THREE ATHLETES, TWO medals, one retirement.
And a whirlwind day for their agent. Sinéad Galvin knew Tuesday was going to bring a lot of emotions.
Ellen Keane’s farewell swim would be the start of it. The Paralympic swimming great was Galvin’s second signing after Thomas Barr when she set up Galvin Sports Management [GSM] in 2016. Not only have they worked together professionally for eight years, they’re close friends.
Galvin was in Paris last Friday to watch Keane finish fourth in her Tokyo-winning breaststroke race. She also represents Róisin Ní Riain and Orla Comerford, and witnessed Ní Riain win her first Paralympic medal at La Défense Arena.
On Tuesday, she was back in Dublin. Family commitments over the weekend brought her home, so Galvin watched three of her athletes from afar.
“I really felt emotional on the day,” she tells The 42. “It was just an absolute rollercoaster.”
Her first cry came during Keane’s post-race interview. More tears followed as she watched RTÉ’s brilliant montage and reflected on an incredible career and journey.
Curtain drawn for five-time Paralympian and two-time medallist @keane_ellen #RTEparalympics #paris2024 #rtesport pic.twitter.com/3V1Ppu3iVj
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 3, 2024
Later, Galvin and her family gathered around the television for a memorable medal rush. In just over five minutes, Ní Riain and Comerford doubled Ireland’s medal tally with two brilliant bronzes.
Along with her husband, athletics coach Jeremy Lyons, and their sons, Galvin cheered her athletes home from her sitting room. Róisín’s touch, Orla’s start; a sensational few minutes.
“We were absolutely roaring. We were very loud here in North Dublin on Tuesday night!
“I was saying to Róisín afterwards, I felt like I was still adrenalised later on, I was just pumped. Literally, five minutes later, Orla comes booting it out, arms, legs pumping, and because I was a sprinter, I was like, ‘Yes, let’s go girl!’
“I’d say I might have done a PB over 10 metres if somebody had to put a block in front of me! I was just so excited.
“Being in Paris is incredible, but what I loved about being home is you get the post-race interviews and kind of see how they are in a very immediate sense. You don’t get to see them so until much later when you’re at an actual event itself.”
The “bronze sisters” are Galvin’s two newest signings: Ní Riain joined GSM just over a year ago, and Comerford in recent months, though the pair were well acquainted from athletics circles.
Ciara Mageean, Phil Healy and Sophie Becker — who husband Jeremy coaches — are among others from that sphere on her books, along with Olympic champion Rhys McClenaghan.
Galvin was in Paris earlier this summer for McClenaghan’s glittering gymnastics gold and the Women’s 4x400m relay at Stade de France — “an Italia 90 moment for athletics”.
Like the Olympic publicity wave, another will follow the Paralympics and Galvin will now “manage the madness” and make life as easy as possible for Keane, Ní Riain and Comerford as they navigate the choppy waters of sponsorship and media.
Spreadsheets, docs and shared calendars aplenty. Calls, coffees and chats. There will be no days off, but this is a particularly enjoyable and rewarding time for Galvin.
“I’m incredibly lucky to work with the individuals that I work with, and to be a little part of their team on the journey,” the Dubliner says.
“Now my job is to help them manage things like media requests and potential commercial opportunities that are coming their way. All of them are fantastic individuals that I’ve no doubt companies and brands will want to align themselves with. They are all so different, and that’s what I love as well.”
“I always firmly believe that, particularly Olympic and Paralympic sports, there’s certain windows where the spotlight is shone on them and they have to use that chance and opportunity for people to get to know them more, because that’s where opportunities come from the commercial sense — but that can’t be endless either.
“My job is to look at the long-term, look at people who are a good fit for them and similarly for the brands. It’s about managing the madness for them.”
That should be no problem after Tuesday’s rollercoaster.
Strange that some of the mid table premier league teams wouldn’t take a chance on Szmodics. Obviously too good for the championship. Yet some totally unproven youngster from the continent with a bit of “potential” will cause a bidding war with someone paying 30 odd million, only to find that he can’t adapt to English football, culture, climate or whatever.
@Bert Carolan: Szmodics has said himself many times he doesn’t want to play in the premier League
@John Devine: well that’s a complete lie
@Dave Moran: A lie that he doesn’t want to play in Pl or that he said he doesn’t want to?
@John Devine: Where or when did he say that? Not doubting you but that’s a weird attitude for a championship player. Chance to secure his future, play at the highest level in England.
Premirship incomning Ipswich
@Square: Would be a good fit I think.
@Bert Carolan: Did he really say he not want to play on premirship are you just joking
@Square: John Devine said that, not me.
@Bert Carolan: Oh ya haha nonsense i think
Can someone sign him please? I don’t particularly like Rovers winning. Ipswich has to be a good fit given his time in the Colchester area. I used to live down there too and he wasn’t rated highly at the time. Every credit to him for getting to where he has.
@Justin Robinson: Ipswich after him the whole summer but no deal, looking slightly less likely to happen at this stage but hopefully it gets done, Ipswich need him I think.
@Michael Kennedy: Can’t blame Rovers for squeezing out every last penny I suppose. SS is about 13 months off being 30 so it’s now or never for him really.
@Justin Robinson: 100%, but it has fairly dragged on, Ipswich tried to sign Gallagher from them in the last transfer window, similarly difficult to deal with them then. Joke club, joke owners is what I’ve heard.