43-619: The Irish Amateur Swimming Association (IASA) was the national governing body of swimming in Ireland. The organisation was founded in 1893 and held responsibility for the various aquatic disciplines until it was dissolved in January 1999 following a series of sexual abuse scandals. Following the winding up of the IASA, it was replaced as a national governing body of aquatic sports in Ireland by Swim Ireland . The Irish Amateur Swimming Association
86-488: A Northern Irishman ( Jack McMillan ), a Scotsman ( Duncan Scott ) and a Welshman (again two, Kieran Bird and Matt Richards) . Crown Dependencies : A number of notable British Olympians and Olympic medalists have emerged from the Crown dependencies, including Carl Hester , four-time equestrian medalist from Guernsey and Mark Cavendish , track cycling silver medalist and Peter Kennaugh , gold winning team pursuiter, from
129-441: A local level in all three affiliated provinces. WV Edwards, 220 yards champion in 1912 like many others was killed in action in 1917 and others like Trevor Chute would return again and swim but as an amputee. When an AGM was held again on 31 May 1919, the decision was made to introduce 'ladies' events in national championships - the 100 yards and Diving Championship for ladies as well as an Irish Water Polo Championship. This decision
172-671: A new squad structure. This begins with Club Level, then Regional Level, National Level and finally the Elite Squad. British Olympic Council [REDACTED] Guernsey [REDACTED] Jersey [REDACTED] Isle of Man [REDACTED] Anguilla [REDACTED] Falkland Islands [REDACTED] Gibraltar [REDACTED] Montserrat [REDACTED] Pitcairn Islands [REDACTED] Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha The British Olympic Association ( BOA ; Welsh : Cymdeithas Olympaidd Prydain )
215-537: A predominantly Cypriot population from day to day, and the British personnel there are all born elsewhere. As such, it also does not send athletes of its own to Team GB, not competes at the Commonwealth Games. Among Crown Dependencies and current-day Overseas Territories, only a few have been represented on Team GB since 1930 (the year of the first Commonwealth Games) while retaining citizenship of, and (if
258-479: A sport also and the early success of Coldwell was followed by that of Eddie Heron , who had dominated the sport since the 1930s. He became a household name and a report from his exhibition in Foynes , County Limerick in 1940 records the crowd at 5,000. Unfortunately, there was a lack of adequate indoor diving facilities over subsequent periods. International success in the subsequent period in swimming and water polo
301-718: Is affiliated with LEN , FINA and the Olympic Council of Ireland . Swim Ireland emerged in 1998 from the Irish Amateur Swimming Association (IASA), that was dissolved in January 1999 following proven sexual abuse and other scandals involving senior coaches. Swim Ireland assumed IASA abuse victim liabilities. Swim Ireland runs national meets which include: Swim Ireland works with the different regions in organising competitions such as provincial Age Group Championships as well as other graded, distance and inter-club meets. They also work with
344-801: Is responsible for organising and overseeing the participation of athletes from the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic Team , branded as Team GB , at both the summer and winter Olympic Games , the Youth Olympic Games , the European Youth Olympic Festivals , and at the European Games . All the constituent members of the BOA compete and operate separately at the Commonwealth Games , and
387-661: Is the National Olympic Committee for the United Kingdom . It represents the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), but also incorporate representatives from eight of the eleven inhabited British Overseas Territories (but not British Virgin Islands , Bermuda or Caymen Islands which have their own national Olympic associations), and
430-408: Is the national governing body of swimming , diving , water polo , open water swimming and synchronised swimming in the island of Ireland ( Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland ). Competitors from Northern Ireland can opt to compete for British Swimming in international competitions, with the exception of the Commonwealth Games where they can compete for Northern Ireland. Swim Ireland
473-482: The 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Michelle Smith became Ireland's first Olympic medalist in swimming - winning three golds and a bronze. A shadow was cast over these medals when subsequently in 1998 she was banned for 4 years from the sport for tampering with a urine sample using alcohol during a mandatory out of competition test. In the late 1990s, various abuse scandals came to light. They led eventually in 1999 to
SECTION 10
