LAST UPDATE | 28 Apr
MARGARET CREMEN HAS secured a silver medal in the lightweight women’s single sculls A final at the European Rowing Championships in Szeged, Hungary.
The Tokyo 2020 Olympian, who normally races the double with Aoife Casey, clocked 8:42.96 after a solid performance.
She made a strong start and was in the lead — just about — at 500m. But neutral athlete Alena Furman soon overtook the UCC star and stretched out to eventually win by 10 seconds (8:32.17).
Cremen finished well clear of Czech Republic’s Kristyna Neuhortova, who took the bronze medal with a time of 8:49.89.
Cremen and Casey have qualified for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris, so her attention is likely to return to the double sculls.
☘️A Final Result☘️
— Rowing Ireland (@RowingIreland) April 28, 2024
It’s SILVER for Margaret Cremen in the Lightweight Women’s Single!#greenblades #wearerowingireland pic.twitter.com/qgskIZtQGj
Meanwhile, Paul O’Donovan finished second in the heavyweight men’s single sculls B final.
The reigning world champion was racing in this category for the first time at this competition, while his lightweight doubles partner Fintan McCarthy recovers from illness. He was eighth overall.
O’Donovan clocked 7:31.55 after a strong sprint in the closing stages of the B final , but he couldn’t catch Romania’s Mihai Chiruta, who was first in 7:29.60. Emil Neykov of Bulgaria took third with a time of 07:35.77.
He will now return to the lightweight double sculls to defend the Olympic crown he shares with McCarthy. His decision to compete at heavyweight is a nod to what might follow Paris, after which the lightweight doubles will no longer be an Olympic event and O’Donovan is likely to seek a new challenge in his legendary career.
Elsewhere, Jake McCarthy finished sixth of six in the lightweight men’s single sculls A final.
The twin brother of Olympic hero McCarthy, the Skibbereen man won his heat in impressive fashion on Thursday.
He clocked 8:12.56 this morning, finishing over 30 seconds behind runaway winner Niels Torre of Italy. The Italian crossed in 7:41.72 after a dominant performance, with Belgium’s Marlon Colpaert (7:54.83) and France’s Baptiste Savaete (7:55.10) second and third respectively.
McCarthy was in the latter end of the chasing pack, but he fell away down the stretch.
And Zoe Hyde and Alison Bergin were fifth in the last race with Irish involvement, the women’s double sculls A final.
The duo crossed in a time of 7:55.36. The Norwegian crew won in 7:39.42, with Lithuania (7:41.50) and Romania (7:43.66) second and third respectively.
