City Marathon organiser in legal action threat over comments

Date Published: 12-Sep-2011

By Dara Bradley

The organiser of the Galway City Marathon that was cancelled controversially last month, has threatened to sue a City Councillor and Galway City Council for libel.

Richard Donovan claims Cllr Mike Crowe (FF) made “serious and untrue allegations” against him in media; and the athlete and businessman says he will sue the Fianna Fáil Councillor and the local authority unless he receives a “very speedy and unreserved retraction and apology”.

Mr Donovan made the threat in an email he circulated to City Councillors last Friday. But yesterday a spokesperson for City Hall said: “The first we were made aware of this is when contacted by the Connacht Sentinel.”He had no additional comment to make.

And Cllr Crowe said he has had no contact from Mr Donovan since August and he hasn’t had contact from Mr Donovan’s lawyers.

Cllr Crowe reiterated that it was “unfortunate” that the Galway City Marathon was cancelled. “Any cause of action Mr Donovan decides to take is obviously a matter for himself. As far as I’m concerned the matter is over, and I’ve moved on,” he added.

However, in the email seen by the Sentinel, Mr Donovan says that Cllr Crowe alleged that he had not honoured an ‘agreement’ to give money from the 2010 marathon to various clubs in the City Sports Partnership.

But Mr Donovan claims he actually “gave many multiples of what I said I would give, culminating in close to €30,000 in charitable donations from that event alone”.

Mr Donovan continues in the email to suggest that despite a request, Cllr Crowe “has refused to unreservedly withdraw and apologise for his statements”.

He said the statement made by Cllr Crowe, about donations, is “a particularly damaging and hurtful one, especially given that the ethos of all my business operations is to donate substantial amounts to charity or worthy causes”.

Mr Donovan’s email added: “I must now receive a very speedy and unreserved retraction and apology from Galway City Council in a manner that is acceptable to me or I will be faced with no choice but to join the Council in a libel lawsuit against Cllr Crowe."

Read more in today’s Connacht Sentinel