It was good television and doubtless caused a few eyebrows to be raised here and there, but the recent RTE 'Greatest Irish Sportsperson' drew conclusions with which many - naturally in any opinion poll - would not agree.

The definition of sport was not apparently an issue, for golf can hardly be classified as such in the company of athletics, football and other codes which demand Olympian qualities of highest, strongest, fastest.

Without doubt Padraig Harrington is in the rarefied zone of the global elite of golf, but the popularity of the game rests on the ability of those without any of the Olympic qualities to enjoy when the more athletic pursuits have long left them behind.

The Olympic Games is, to those who appreciate the physical demands on athletes, not the place for an aging population and it is quite possible that qualifiers for 2016 may be, as quite a few in the code, are getting on in years and carrying weight not consistent with the Grecians view of athletic competition. Then the rulers have bowed to numerical participation and media exposure because of the massive commercial rewards and of course the tourism implications.

However, the Games requirements have been so bent and twisted for commercial satisfaction that shortly we may have ballroom dancing (far more taxing than golf) darts and snooker vying for a place in the mix.

I have listened to, and have to agree with, the arguments that racing is not a fair entrant to such competitions in that trainers are only as competent as the horses they are fortunate enough to have in their yard, and to some only the jockey should be considered which is a perfectly valid point.

Motor-racing is another 'assisted' sport yet when the kudos are distributed in polls it is the driver who is singles out for the award, never the team manager or indeed the vital cog, the race engineer. But then jockeys are looked upon traditionally as the lads who see the trainers as 'boss' and seldom win the social standing in their realms as the drivers and moto-riders within their communities.

Getting back to the RTE programme, it was disappointing not to list at least five or so others in each category to draw comparison and generate opinion, and if it was because of time restrictions then the programme should have been given an hour to cover others who were in the same league as those selected.

To classify Paul McGrath or even Roy Keane in the same sentence as George Best is to denigrate the baffling skills of the only player on this side of the world to match the magic of Pele or Maradonna.

Equally baffling was the omission of Ronnie Delany, our outstanding Olympian whose career in the US was absolutely outstanding but in an era where the spotlight was not as focussed on track and field as currently. And then of course there was Pat O'Callaghan, and if the argument covered only the living they Christy Ring should not have been considered either.

Indeed Sonia O'Sullivan was a fine ambassador for the Emerald Isle and won a world title (then so did Eamon Coghlan) but, as in many cases, when memories dim it is the deeds of those not long out of competition which draw most attention.

Ring is a hurling legend and his deeds snowball as time rolls on and his innings, like many sportspeople, become magnified and romanced in the telling.

I was entrusted with a place on a centenary team's selection panel in the '80s, and like many of the judges of golf courses who do not even see - at least in that year - what they are voting on, I had only seen half of those I put my name to and went along with the others because of second-hand information.

It would have been interesting to hear some discussion about Ring in company of Eddie Kehir, John Doyle, DJ Carey and Henry Shefflin if only to generate debate.

How many judges consider the eras in which sporting achievements are delivered? Take Brian O'Driscoll who is a splendid rugby player yet fortunate to become an adult player in a tremendous decade for the game here when professionalism reached a peak, television beams every major game into our living rooms and games are more numerous and caps won for a few minutes on the pitch.

- PAUL DONAGHY