advise the OCI Executive Committee on all athlete related matters and to ensure that the voice of Irish athletes is heard in all future OCI decision making.

 

Six nominations for the Commission were received from OCI Members. These were as follows:

 

• Derval O’Rourke (Athletics)
• Judy Reynolds (Equestrian)
• David Harte (Hockey)
• Shane O’Connor (Snowsports)
• Melanie Nocher (Swimming)
• Gavin Noble (Triathlon)

The OCI Executive Board met on June 7th 2017 and agreed that the Athlete Commission would benefit from all six candidates who represent a mix of summer individual/team and winter sports and so all six were appointed.  The OCI Executive Board also appointed three additional Olympians to the Commission:

 

• David Gillick (Athletics)
• James Nolan (Athletics)
• Kenneth Egan (Boxing).

The nine person Commission will have its first meeting later this month at which it will select a chairperson who will become a member of OCI Executive Committee.

 

Speaking today OCI President Sarah Keane said; “The new Athletes Commission announced today will have a very important role in the future decision making of the OCI. The OCI Executive Committee is very grateful that so many talented Olympians have agreed to make themselves available to participate in this Commission and to speak on behalf of all Irish Olympians. We want to ensure that athletes have a strong voice at the OCI board table and this Commission will allow that to happen.  I look forward to working with the Commission over the coming four years.”

 

Ends

 

Contact: Aileen Gaskin: 087 772 4717 or Olive Stephens 085 853 5647

 

Additional Information:

 

Biographies

 

 

Kenneth Egan from Clondalkin, Dublin best known for winning a Silver Medal in the final of the 81 kg, Light-Heavyweight boxing final at the 2008 Olympics. He won the European Gold Medal in the 2008 Athens Olympic Qualifiers and a European Bronze Medal in 2006 and 2010 at Light-heavyweight. The former boxing champion works as an addiction counsellor and is a Fine Gael councillor representing Clondalkin on South Dublin County Council.

 

 

David Gillick

David Gillick specialised in the 400 metres and he won the European Indoor Championship in 2005 and 2007, as well as the Irish National Outdoor Championship in 2006 & 2007.  He set the Irish Indoor record of 45.52 seconds in the 2007 final. The time also beat the Irish outdoor record of 45.58 and was within the Olympic ‘A’ qualifying standard for the 2008 Games. On 4 July 2009 he ran 44.77 seconds in a race in Madrid to set a new national record. David is currently involved in media work and was a winner of TV Celebrity Masterchef 2013.

 

James Nolan

Irish international runner from 1996 until 2008 and two time Olympian David specialised in the 800 metres between 1996 and 2000 before changing to the 1500 metres. Having graduated from UCD in 2008, with a BSc in sports management James is currently head of athletics with the Paralympic Council of Ireland.

 

 

Gavin Noble

Gavin was a professional triathlete from 1999 to 2013. He represented Northern Ireland at the 2002 & 2006 Commonwealth Games and Ireland in the European Cup and World Cup campaigns. He competed for Ireland in the London 2012 Olympics in the men’s triathlon. He was ranked 4th in Europe (2008), European Cup Winner (2006), Asian Cup winner 2011 and multiple European, World Championship, World Cup and World Triathlon Series Grand Finalist. Gavin currently works with Wilson Hartnell /Ogilvy as head of digital content and social.

 

 

Judy Reynolds

Judy is an Irish Olympic dressage rider. Representing Ireland she participated at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Reynolds also competed at World Equestrian Games (in 2006, 2010 and 2014) and at three European Dressage Championships (in 2007, 2011 and 2015).  Reynolds participated at two editions of Dressage World Cup finals (in 2016 and 2017).  This year Judy became the first Irish dressage rider to qualify for the World Cup finals where she placed 4th.  She was named the Irish dressage Rider of the Year in 2008, 2014, 2015 and 2016.

 

 

David Harte

David is a professional hockey player from Kinsale in Co Cork.  He is a qualified physical education and biology teacher having graduated from DCU in 2010 with an honours degree.  David then moved to Holland and has been playing hockey professionally in the Dutch hockey league for the last seven seasons. He captioned Ireland to the Rio Olympic Games and has 187 caps for his country to date.

 

 

Melanie Nocher

Melanie was an Irish swimming champion. She competed at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics in the women’s 100 metre and 200m backstroke. She won a bronze medal at the European Short Course Championships 2012 and was Irish National Champion six times before she was 19.

