The organisation governing basketball in Ireland has said it did not know anything about the sexual abuse of children by former basketball coach and manager, Bill Kenneally, in the 1970s and 1980s until reports emerged in the media in 2013.
Kenneally was fired from a Waterford school in 1987 because of allegations of abuse, but he went on to manage the men's national basketball team from 1990 to 1998.
A solicitor for Basketball Ireland gave evidence today to the Commission of Investigation examining how authorities responded to the allegations of sexual abuse made against Kenneally.
It emerged that the then principal of the school where Kenneally coached basketball, De La Salle College in Waterford, was approached and told of sexual abuse allegations in 1987, which led to Kenneally being fired from the school.
However, the commission was told this did "not filter up" to Basketball Ireland and Kenneally continued to abuse children.
Kenneally is serving a total of almost 19 years in prison for the abuse of 15 young boys in Waterford between 1979 and 1990.
He was a founder of basketball club TF Meagher's in Waterford, as well as a coach at De La Salle College.
He later became the manager of the Irish Senior Men’s basketball team and of a number of student teams.
The Government established the Commission in 2018 to examine how gardaí, the South Eastern health board and Basketball Ireland, as well as members of the clergy and political or public figures, responded to allegations about Kenneally.
Most of the commission’s hearings have been in private but it is now hearing evidence in public.
Solicitor John Landy said there was no evidence that any complaint had ever been made to Basketball Ireland about any allegation of child abuse by Kenneally.
He said the organisation was "disgusted" at what had happened. But he said no one had told it what was happening.
Mr Landy said as soon as it was revealed in early 2013 that Kenneally had been abusing children, he was asked if it was true.
He said Kenneally admitted it was and resigned the next day from his position on the board of Vikings Basketball Club in Waterford.
This was the first time, Mr Landy said, that the "basketball community" became aware of what was going on.
The chair of the Commission, Mr Justice Michael White, said he had heard evidence that the then principal of De La Salle College in Waterford, Brother Columba, had been approached in 1987 about allegations that Kenneally had been abusing boys.
The judge said a compromising photograph of a boy had been shown to the principal.
Kenneally would take polaroid photographs of the boys he abused and threaten to reveal them publicly if they told anyone what was happening.
The commission was told Kenneally had been "terminated" as a coach in the school. But Mr Landy said the basketball governing body had not been told about this.
Despite being removed as a coach in the school, Kenneally went on in 1990 to manage the men's national basketball team and remained in that position for eight years.
Basketball Ireland has emphasised that this was a position that involved logistics rather than coaching.
Mr Landy said he had only heard for the first time that the school had been told about abuse allegations in 1987 during the commission proceedings.
He said he could not speculate why the governing organisation had not been told at the time. He said the school may have brought the matter to the attention of local clergy but he said that was only speculation on his part.
Mr Landy was asked by barrister Barra McGrory, representing some of Kenneally’s victims, what Basketball Ireland would say to them now, given that Kenneally had used the basketball structure in Waterford to abuse a large number of boys.
Mr Landy said there was very little of substance that the organisation could say to the victims.
He said if Kenneally’s club had known what was going on he would have expected actions to be taken and he said Basketball Ireland now had very strict safety regulations in place.
Every club and local area board had to have a safety officer responsible for the protection of children, he said.
Mr Landy said that during the 1980s and 1990s the clubs operated "very much independently" from the governing body.
The commission will resume public hearings next week when it is expected to hear evidence from three senior gardaí.
