Minister for sport Michael Ring has announced that a special allocation of €1M in government support has been confirmed to assist with qualification for and participation in the Rio 2016 Olympics.

It comes on the same day as the Team Ireland ‘Leaders’ were announced for the Games, including Ryder Cup-winning captain Paul McGinley.

Sonia O’Sullivan will not reprise her role as Ireland's Chef de Mission at London 2012, but will have an advisory position.

The details of the all-important funding include:

€1M for equipment for National Governing Bodies of Sport (NGBs).

€1M towards the preparation programmes for high performance athletes for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

€80,000 towards the development of a headquarters for the Special Olympics within the National Sports Campus complex.

The Minister has been speaking to Oisin Langan about the funding, the 2023 Rugby World Cup bid, and another big event that could be on its way to Ireland.