Three time Olympian and double Bronze medallist, Paddy Barnes, has been elected to the Olympic Federation of Ireland Athletes’ Commission.
Paddy, who competed at Olympiads in Beijing, London and Rio, and took home light fly-weight bronze in 2008 and 2012, was one of 13 athletes elected on to the commission by fellow Olympians.
Paddy, who is an IABA Development Officer in Ulster, will serve a 2 year term of office on the commission.
The members of the OFI Athletes’ Commission for the 2022-2024 term are as follows:
| FIRST NAME | SURNAME | SPORT |
| Brendan | Boyce | Athletics |
| Paddy | Barnes | Boxing |
| David | Harte | Hockey |
| Natalya | Coyle | Modern Pentathlon |
| Claire | Lambe | Rowing |
| Sanita | Puspure | Rowing |
| Annalise | Murphy | Sailing |
| Shane | O’Connor | Snowsports |
The outgoing OFI Athletes’ Commission was appointed in 2017, and consisted of Shane O’Connor (Chair), Gavin Noble (Vice Chair), David Harte (also a member of the EOC Athletes’ Commission), David Gillick (also an athlete representative in Sport Ireland Anti-Doping initiatives), Kenneth Egan, James Nolan, Melanie Nocher and Judy Reynolds.
Over the coming weeks the new OFI Athletes’ Commission will meet informally, in a virtual setting, and will hold its first official meeting soon after.
The IABA extends hearty congratulations to Paddy, who, through his extensive international experience competing at the highest of levels, is well placed to advocate for Ireland’s future Olympians.
Sarah Keane, President of the Olympic Federation of Ireland congratulated the successful candidates, thanking all the athletes who applied,
“Congratulations to all the successful candidates who have now become members of the Olympic Federation of Ireland Athletes’ Commission. We are confident that the athlete voice will be represented well and that you will continue to drive sport forward, each of you bringing with you a wealth of experience.”