#1732793200015516-587: The British Olympic Council had stated that Ulster-born athletes could not compete for Ireland. The IASA replied that as far as swimming was concerned Ireland would be represented as an entire entity or not at all. This latter approach prevailed and a team travelled and competed which was representative of the whole of Ireland. Ireland were represented at the 1924 Summer Olympics by a water polo team captained by Noel Purcell . No "speed" swimmers participated however. By 1930s, diving had grown as
559-549: The Olympic Charter . Working with the national governing bodies of each sport, the BOA selects Team GB 's members to compete in all sports at the summer and winter Olympics. The BOA is independent and receives no funding from the government. Its income comes from fundraising and events. Great Britain & Northern Ireland is one of only five National Olympic Committees (the others being Australia, France, Greece and Switzerland) which have never failed to be represented at
602-584: The Olympic Games was underway and although a Munster motion "that Ireland take no part in the Paris Olympic Games unless separate representation" was defeated, a motion "that Ireland seek to secure separate representation at future Olympiads" was carried. In due course, an invitation to Ireland to take part in the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris was received. Prior to these games, it was alleged
645-474: The BOA is not involved. The British Olympic Association – responsible for Olympic participation of the United Kingdom comprising its constituent countries , the Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories which do not have their own NOC – competes at all summer, winter and youth Olympics as [REDACTED] Great Britain (" Team GB "). The association comprises members from
688-685: The BOA: Bermuda , the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands . While the territories of British Antarctic Territory , British Indian Ocean Territory and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are nominally represented by the BOA, these territories have no permanent population and do not send athletes. Akrotiri and Dhekelia , a pair of British military areas on the island of Cyprus, has
731-704: The International Olympic Committee. It traces its roots back to the National Olympian Association (NOA), which held its inaugural meeting at the Liverpool Gymnasium, Myrtle Street, Liverpool in November 1865. It promoted an annual series of sporting events across Britain, with the aim of encouraging participation in physical education through Olympian festivals. The NOA came about mainly through
774-711: The Irish Schools Swimming Association who run the Irish Minor and Secondary Schools Championships. The Age Group InterProvincial takes place every year at the beginning of the summer months for swimmers up to the age of 16 years. This is where teams from the 4 provinces of Ireland (Ulster, Munster, Leinster and Connacht) compete against each other. These competitions take place in either the National Aquatic Centre , Dublin or at University Arena, Limerick. Both pools have
817-881: The Isle of Man. British Overseas Territories : Some notable British Olympians have come from British Overseas Territories, though some have transferred sporting allegiance to England for Commonwealth Games purposes afterwards. Such a switch is not necessary to represent Team GB at the Olympic Games: Examples include Olympic bronze medalist sprinter Zharnel Hughes and long jumper Shara Proctor , both originally from Anguilla , and Delano Williams , another sprinter from Turks and Caicos Islands . Note – IOC rules currently do not allow dependent territories to obtain recognition for National Olympic Committees (NOCs). Three British Overseas Territories have their own NOCs predating this rule and are therefore not connected with
860-465: The Liffey Swim and the volume of clubs had increased exponentially over the preceding decade. The state of national championships was not satisfactory as championships were often held in unsuitable and non-standard conditions. Many of the best swimmers did not always attend the championships and as a result the event was often won by the best local swimmer with times which varied largely depending on
903-598: The NOC, the BOA's decision and policy-making body. The NOC elects three officers: a President, a Chairman, and a Vice-Chairman, each for a four-year term. Six members of the NOC are elected to the Board, which oversees the work of the BOA and puts forward proposals for decision by the NOC. The present (2022) chief office holders are: The BOA's origins pre-date the International Olympic movement and its governing body,
SECTION 20
#1732793200015946-683: The Summer Olympic Games since 1896. Of these countries GB&NI, France and Switzerland are the only countries to have been present at all Olympic Winter Games; thus Great Britain & Northern Ireland is one of three countries that have competed at all Olympic Games. Great Britain is also the only team in the Olympic Games to have won a gold in every Summer games. The United Kingdom has hosted three Olympic Games, all of them in London: in 1908, 1948 and 2012. At its formation in 1905
