IT WAS A day to remember for Róisín Ní Riain and Dearbhaile Brady at the 2026 World Para Swimming European Championships, as both Irish athletes earned silver medals in Kocaeli, Turkey.
Competing in the 100m Freestyle (S13), an event that is not included in her classification at the Paralympic Games, Ní Riain had been the fourth-fastest qualifier after a morning swim of 1:01.85, just off her personal best of 1:01.58.
The National Centre (Limerick) swimmer improved on that performance this evening to finish second with a new personal best time of 1:00.52.
The 22-year-old was narrowly beaten by Italy’s Carlotta Gilli, who won gold in 1:00.21.
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“I knew I was capable of a swim like that, and I also knew I was capable of a time like that for a while now,” Ní Riain said afterwards. “This is my first time racing the 100m Freestyle at a major international championship, so I didn’t really know what to expect. It’s my first tapered 100m Freestyle and everything like that, so I knew that if I executed it correctly, there was a good swim in me, so I’m so happy.”
Brady produced a similarly impressive display, claiming silver in the 200m Individual Medley (SM6) with a time of 3:20.78.
The National Centre (Dublin) swimmer led in the opening 50m before falling back into second but held the position for the remainder of the race and finished more than five seconds clear of the bronze medallist.
“It was the first event, so I just wanted to start off by getting into racing,” Brady said. “I was quite nervous, so I’m happy with how it went. I think it’s about taking it a day at a time. Competition started two days ago, and I was training throughout, so it’s nice to be racing. It’s been a big change. I think this year was just about getting more training and consistency. It’s nice to see that there’s now a positive side coming out of it all.”
Deaten Registe was unlucky not to join the pair on the podium.
A time of 1:08.36 saw him finish fourth in the 100m Breaststroke (SB14).
The Lisburn swimmer was just 0.29 seconds behind Ukraine’s bronze medallist Vasyl Krainyk.
Emersyn Scully produced a fourth consecutive personal best as she featured in her second European final.
The New Ross swimmer’s time of 1:24.90 in the 100m Breaststroke (SB14) final saw her finish sixth.
Ní Riain [Women’s 100m Backstroke (S13)] and Brady [Women’s 50m Butterfly (S6)] are back in action on Thursday.
They will be joined by fellow Irish athletes Síomha Nic Brádaigh [Women’s 100m Backstroke (S7)] and Dylan Prenderville [Men’s 50m Butterfly (S6)] on day four of competition.
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Irish pair claim European silver medals in Turkey
IT WAS A day to remember for Róisín Ní Riain and Dearbhaile Brady at the 2026 World Para Swimming European Championships, as both Irish athletes earned silver medals in Kocaeli, Turkey.
Competing in the 100m Freestyle (S13), an event that is not included in her classification at the Paralympic Games, Ní Riain had been the fourth-fastest qualifier after a morning swim of 1:01.85, just off her personal best of 1:01.58.
The National Centre (Limerick) swimmer improved on that performance this evening to finish second with a new personal best time of 1:00.52.
The 22-year-old was narrowly beaten by Italy’s Carlotta Gilli, who won gold in 1:00.21.
“I knew I was capable of a swim like that, and I also knew I was capable of a time like that for a while now,” Ní Riain said afterwards. “This is my first time racing the 100m Freestyle at a major international championship, so I didn’t really know what to expect. It’s my first tapered 100m Freestyle and everything like that, so I knew that if I executed it correctly, there was a good swim in me, so I’m so happy.”
Brady produced a similarly impressive display, claiming silver in the 200m Individual Medley (SM6) with a time of 3:20.78.
The National Centre (Dublin) swimmer led in the opening 50m before falling back into second but held the position for the remainder of the race and finished more than five seconds clear of the bronze medallist.
“It was the first event, so I just wanted to start off by getting into racing,” Brady said. “I was quite nervous, so I’m happy with how it went. I think it’s about taking it a day at a time. Competition started two days ago, and I was training throughout, so it’s nice to be racing. It’s been a big change. I think this year was just about getting more training and consistency. It’s nice to see that there’s now a positive side coming out of it all.”
Deaten Registe was unlucky not to join the pair on the podium.
A time of 1:08.36 saw him finish fourth in the 100m Breaststroke (SB14).
The Lisburn swimmer was just 0.29 seconds behind Ukraine’s bronze medallist Vasyl Krainyk.
Emersyn Scully produced a fourth consecutive personal best as she featured in her second European final.
The New Ross swimmer’s time of 1:24.90 in the 100m Breaststroke (SB14) final saw her finish sixth.
Ní Riain [Women’s 100m Backstroke (S13)] and Brady [Women’s 50m Butterfly (S6)] are back in action on Thursday.
They will be joined by fellow Irish athletes Síomha Nic Brádaigh [Women’s 100m Backstroke (S7)] and Dylan Prenderville [Men’s 50m Butterfly (S6)] on day four of competition.
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Boost Dearbhaile Brady European Championships roisin ni riain silver medals Swimming Turkey