Smyth to receive €40,000 as Sport Ireland announces details of 2022 International Carding Scheme

Paralympic gold medallist Jason Smyth has been awarded with ‘Podium’ categorisation as Sport Ireland today announced details of its 2022 International Carding Scheme.

Smyth who claimed gold in Tokyo last summer is one of 19 athletes who will receive €40,000 from Sport Ireland in the next year. All Tokyo 2020 medallists are in that specific category.

Olympians Thomas Barr, Ciara Mageean, Fionnuala McCormack, and Brendan Boyce will each receive €25,000 in the next year having been categorised as ‘World Class’, as will Paralympian Greta Streimikyte. Funding for those in the ‘World Class’ category has improved from €20,000 to €25,000 this year.

A further 18 Irish athletes will receive €18,000 each as they are in the ‘International’ category. This funding has increased from by €6,000 this year. Athletes included are Mark English, Alex Wright, Andrew Coscoran, Phil Healy, Marcus Lawler, Kate O’Connor, Sarah Healy, David Kenny, Michelle Finn, Stephen Scullion, Eilish Flanagan, Nadia Power, Siofra Cleirigh Buttner, Sarah Lavin, Patrick Monahan, Jordan Lee, Mary Fitzgerald, and Orla Comerford.

A new ‘pooling’ categorisation has also been introduced by Sport Ireland. This funding is designed to support a broad range of athletes. Ireland’s Mixed 4x400m relay squad who finished eighth position in the Olympic final will receive €30,000, while upcoming talents Rhasidat Adeleke, Darragh McElhinney, and Cian McPhilips will each receive €10,000 each through the pooling system.

Separately Sport Ireland has also announced details of its High-Performance Programme Funding for the Paris Olympics cycle 2021-2024.

Athletics Ireland will receive a total of €3,365,000 to support them in the delivery of their performance programme. This funding supports a range of activities including training camps and competitions, pathway development, performance services and performance team salaries, with the aim of Irish athletes reaching the highest level.

The funding represents a slight increase on the €3,305,000 that the National Governing Body received for the Tokyo 2020 cycle.

A comprehensive review into Ireland’s performance at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games was also published today.

In the sport of athletics, Ireland qualified 27 athletes. The team had one Top 8 (4x400m relay), two Top 16 (9th and 10th) and two Top 24 (20th and 21st) performances at the Games which fell short of Sport Ireland’s target of three Top 8, three Top 16 and seven Top 24 performances.

However, Sport Ireland’s analysis found that athletes felt “well prepared” within their individual training camps and that opportunities exist within the talent pathway and programme structure.