989-799: The United States. Following the release of the BBC podcast Where is George Gibney? , it was revealed that the Gardaí were including new victims in their ongoing investigation of historical sexual abuse. A file was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions in November 2023. Frank McCann, Irish team manager from the 1980s through to the 1990s, was convicted of the murders of his wife and child to prevent them discovering he had sexually abused an underage swimmer and had fathered her child. Swim Ireland Swim Ireland ( Irish : Cumann Snámh Éireann )
1032-401: The abolition of the IASA and its replacement with a new national governing body, Swim Ireland . Derry O'Rourke, Olympic coach in 1980 and 1992, was convicted on 27 sexual abuse charges against minors and sentenced to 12 years imprisonment in 1998. He received a further sentence of 10 years in 2005 for repeated rape and indecent assault of a female swimmer between the ages of 14 and 18. He
1075-456: The association consisted of seven national governing body members from the following sports: fencing , life-saving , cycling , skating , rowing , athletics , rugby football , association football , and archery . It now includes as its members the thirty-three national governing bodies of each Olympic sport, both summer and winter. A representative of each of the Olympic sports makes up
1118-680: The compatibility to be changed into 50m and 25m. In 2003, Swim Ireland hosted the European Short Course Championships at the National Aquatic Centre in Dublin. The event was a resounding success with a world record being broken by the Dutch in the final race, the men's 4x50m Freestyle relay. Swim Ireland also organise The Liffey Swim which takes place in August to September annually. Swim Ireland recently introduced
1161-605: The country's first individual winners in internationals, victories at the ASA Championships, and re-entering the Olympics. 1990 saw the first introduction of computerisation at the national championship held in 1990 at the Guinness Pool. By the turn of the millennium, Ireland still did not have an Olympic-sized pool, placing any swimmer training here at an enormous disadvantage at international competition. At
1204-631: The efforts of John Hulley of Liverpool (Chairman), Dr William Penny Brookes (of Much Wenlock ) and E G Ravenstein (president of the German Gymnastic Society of London). It took the existing Olympian Games of Much Wenlock as its example, thus the NOA Games "were open to all comers" and not just the products of Britain's public schools . After the NOA closed in 1883 its motto ( Civium virtus civitatis tutamen meaning 'the power of
1247-614: The first Irish Champion under the new Association's rules when he annexed the 100 yards Championship of Ireland at the Belfast Waterworks ornamental pond. While Leinster Swimmers had some success at Irish Championships in these early years, their progress was impeded by a lack of indoor facilities in the region at this time and it was not surprising that some of the organisations first international sides were dominated by Ulster swimmers. Likewise in water polo, early inter provincial matches were dominated by Ulster. The side chosen for
1290-548: The first National Diving Competition was held at Highgate Baths, London and was won by EG Coldwell representing Sandycove SC. Influenced by this early success the sport of diving began to take root in Leinster and the Leinster High Diving Championship was introduced. There were only three Irish Championships held in 1914. No further championships or AGMs were held until 1919. Swimming continued at
1333-630: The first indoor National Championship Gala which was held at Butlin's Holiday Camp, Mosney , County Meath . 1963 saw the first national championship to be televised from the Grove Pool in Belfast. The 1960s were a period of innovation in Irish swimming with the introduction of national squad training, development of centralised programme for teachers and coaches, and an increase in the number of indoor pools. International results also began to improve with
Irish Amateur Swimming Association - Misplaced Pages Continue
1376-584: The following countries: Note – Northern Irish athletes can choose whether to compete for Great Britain and Northern Ireland or for the Republic of Ireland , as they are entitled to citizenship of either nation under the Good Friday Agreement . However in a number of sports, including hockey, tennis and rugby sevens, Northern Irish athletes rarely represent Team GB because the designated federation only selects from those players who are active on
