Paris Olympics: With Three Medals and Momentum, Ireland Leaves Games as a Country on the Rise

Paris Olympics: Ireland Leaves Games as a Country on the Rise

The standard moved so quickly that even Daniel Wiffen had trouble keeping up.

By Sunday at the Paris La Defense Arena, the Irish distance swimmer freely admitted that things had changed. Coming into the week, had all else gone the way all else normally goes for Irish swimmers, the 23-year-old would’ve been ecstatic with a bronze medal in the men’s 1500 freestyle.

But winning gold five days earlier in the 800 freestyle had changed oh so many things, among them the expectations that Wiffen, never bashful about backing himself, holds his performances to.

“To get a bronze medal in this, I’m sure if I said it at the start of the week, people would be very happy with it,” Wiffen admitted. “But obviously, becoming an Olympic champion on the (fourth) day then finishing it off on the ninth day, it’s a little bit sad.”

The performances by Wiffen and Mona McSharry have altered the trajectory of Irish swimming, a watershed moment for a long dormant program. When McSharry claimed bronze in the women’s 100 breaststroke Monday, it ended nearly a three-decade wait.

The program’s only medals on the Olympic stage to that point belonged to Michelle Smith, who won four at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Smith retained the medals despite a later doping ban. Wiffen and McSharry’s medals relegate that affair to the dustbin of history, forging a new history for Ireland.

The program has been building since the last Olympics. Ellen Walshe, who trains with McSharry at the University of Tennessee, provided early evidence of progress with her silver in the 400 individual medley at the 2021 Short-Course World Championships. McSharry won bronze in the 100 breast at that meet. Both have been fixtures in finals at meets like Worlds and European Championships.

Wiffen, though, has been the game-changer. Born in England and raised in Northern Ireland, his performance at the 2023 World Championships in Fukuoka raised the bar. He set a European record in the men’s 800 free that ended up shy of the podium in fourth but stoked the fire for the Olympic year. He backed it with double gold in the 800 and 1500 at Worlds in Doha, a monumental achievement even against a diminished field.

Widening the aperture shows gains not just at the top. Shane Ryan was one of only three Irish Olympic swimmers at the Rio Games in 2016, making it to semifinals in the men’s 100 backstroke. The number of qualifiers rose to seven in Tokyo five years later, including national records in the 100 fly for Ryan and two for Wiffen, and the first Irish relay since 1976, the men’s 800 free.

At Ryan’s third Olympics in Paris, the Irish had six individual qualifiers, including a rare double event entry in the men’s 50 free, where Ryan lowered the national record to 21.84 before the Games and saw Thomas Fannon take it to 21.79 and then 21.74 in Paris to finish 10th. Fannon, McSharry, Walshe and Danielle Hill all made semifinals, while the Irish fielded two medley relays and a women’s 400 free relay. Both medleys set national records, the men taking down a 2021 record and Ryan’s split of 47.21 the third-fastest of 24 swims in prelims and finals combined.

It’s come against the backdrop of increased funding for athletes, improvements in facilities and better training for coaches.

“Swimming is the second biggest sport in Ireland, so we want to make sure the kids continue that, but also you’re starting to see more support,” Ryan said. “More money is going to the athletes, more money is going into facilities and pool availability in Ireland.”

“There’s been a huge progression,” McSharry said. “It’s definitely down to a lot of hard work and just dedication to moments like this and trying to be the best I can be and to keep pushing to be better.”

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