Aoife O'Brien Announced as LA28 Scholar
The Olympic Federation of Ireland (OFI) today announced the recipients of the Los Angeles 2028 IOC Olympic Scholarships, with a total fund of $320,000 to be distributed among eight athletes and two teams. The scholarships will support their preparations for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, USA.
The funding, provided through the International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Solidarity Programme, and supported by Team Ireland’s commercial programme, is designed to assist athletes targeting Olympic qualification. Each recipient will receive up to €26,500 over the four-year cycle, paid in three instalments annually, to help cover costs such as travel, training, accommodation, coaching, and medical insurance. The teams will each receive a total of $50,000 to support them in the qualification journey to LA.
Aoife O'Brien, hot off the heels of her debut UCI Track World Championships at the senior level, was today announced as one of the recipients. O'Brien, currently racing with UCI Continental team DAS-Hutchinson, has become a stalwart of the Irish track team over the last 18 months, riding in green at World and European Championships among other international events, and took a podium place in the Omnium at the Hyerres GP in France earlier this year.
Speaking at the announcement, Chief Executive Officer of the Olympic Federation of Ireland, Peter Sherrard, said,
“We are delighted to back the potential of these young athletes and to support them on their qualification pathway to Los Angeles 2028. Thanks to the support of our commercial partners and Olympic Solidarity funding, we have been able to invest over €2.5m in grants to athletes and sports during the past two cycles, while at the same time providing over €4m to support Games costs, playing our part in contributing meaningfully to the system-wide support of Sport Ireland to assist our member sports. I wish the athletes and their sport programmes every success on an exciting journey ahead”
Team Ireland Chef de Mission for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, Gavin Noble, said,
“These scholarships make a real difference in the journey to the Olympic Games. They provide crucial support to athletes who are balancing full-time training, competition, and financial pressures. It’s great to see such a strong mix of emerging and established athletes, all with genuine potential to perform at the highest level in Los Angeles.”