Tough couple of days for Shane Ross.
The Minister for Transport, Tourism (and Sport) went all the Rio de Janeiro to have a showdown with Pat Hickey, only to suffer the same fate as many of his predecessors when the (currently suspended) president of the Irish Olympic Council “put him back in his box”.
Then Ross went to watch some sailing, cheered Annalise Murphy home as she won her silver medal, and was left as flabbergasted as everyone else on Wednesday morning when Hickey was arrested on charges of ticket-touting, forming a cartel and illicit marketing.
Shell shock here in Rio
— Shane Ross (@Ross_Shane1) August 17, 2016
Soon after the tweet the politician was on a plane home to chat with his cabinet colleagues, senior civil servants and the attorney general to see how best to deal with the shit storm.
So, when interviewed by journalists in Dublin Airport he can be forgiven for getting the name of Ireland’s new track and field hero wrong. Twice.
Minister for Sport Shane Ross twice congratulates Thomas Barry for a wonderful achievement. Anyone know what Thomas Barry did?
— Hugh Cahill (@hughcahill7) August 18, 2016
Perhaps the minister was thinking of the British Deputy High Commissioner to Canada, Thomas Barry.
Perhaps Ross, now in the midst of the first major diplomatic incident of his tenure, was reading up on great diplomats of our time and had @tomjbarry on his mind.
Or maybe he was just tired and jet-lagged.
We shouldn’t judge Ross, who is sure to bounce back, as @tomjbarry always says…
https://twitter.com/tomjbarry/status/761976196708102145
Have a nap, eat some food that is not from an airplane and you’ll be right as rain. As @tomjbarry advises…
https://twitter.com/tomjbarry/status/761934183614873600
