PAUL O’DONOVAN PRODUCED another stellar performance this morning to surge to World Rowing Championship gold in the men’s lightweight sculls final.
Fresh from claiming an Olympic silver medal alongside his brother Gary in Rio, the 22-year-old pulled away from his rivals in the final 500m to record an emphatic victory by over four seconds.
It caps a remarkable month for the siblings, who will return home to Skibbereen tomorrow where over 10,000 people are expected to turn out for a civic reception scheduled for Wednesday.
O’Donovan started typically slowly but he timed his attack to perfection, pulling clear with a powerful burst after the midway point which left the rest of the field with no answer.
It was a historic day for Irish, and Skibbereen, rowing with two boats in ‘A’ finals in Rotterdam.
Mark O’Donovan and Shane O’Driscoll finished a creditable fourth in the final of the men’s lightweight pair, behind Great Britain, Denmark and France.
Meanwhile, Ronan Byrne and Daire Lynch progressed to the ‘B’ final of the men’s junior double sculls with a fifth-place finish in their semi-final.
Ireland’s women’s junior lightweight pair of Emily Hegarty and Aoife Casey also progressed to the ‘B’ final of their discipline with a sixth-place finish in their semi.
The42 is on Snapchat! Tap the button below on your phone to add!