Former Olympic Council of Ireland President Pat Hickey said that there are "significant inaccuracies" in Justice Carroll Moran's report into the OCI's ticket-touting controversy, according to Ian O'Riordan of the IRISH TIMES. But he added that he is "pleased to see my reputation and good name have been cleared" and that there is "no allegation of criminality or financial impropriety." Moran's 226-page report, which was published on Monday, criticized the "failure by so many principal participants" to engage with the inquiry, including Hickey, who was arrested during the Rio Olympics on charges of ticket touting. In a statement, Hickey outlined the reasons behind his non-participation -- and directly criticized Ireland Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Shane Ross for "failing to bring to the attention of Dail Eireann the agreed legal procedure on the matter," which would have resulted in "substantial saving to the Irish taxpayer." The cost of the report, which began its work on Sept. 19, was €312,765 ($405,400) (IRISH TIMES, 8/14). In Dublin, Kevin Doyle reported the inquiry reported a "series of problems" with how the OCI treated athletes, their coaches and supporters. Many families who traveled to Brazil "had to do so without any guarantee they would be able to obtain tickets for events." Moran concluded the company responsible for looking after Ireland's ticket allocation, Pro10, "provided an inadequate service as an authorised ticket reseller to such an extent that it was unfit for its purpose." The judge found Ireland initially sought 2,138 public tickets for the Olympics -- but excluded sports like boxing, golf, rowing and sailing, for which it "had genuine medal hopes." However, the judge was "unable to build a full picture of what happened to all of the tickets allocated to Ireland for the Olympics." He blamed a lack of cooperation from "key players" including Hickey, the IOC and the Rio Organizing Committee for "gaps in his narrative" (IRISH INDEPENDENT, 8/14).
