Special Olympics Ireland welcomes its new Board Members

The AGM noted the appointment of:

• Jillian O’Sullivan as a Company Director who replaces Louise O’Loughlin as the Regional Chairperson of the Leinster Region.
• Evelyn Bohan as a Company Director who replaces Aengus Sheerin as the Regional Chairperson of the Connaught Region
• Jennifer Holohan as a Company Director who replaces Paul Malone as the Regional Chairperson of the Eastern Region

In line with Articles 7.2.5 (A), 7.2.5 (C) and 7.2.5 (D) the following directors were elected:

• Rob Hartnett
• Ronan O’Flynn
• Gary Desmond

Read on to find out more about our new Board members.

Jillian O’Sullivan

Jillian first became involved with Special Olympics during the World Games in 2003. Since then, she has served as an event volunteer with Special Olympics supporting various events such as Athletics and Basketball, as well as being a mentor to athletes as part of the Let's Run programme during COVID. 

Through Jillian's efforts, a partnership was established with Grant Thornton to support the 2019 Leinster Athletics event. This partnership has since grown, with the organization now supporting a wider range of Special Olympics Ireland's activities. Professionally, Jillian oversees Corporate Compliance in her day job and she will no doubt bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to bear at board level.

Evelyn Bohan

Evelyn was a volunteer at the 2003 World Summer Games in Dublin.  She then set up the Globetrotters Special Olympics Basketball Club in Galway - where she still is the head coach today.

She held many roles at various events throughout Connaught from Competition Manager, Volunteer Services and Games Management System operator.  She is out shaking a bucket at every Collection Day.

Evelyn was a basketball coach at the 2010, 2014 and 2018 Ireland Games and travelled with Team Ireland as a basketball coach to the 2019 World Summer Games in Abu Dhabi.

Evelyn was the area rep on the Regional Committee in the past and has now taken on the role of Chairperson of the Committee.

Jen Holohan

Jennifer got involved in Special Olympics in 2002 when the company she worked in announced that they were going to sponsor 5 athletes and 5 employees to volunteer in the 2003 World Games, in Ireland.  That kicked off a 2-year fund raising cycle and a week that changed how she look at sport.   Soon after, she helped to start a bowling club in Blanchardstown which she continued to actively support until she started a swimming club in Monkstown shortly before COVID. 

Since 2003, she has held various roles in the 2 clubs; chairperson, secretary, Designated Liaison Person, Area Representative, Eastern Committee member. Jennifer has been mentoring an athlete for about 15 years as part of the Athlete Leadership Committee and has participated in a number Athlete Leadership Forums, Toastmaster, social media, first aid, health and fitness events. 

Rob Hartnett 

Rob is a seasoned board member with huge involvement and commitment to several organisations. 

Rob is the founder of Sport for Business, a professional member-based network of leaders that values intelligent analysis of what is working best in the commercial world of sport since 2012. 

Sport for Business produce a Daily Sport for Business News Digest as well as hosting monthly events gathering leaders from business, sport and Government to discuss areas of topical interest.

Rob has been a strong advocate for Special Olympics over the years and joined the 2018 Special Olympics Ireland Games Dublin Leadership Council and played his part in the success of those Games. Since then, he has been a great support for a multitude of events, most recently attending the Ireland Winter Games in Craigavon, Co. Armagh in March 2024. 

Rob has offered opportunities to Special Olympics athletes to present or be interviewed at high profile conferences. 

You can read an article by Rob about his 2024 AGM experience here.

Ronan O’Flynn 

Ronan is a member of Lucan Special Olympics Club, where his daughter Sinéad is also a member. 

Ronan is always eager to engage with new initiatives, develop and support teams, athletes and volunteers in the club and share his wealth of knowledge. As both a parent and a coach he is empathetic and practical in the way he deals with challenging situations. His determination and passion to create a space for all athletes to thrive both socially and in sport is testament to the success of the club. 

Ronan is an active member of the Basketball Development Team and plays a key role in the development of the sport. Ronan has also represented Ireland as a basketball referee at multiple World Summer Games. He is a mentor for Special Olympics Ireland athletes who took on roles as Basketball Table Officials at the World Summer Games. 

Most recently Ronan volunteered at the Ireland Winter Games in the role of referee for Floorball. 

Gary Desmond 

Gary has been a member of Special Olympics Ireland Council of Patrons for close to nine years. Gary has had a number of high-profile jobs throughout his career with the most recent being his role as CEO of Gala Retail, a position he has been in since 2007. 

Under Gary’s leadership, Gala Retail have been a loyal sponsor and important partner to Special Olympics since 2015 when they came on a valued sponsor of Team Ireland for the 2015 World Summer Games in Los Angeles. The relationship is stronger now than ever. Gary most recently was an avid supporter at the 2024 Ireland Winter Games in Craigavon during March.