Kenneth Egan says he went off the rails after winning an Olympic medal in 2008. The Fine Gael councillor admitted he had a huge problem with alcohol after the games.

It comes as addiction service Aiséirí say they need more funding for their centres in the south east.

Former boxer Egan says he battled his own addiction after winning silver in Beijing.

“[Winning the medal] fast-forwarded my path to recovery,” he explained this morning on Newstalk.

“I just went off the rails in ‘08 when I won the medal and went totally nuts, party time.

“If I hadn’t won the medal it probably would have been a slow descent into madness whereas this fast-forwarded it.

“There was two years of madness and then I knew I had to get myself together and I got into AA.”