NI Sports Stars: Cuts Will Prevent Future Glory

Olympians past and present who top Northern Ireland's New Year honours list have expressed concern about a potential £1m cut to the devolved government's sports budget.

The warning comes at the end of another golden year for the country's athletes.

Rory McIlroy won his fourth major, boxer Carl Frampton won the IBF Super Bantamweight title and skier Kelly Gallagher and her sight guide won gold in the winter Paralympics.

But there are fears for young sportsmen and women who aspire to follow in their footsteps, if public funding is cut by the proposed 10%.

Dame Mary Peters, who joins the distinguished Order of Companions of Honour, heads a charitable trust for budding athletes.

And she expects a queue at the door in 2015.

She said: "There always is but there will be more I’m sure because we help them to get on that ladder for success.

"Unfortunately, if money isn't there you’ve got to find another way and you know, I had no track, I had no funding, I had no facilities at all but I’d a very good coach who motivated me."

Irish boxer Paddy Barnes won two gold medals in the Commonwealth Games and has now been awarded the MBE.

He is training hard for Rio and relies on public funding.

He said: "Put it this way, if the money's cut in sport, don't be expecting good results on the international scene, don't be expecting any new household names to come through, don't be expecting any more childhood heroes.

"Don't be expecting anything like that because without that funding, none of it's going to be possible."

Antoinette McKeown, chief executive of Sport NI, said: "I think it's very, very sad that in a year when Kelly Gallagher has won gold for the first time ever in the winter Olympics for Britain, a Northern Irish woman who's supported by Sport Northern Ireland, we’re having to cut the very organisation who helped to get her there."