In her latest column for The Irish Times, athletics great Sonia O’Sullivan meets the four women in contention for Ireland’s sole Laser Radial spot at the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer.

After frustrations in her attempt to qualify in the two-handed 49erFX class, Annalise Murphy is back in the boat with which she won silver at the 2016 Olympics — Ireland’s strongest Olympic sailing result to date.

But this time there is tough competition from three women who were still coming up when she was racing for that medal in Rio — namely Aisling Keller, Aoife Hopkins and 15-year-old Eve McMahon.

All four have been training together in Melbourne, Australia since the start of the year, ahead of the Laser Radial World Championship (starting tomorrow, Friday 21 February) which will be the first of three chances between now and April for one of them to secure that coveted spot.

“Think about how that must be for them,” writes Sonia. “They know that only one of them will go to Tokyo so they wouldn’t be human if they didn’t have some sort of selfish instinct in them. It would be only natural for them to keep little bits and pieces that they’re learning back for themselves to give them a better chance of being the one who gets the spot on the boat.

“But they also know that the more they push each other, the better they make each other. And the better they make each other, the greater chance of a medal for Ireland and a better all round result for Irish sailing.”

Sonia also gets out on the water with Annalise to experience first-hand the speed and excitement of the Laser Radial — and the rush Annalise and her fellow challengers will be feeling when the training is done and the race is on.

The Irish Times has more HERE.

Eve McMahon of Howth Yacht Club, current Gold Medal holder in the Laser Radial U17s World League after success in Canada last summer, has added yet more valuable metal to her collection by emerging as U17 Gold Medal winner in this week’s Sail Melbourne Regatta, in which a total of 85 Lasers took part.

Top overall performance for Ireland (as already reported in Afloat.ie) was put in by the National YC’s Annalise Murphy, who took Silver in the Overall Women’s Division. 

The Irish Tokyo Olympic trials for the women's Laser Radial nomination have been given added spice with the entry of fifteen-year-old Eve McMahon into next March's three trial series. 

The Howth Yacht  Club teenager is the Irish youth champion in the class and this summer became the under-17 Radial world champion.

It brings to four the number of helmswomen now planning to contest the series, including the return of the Rio Olympic silver medalist, Annalise Murphy.

Sailing Correspondent David O'Brien has much more in this morning's Irish Times here.

The Laser Radial Youth World Championship at Kingston, Ontario in Canada was something special as Laser designer Bruce Kirby, the man who transformed the world’s solo dinghy sailing, is Canadian. But it was also something special for Eve McMahon of the renowned Howth sailing family, as she was simply flying. Although under 17, at one stage in the open racing she was headed for Silver in the open U19 division as well.

And while at the end on July 31st she’d to be content with the Bronze in the open section, she was winner of the World U17 title to add yet another major trophy to the already enormous McMahon family collection of international and national sailing awards.

Irish Radial Girl youth sailing champion Eve McMahon continued her top form by winning the first race of the Laser Europa Cup on Lake Garda, Italy yesterday.

Howth Yacht Club's McMahon, who is aiming to represent Ireland this July at the World Sailing Youth worlds is part of the Irish Sailing Academy team competing, along with brother Jamie (pictured above), Tom Higgins, and Micheal O'Suilleabhain.

Eve notched three fourth places to finish at fifth overall at last month's youth nationals at Royal Cork making her a winner of the girls’ division by five clear points and giving her an Afloat Sailor of the Month prize.

More on the Europa Cup here

There were three McMahon family members from Howth racing in the Laser Radials at this year’s Irish Junior Championship at Crosshaven. But while youngest Jack had to be content with 13th overall, his cousin Eve was very much in improvement mode as the series progressed, notching three fourth places to finish at fifth overall. This made her winner of the girls’ division by five clear points, and thus well entitled to bring the McMahons a second Junior Sailor of the Month accolade for April.

Eve McMahon looking fast in upwind mode Photo: Bob Bateman