 

Derval O’Rourke

Derval is a former track and field athlete, competing in the sprint hurdles. She competed at 3 Olympics Games. Derval was World Indoor Champion and a four time European athletics medallist. Derval is the Irish record holder in the 60 meter and 100 meter hurdles. Today Derval is a bestselling author who works in the health and fitness sector as the founder of Fit Foodie, a healthy lifestyle brand that creates solutions to eat well and keep moving.

 

Shane O’Connor

Shane is an ex-alpine ski racer who represented Ireland in five World Championships and the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. He was born in Dublin and began his skiing career at the age of five. Shane currently works a full-time job as the Head of Technology Risk and Security Assurance for a proprietary trading firm in Dublin’s IFSC.

 

 

What is the Athletes Commission?

 

The Olympic Council of Ireland Athletes Commission represents the athletes of the member National Federations of the Olympic Council of Ireland.

An eligible athlete is an athlete who participated in either of the last 2 Olympic Summer or Winter Games previous to the General Meeting which elects him/her.

The appointees shall have participated in an Olympic Summer or Winter Games.

 

Role of the Commission

1. a)            To ensure that the athlete’s point of view is taken into account in OCI decision making
2. b)            The OCI Athletes Commission is a consultative body of the OCI and acts as a voice for the Irish athletes.
3. c)            To ensure strong channels of communication are in place for athlete specific issues at the appropriate level.
4. d)            To respect the rights of athletes within the Olympic Movement and to draw up recommendations to that effect.
5. e)            To put forward nominations for representatives to sit on other OCI commissions and working groups when requested
6. f)             Upon election to prepare strategic goals for approval by the Executive Committee for the next Olympic Cycle.
7. g)            To prepare an annual plan each year to be submitted to Executive Committee for approval.

 

 

 

 

 

The IABA extends its deep sympathies to the Dunne family following the death of Bernard Dunne of the St Anthony’s/St Patrick’s club in Enniscorthy, Wexford.

A true boxing man, the late Mr Dunne was coach to ten-time National Elite champion Jim O’Sullivan amongst many other Irish champions.

He was the serving Vice-President of the Wexford County Board and the previous President of same.

A very popular R&J at the National Stadium, he will be sadly missed by all of his many friends in boxing.

May he rest in eternal peace.

 

Funeral arrangements

Peacefully, at home. Beloved husband of Betty and loving father of Bernie & the late Lorraine. Sadly missed by his loving wife, daughter, grandchildren Sean & Amy, sister Kathleen (Mahon), brothers Tom & Sean, son-in-law Steve, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives, friends and all of his colleagues in the Boxing and Sporting World. May he rest in peace. Removal from his residence on Wednesday at 6.30 pm to St. Aidan’s Cathedral. Funeral Mass on Thursday at 12 noon. Burial afterwards in Enniscorthy Cemetery.

 

 

 

The draw for the 42nd European Men’s Championships in the Ukraine will be made at the Kharkiv Palace Hotel this Friday morning at 10am (Irish time), according to the organisers.

 

Boxing begins that afternoon/evening at the Lokomotyv Sports Palace.

 

Team Ireland’s nine-strong squad have been in final training camp in Kharkiv since June 5 ahead of the only qualifier for Europeans for the 19th World Elite Championships in Hamburg, Germany in August/September.

 

 

Irish head coach Zaur Antia said that Team Ireland are in excellent spirits and very focused on the task at hand. Ireland finished up their final sparring sessions last weekend.

 

Boxing2017 – AIBA World Boxing Championships Qualification System

 

It’s anticipated that up to 40 nations will compete in the Ukraine.

 

The top eight boxers in each weight qualify for Hamburg, although it has yet to be clarified what the qualification criterion will be in the event of a German boxer making the top eight.

 

Germany, with ex-Irish coach Eddie Bolger at the helm, has ten automatic places as the host nation for the World Championships.

 

Europe has the highest qualification quota of all the Continents with 80 berths up for grabs.

 

280 World Championships places – Africa (40), Asia (60), Americas (60), Europe (80) and Oceania (20) – are available through the qualification process

 

Ten places go the Germany as the hosts and there are 10 wild cards.

 

European Elite Men’s Championships Kharkiv, Ukraine June 14th/25th

Irish squad

52kg – Flyweight – Brendan Irvine (St Pauls)

56kg – Bantamweight –  Kurt Walker (Canal)

60kg – Lightweight – Patrick Mongan (Olympic)

64kg – Light-welter – Sean McComb (Holy Trinity)

69kg – Welterweight – Steven Donnelly (All Saints)

75kg – Middleweight – Emmett Brennan (Glasnevin)

81kg – Light-heavy – Joe Ward (Moate)

91kg – Heavyweight – Darren O’Neill (Paulstown)

91+kg – Super-heavy – Dean Gardiner (Clonmel)