The University of Limerick is set to become the base for the new Irish Institute of Sport. A detailed proposal for the project, which was one of the main recommendations to come out of the Athens Olympic Review, will go before an Irish Sports Council (ISC) committee later today and if approved could be presented for Government funding before the end of the year.

Although the full content of the proposal has not yet been disclosed, the University of Limerick has emerged as the recommended venue, ahead of the Sports Campus Ireland project at Abbotstown, which was the Government's preferred site.

The enduring delay in getting the Abbotstown project off the ground, plus the growing traffic and access problems around Dublin, is one of the main reasons Limerick is currently seen as the most likely venue

One of the eight key recommendations of the Athens Review, published last March, was "the establishment of structures for an Irish Institute of Sport, to deliver optimal support services for Olympic and Paralympic athletes and sports, and to form the basis of a long-term and sustainable high performance infrastructure".

The Sports Council put that process in motion several months ago by setting up a technical panel to develop the initial proposal. The panel was made up of mostly overseas experts in the area of sporting institutes, including Roslyn Carbon, former medical director with the English Institute of Sport, and Brian Miller, a member of the British athletics sports science panel.

After several weeks of site visits and extensive interviews the panel finalised their proposal.

Although not yet approved as the site, the University of Limerick has several advantages in terms of facilities and access. The newly-completed University Arena offers a 50-metre pool, indoor running track, and modern gymnasium.

There are also a recently resurfaced outdoor running track and a range of sports pitches adjacent. And there are plans in place for further expansion.

The ISC declined to comment on any details of the proposal, but Finbarr Kirwan, their high-performance director, confirmed significant progress has been made in closing the deal for an Irish Institute of Sport.

"The technical panel was set up several months ago to develop the overall proposal for the institute," explained Kirwan.

"They are all sporting experts, whether it's with a medical or consultation background. Essentially that panel was set up to put forward the best possible proposal, and how to best apply all the services associated with it, so obviously it will be carefully considered.

"We will be meeting tomorrow to examine that proposal but the next step will be for that proposal to go before an advisory panel. It is very possible that we're looking at a phased delivery here, but the plan is to start that early in the New Year."

Dan Flinter, who also acted as chairman to the Athens Review committee, chairs the advisory panel. Along with Kirwan, also included on the advisory panel is John Treacy, the chief executive of the ISC.

"This panel will ultimately determine whether or not the proposal is ready and good enough to go before the Government," added Kirwan. "But that submission is scheduled to be made before the end of the year."

Clearly the project has become a priority. The Athens Review highlighted the need for an Irish Institute of Sport, which many governing bodies of Irish sport believe is long overdue. Most countries have developed such a body, the Australian Institute of Sport still being the ultimate model, to serve their elite athletes.

According to the Athens Review, "structures" for the Institute of Sport should be created over the course of 2005, with a view to "delivering optimal services to athletes who are likely to compete in the Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games" while also "establishing a sustainable infrastructure for a high performance system in Ireland".

Central to the Institute of Sport, according to the Athens Review, will be "Demand Management" (meeting the demands of elite athletes) and "Supply Management" (the service providers to meet the demand) as well as "quality assurance" and "compliance".

According to Kirwan, the technical panel has been working toward meeting those recommendations.

"One of the main tasks has been to come up with a model that would best work within the Irish context, while also being practical to any potential international tie-in," he said. "Another part of the proposal brief was to lay out the potential cost involved, which will obviously play a part when it comes to making any decision.

"We have already invested a lot of time and energy in this, and a lot of work has already been done in terms of some of the groundwork. A lot of key people have been interviewed and consulted . . . and there has been some significant overseas input, including some Australian expertise."

With the new Olympic cycle well under way, the new Institute of Sport would have to be up and running next year if it is to have any impact on Beijing 2008.

Interestingly, the Athens Review also recommended the services most urgently needed in the short term are strength and conditioning, medical, physiotherapy and lifestyle management and support - all of which are currently within the scope of the University of Limerick.