Other sport sex abuse cases likely - McDaid

Swimming is not the only sport to have suffered from child sex abuse, the Minister for Tourism and Sport has said.

Speaking in Dublin at the announcement of a new carding scheme for the funding of elite Irish athletes, Dr McDaid said he believed there had been similar problems in sporting organisations other than the Irish Amateur Swimming Association.

In the coming months, these incidents of abuse would probably become public and the Minister strongly advised that sports organisations should act on the contents of the Murphy report. The report was an inquiry into child sexual abuse in swimming.

"It is unfortunate it happened in swimming but I'm quite sure that incidents of child sex abuse have happened in other sports and indeed we will hear more of them as the months roll on," said Dr McDaid.

"I am quite sure that the same [child sex abuse] exists in other national governing bodies (NGBs) and that they will have to have a serious look at the Murphy report and find methods to deal with the whole area of sex abuse in their sports.

"As a result of the Murphy report I have no doubt that a lot of governing bodies are seriously looking at the structures that they have in place.

"I have also no doubt whatsoever that while swimming is the one that is in focus, there are probably quite a lot of other NGBs in which child abuse has occurred and which we have not heard of yet," he said.

Dr McDaid was not specific on what other sports he believed had given rise to child abuse. But he added that if other NGBs did not adopt the Murphy report's recommendations then they could suffer as swimming had.

Since Irish Olympic coach Derry O'Rourke was jailed for 12 years at the beginning of this year for child sex abuse crimes, the IASA has effectively disbanded. All executive members have agreed to resign, it has run out of funds and all Government support has been cut.

A new organisation - IASA Ltd - is expected to be formed before the end of this year.