1419-601: The island of Great Britain (for example, Northern Ireland born hockey players who live and play in England). Jack McMillan, a Northern Ireland-born heat swimmer in the gold-medal winning men's 4 x 200 freestyle relay British team in 2024, had previously swum for Team Ireland at the Olympics in 2021. The team that won the men's 4 x 200 freestyle relay was unique in being the first gold medal relay team from Great Britain ever to contain membes from all four constituent countries: an Englishman (in fact two, Tom Dean and James Guy ),
1462-621: The organisation's very first international was made up of all Ulster men with the exception of R.A. Andrews from Blackrock WPC. This first international was held in Westminster Baths, Great Smith Street, London on Monday 23 September 1895. In 1904, three clubs from Cork had formed themselves into the Cork Swimming Council and had applied for membership of the IASA as the Munster Branch of the IASA. Ireland
1505-501: The same year it further commented on "Swimming and the Fair Sex" and urged that prevalent prudery in that regard be dropped. The inaugural Ladies' 100 yards Irish Championship was held on 2 August 1919 at Blackrock Baths. Miss May Armstrong, the outstanding female swimmer of that period, was the winner. She would repeat this feat for the following six years. By 1920, the move towards having athletes representing Ireland independently at
1548-578: The speed of the current. As a result, in 1941 the decision was taken to create a Centralised Championship Gala to be held over the August Bank Holiday weekend at Blackrock Baths. The success of this format which was held in Blackrock from 1941 to 1948 lead to the rotation of the Gala to various baths across the country and began a rotation of the championship between the provinces. 1962 saw
1591-579: The sport is held) Commonwealth Games eligibility for their territories. These include: Some more have participated in Team GB after switching Commonwealth Games eligibility mid-career from their territories to England before the Olympic Games, including: The BOA is one of 206 National Committees (NOCs) currently recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC leads the promotion of Olympism in accordance with
1634-501: The three Crown Dependencies (Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man), who do not have their own separate Olympics teams. Athletes from Northern Ireland are also entitled, as of right, to represent Ireland (the team organised by the Olympic Federation of Ireland ) and routinely do so in certain sports due to all-island governing bodies existing in those sports such as rugby, tennis and field hockey. Founded in 1905, The BOA
1677-452: Was again convicted on historical charges of rape and indecent assault in 2024. George Gibney, national and Olympic coach (1984-1991) and teacher at Newpark Comprehensive School in the 1970s, was charged with 27 counts of sexual abuse involving children and youth he coached. A judicial review in 1994 prevented the case from proceeding due to the length of time that had elapsed since the alleged incidents took place. He left Ireland to live in
1720-678: Was among the founding members of the Federation Internationale de Natation Amateur ( FINA ) being represented at the meeting on 19 July 1908 during the London 1908 Olympiad by Dr. WJ Dockrell and HM Dockrell. During the period 1893 to 1914, Leinster swimmers dominated Irish Championships. Of the 80 Championships swum, Leinster won 66. Of these, 54 were won by just five swimmers, namely HM Dockrell (6), Oscar Conway (9), Jim Beckett (10), and George Dockrell (20). Diving also began to develop in Ireland over this period. 1900 had seen
1763-710: Was created after a meeting between the Leinster Swimming Association and Ulster Swimming Association in Fisher's Restaurant, Donegall Place , Belfast on Saturday 25 November 1893. Prior to this meeting, the two associations had been founded and developed in tandem since 1890 when the British Amateur Swimming Association had suggested that the number of clubs in Ireland now warranted an independent association. On 4 August 1894, J. McDermid of Templemore A.S.C. became
Irish Amateur Swimming Association - Misplaced Pages Continue
1806-469: Was limited and much of the period was dominated by political wrangling between the different branches and discussions over which flag swimmers should compete under. The organisation endured however, and in 1934 a Connacht branch joined the IASA achieving the goal of a single governing body for the island as a whole. By 1941, the Sunday Independent was reporting crowds of 100,000 spectators at
1849-589: Was long overdue – as early as 1874 a Miss Rounds of Dundrum won a 440 yards ladies' race at Blackrock , County Dublin , but the account of this event was treated in a humorous and superficial manner by "Figaro" in the Irish Times . On the other hand, in 1875 the Irish Sportsman editorialised on the desirability of learning to swim in order to prevent tragic drownings and scorned the notion that worries over "nakedness" should prevent one from swimming. In
#14985