Sonia O'Sullivan was among the athletes who welcomed the statement by Dr James McDaid, Minister for Sport, in his address to Congress on Saturday, that the government is prepared to invest £3.5 million in an new indoor training facility at the Morton Stadium, Santry.
"I believe every athlete in the country will be delighted by this news" she said. "Although it doesn't directly affect me, I've been aware of the need of a facility like this for years.
"Now its to be provided and in view of the benefits of all year training, that can only be good for the young athletes coming through."
Apart from the £20 million grant, over three years, for the redevelopment programme at Croke Park, its the biggest capital investment in sport by government and marks a new high in the chequered history of the stadium, opened by Billy Morton in 1958.
To date, it has been funded to the extent of almost £2 million by successive administrations. Now under the jurisdiction of Fingal Co Council, who are given much of the credit for presenting it in pristine condition in recent years, the stadium's future would appear to be secured by this latest development.
The new complex, which will be build, in part, on the present car parking area, is also designed to facilitate weight throwers. Additionally, there is provision for a cross country trail in the immediate vicinity.
Dr McDaid said that before State funding can be authorised a feasibility study will have to be undertaken, but he believed they would be in a position by the autumn to make a decision on whether to proceed with the project.
The Minister, who hasn't always been at one with BLE, struck an upbeat note in his address, praising its input into the unity talks and its willingness to embrace many of the recommendations of the management consultancy report produced by Deloitte and Touche.
For their part, delegates to Congress were impressed by McDaid's determination to oversee dramatic changes in Irish sport, notably the setting up in early summer of a new Sports Council, with statutory powers. McDaid cautioned, however, against the dangers of BLE becoming embroiled with the Olympic Counctl of Ireland in another row over the gear to be worn by athletes in the Sydney Games.
In his presidential address to Congress, Nick Davis said that Irish athletics were now in a buoyant state. The Board was close to eliminating its financial deficit, and in terms of competitive results, they had seldom enjoyed a more successful year.
Laying emphasis on the performances of Sonia O'Sullivan, Catherina McKiernan and Mark Carroll, he also pointed to the fact that, in the year under review, promotion to the First Division of the European Cup had been achieved by both the Irish men's and women's teams. The elections for the new committees for the coming year saw Ronnie Quigley and Harry Gorman top the poll.
Track and Field: R Quigley, B Dunne, P Farrelly, P Joyce, P Kelly, Fr B King, P Sinclair, J Smyth. Cross Country, Road and Race Walking: H Gorman, M Cronin, T Darcy, R Flynn, M Gillespie, L Kealy, B O'Callaghan, J Sexton.
Pierce O'Callaghan was reappointed as the international athletes' representative on the management committee.
