Here are the events for the Irish athletes at the Olympics on Sunday:
– Shane Lowry tees off at 10.17 am for the final stage of Golf.
– Nicola Tuthill will be participating in the Hammer qualifying round in Athletics, starting at 10.45 am.
– Finn Lynch will be racing in the 7th and 8th Dinghy races in Sailing from 11 am onwards.
– Rory McIlroy will join the final round of Golf at 11.28 am.
– Megan Armitage will take part in the Cycling Road Race at 1 pm.
– The 7th and 8th Dinghy races in Sailing will also feature Eve McMahon, starting at 1.30 pm.
– In Canoe Slalom, Liam Jegou will compete in the second heat of Kayak Cross at 2.35 pm, followed by Noel Hendrick in the seventh heat at 3 pm, and Madison Corcoran in the eighth heat at 4.20 pm.
– Daniel Wiffen is to compete in the 1,500m Freestyle final in Swimming at 5.37 pm.
– Cathal Doyle will run in the 1,500m semi-finals in Athletics at 8.10 pm.
In Saturday’s Golf competition, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry both scored impressive rounds of 66. However, Lowry is trailing by nine strokes and will require an exceptional performance in the final round today for a podium finish. On the other hand, McIlroy stands a good chance of winning a medal if he maintains his form, as he is just four shots behind leaders Xander Schauffele and Jon Rahm, three short of Tommy Fleetwood, and one behind Hideki Matsuyama and Nicolai Hoejgaard. His round starts at 11.28 am.
Nicola Tuthill, a hammer thrower from Bandon, is marking her Olympic debut this morning in the qualifying round. At only 20 years old, she is the youngest participant in the competition. Her performance at the European Championships in June was a significant achievement where she claimed ninth place in her maiden senior final. Only two other Irish women – Patricia Walsh in the discus (1984) and Eileen O’Keeffe in the hammer (2008) – have reached Olympic level in the throwing events.
The Olympic campaign for the boxing squad has been rather disheartening apart from Kellie Harrington. An unfortunate combination of questionable judgement calls and other factors resulted in a premature departure for nine out of the ten boxers. However, Harrington staged a brilliant match in her quarter-final, ensuring a minimum bronze medal for her. Subsequently, after her semi-final victory over Beatriz Ferreira of Brazil, the same competitor she had defeated for her gold in Tokyo, she was in pole position for another Olympic victory.
Rhys McClenaghan deserves special mention. Despite having faced disappointment in Tokyo, he returned to the competitive stage at the Arena Bercy, where he won Ireland’s first Olympic medal in gymnastics, a remarkable achievement. His outstanding performance both in terms of his extraordinary nerve and unparalleled ambition resulted in a triumphant display on the pommel horse, as witnessed by Ian O’Riordan. One might quietly wish for the last four contenders to falter, but our guilt would eventually subside.
Hello everyone, greetings to you all this fine morning. Can you believe what’s been happening at the Olympics over the last six days? That sensational dream-like vision of Ireland bagging a medal each day and Rhys McClenaghan securing a gold on Saturday wasn’t an illusion at all, it was indeed a reality. Truly, this is beyond our wildest dreams. As it stands, even before the week ends, we have managed to equal our record-breaking medal count from London 2012.
Just so it stays fresh in your memory: On Monday, Mona McSharry brought home a bronze. The following day, Daniel Wiffen outdid himself, grabbing gold. Kellie Harrington secured herself a bronze on Wednesday and is now eyeing that elusive gold. Philip Doyle and Daire Lynch finished with a bronze on Thursday, while Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy reached another pinnacle with gold on Friday. On Saturday, Rhys McClenaghan continued the gold spree. We look forward to Daniel Wiffen maintaining this delightful daily run in today’s 1,500m freestyle final at 5.37pm, though there’s absolutely no cause for stress Daniel!
Having had a week filled with exhilarating performances from the Irish team, today’s schedule is relatively light with 11 team members stepping up. The day’s highlights include the men’s 100m athletic final, the women’s 50m freestyle swimming final, and the men’s singles finals in both tennis and table tennis.