Mr Richard Burrows, the joint managing director of Pernod Ricard and a leading administrator in the Irish Sailing Association, has emerged as the probable candidate to run against Mr Pat Hickey for the presidency of the Olympic Council of Ireland.
The election will be at the OCI's a.g.m. on February 15th. Nominations for positions must be in the OCI offices by 5 p.m. on January 17th.
As the dispute between a number of Irish sporting federations and the Olympic Council of Ireland continues to escalate, Mr Burrows, who was chairman of the Atlanta and Sydney Challenge for the ISA, yesterday declined to comment on the issue.
In the past week it has emerged that a number of Irish federations have complained to the International Olympic Committee about OCI structures and modus operandi.
A letter was also circulated from the ISA to all 27 Olympic federations on Thursday urging them to view the OCI a.g.m. as "a unique opportunity to effect positive change within the Olympic Council for the benefit of all Olympic sports".
The point of contact for federations interested in supporting the campaign to contest all available positions on the OCI council is the ISA, the federation with which Mr Burrows has had a long-standing and close relationship.
A number of federations believe Mr Burrows is the best candidate to take on Mr Hickey, who has robustly seen off challenges before. Mr Burrows carries a hefty reputation as a leading Irish businessman and a passionate sportsman. In 2000 he was promoted from chief executive of Irish Distillers to a senior position in the parent company, Pernod Ricard.
He was nominated for OCI office after the Atlanta games in 1996 but declined to go forward.
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