The Olympic Council of Ireland has been presented with a new Sprinter van by the International Olympic Committee as part of the IOC’s Olympic Solidarity programme.
The new van is for use by the many National Sports Federations accredited to the Olympic Council of Ireland and replaces one originally presented by Olympic Solidarity to the Council in 2001.
The old van has seen sterling service over the years, building up huge mileage ferrying athletes, teams and sporting gear from competition to competition throughout Ireland and Europe.
Mr. Dieter Kuehnle represented the International Olympic Committee at the formal presentation of the new van to Pat Hickey, President of the OCI at a ceremony in Dublin’s Grand Canal Dock Plaza (April 16).
The presentation was also attended by Darren O’Neill, chairperson of the Olympic Athletes’ Commission, fellow Olympian, swimmer Barry Murphy and Nicole Cronin, from the victorious Irish women’s rugby team.
In welcoming Mr. Kuehnle to Ireland, Pat Hickey commented “This new van is very warmly received and will be extensively used by our many Olympic Sports Federations for transportation to competitions at home and abroad. Its presentation is a great example of the work of Olympic Solidarity and the positive impact it has on the work of national Olympic committees”.
The older van, suitably refurbished, is now being presented to the sport of boxing for exclusive use by its athletes and coaches as they prepare for the Rio Olympic Games. “Boxing is Ireland’s most successful Olympic sport”, said Pat Hickey, “and this van will undoubtedly see a huge amount of usage in the coming years”
