Ireland's Jack Kelly. Alamy Stock Photo

Kelly finishes 7th in 100m Breaststroke final, McSharry wins semi-final

The 23-year-old finished in a time of 59.36 in Paris.

JACK KELLY FINISHED seventh in the men’s 100m Breaststroke final at the European Aquatics Championships in Paris.

The 23-year-old finished in a time of 59.36, in a race won by Italian favourite Nicolò Martinenghi at 58.58.

Kelly was competing in his first major championships for Ireland.

On Monday, Kelly qualified for the final by finishing second in the semi-finals with an Irish record of 58.90.

Born in New York, Kelly has been eligible to represent Ireland since 2024.

He achieved the qualifying standard for the European Championships that year but was unable to join the team due to his passport not being processed in time.

Kelly’s Irish eligibility comes through his maternal grandparents. Kelly’s grandfather is from Cork and his grandmother from Longford.

Kelly’s mother, Clare O’Driscoll, was born in the US but spent part of her childhood in West Cork after her father returned to Ireland in the late 1970s to run the family’s dairy farm, with Kelly spending many summers visiting his family in Cork.

Elsewhere, Mona McSharry won her semi-final to qualify for the Women’s 100m Breaststroke semi-finals.

McSharry clocked a time of 1:05.64, just outside her own Irish record time, to go through as the second-fastest qualifier.

Ellie McCartney did not advance, finishing eighth in the same semi-final at 1:08.37.

In the men’s 200m Backstroke semi-finals, John Shortt qualified for the final after finishing second in his at 1:55.31.

More to follow…

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