Former Irish Olympic swimming coach George Gibney has been arrested in Florida by US Marshals and is due to appear in court in connection with historical sexual abuse allegations.
The arrest, which took place yesterday, follows the issuing of an Irish extradition warrant. Gibney, now in his 70s, has been living in the United States since 1995.
Gibney was once a prominent figure in Irish swimming, having served as the national coach in the 1980s. In 1993, he was charged with 27 counts of indecent assault involving young swimmers, including allegations of carnal knowledge of girls under the age of 15.
However, those charges were dropped in 1994 after he secured a High Court injunction preventing the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) from proceeding with the case.
The case was brought back into the spotlight in 2020 following renewed allegations featured in a BBC podcast. A Garda investigation followed, and a file was submitted to the DPP in 2023.
He was the founder of and a coach at the Trojan Swimming Club in Blackrock in Dublin.
Gibney remains in custody in the US pending his court appearance.
