Sport is health and wellness, hobbies and fun and is fuelled almost exclusively at grassroots level by a band of passionate volunteers.
Yet the value of the industry in Ireland is worth an estimated €1.5 billion to the Exchequer, every year.
Today, the people who help sport come to life in clubs and societies around Ireland were celebrated by the Federation of Irish Sport.
The Volunteer in Sport Awards are held annually to celebrate the social importance of volunteerism in sport, and recognise the time given by those who make sport happen nationwide.
Mary O'Connor, CEO of the Federation of Irish Sport remarked: "If you look at the most recent past, we've had the Under 20 Grand Slam, the adult men winning the Grand Slam, the women are playing this weekend. There's not one high performance athlete in this country, who hasn't been positively affected by a volunteer when they started playing the sport".
The "time given" by sports volunteers equates to approximately 37.3 million hours across Ireland's 13,000 registered sports clubs and associations.
Today, Aislinn Nugent Reid from Co Wicklow received the Outstanding Achievement Award for her work with the Valleymount Ladies Gaelic Football Club.
"It's for the love of the game, it's for the love of the sport, and it's for the kids," Ms Nugent Reid said.
"We want the girls outside in the fresh air, we want them out playing sport, we want them out making friends, we don't want them behind computer screens. We want them having fun, being part of a team, that's what it's all about."
Ms Nugent Reid was recognised for her promotion of inclusivity, community spirit, health and well-being through sport in her community for more than 20 years.
There was one award winner in every county, all of whom make up just some of the 450,000 people who volunteer for sport and physical activity in Ireland on a weekly basis.
The special guest speaker at the awards Thomas Byrne, Minister of State with responsibility for Sport & Physical Education, presented the recipients from each county with a custom-made medal recognising their amazing dedication to volunteering across a variety of different sports.
