Olympic hopeful Eve MacMahon won the prestigious International award at Howth Yacht Club's hosted annual Achievers awards ceremony, which was graciously accepted, on her behalf, by her dad, Jim McMahon, on Saturday night (January 6th).

Eve was unable to attend in person as she is currently racing in the 2024 ILCA 6 Women's World Championship in Mar del Plata, Argentina where she is hoping to secure Ireland’s place in the 2024 Olympics. HYC communications officer Cormac Farrelly had an opportunity to catch up with Eve before she headed to Argentina.

Eve McMahon: Sailing Towards New Horizons

In the interview, Eve McMahon, the under-21 world champion in the ILCA6 class, reflected on her extraordinary journey in 2022, a year marked by unprecedented success. She detailed her experience of winning the Youth Europeans, the Youth Worlds in The Hague, and finally, the ILCA 6 Youth World Championship in Texas, a feat she described as incredible and demanding.

McMahon emphasised the unseen hard work behind her achievements, including balancing her sailing career with academic commitments like the Leaving Cert.

Eve McMahon competing at the 2024 ILCA 6 Women's World Championship in Mar del Plata, Argentina this week Photo: Matias Capizano

Looking ahead, she spoke about transitioning from youth to senior divisions, a move she has been preparing for since she was 15, and her aspirations for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

McMahon also recounted a nerve-wracking moment during the ILCA 6 Under 21 World Championship in Tangiers, Morocco, where she capably handled a capsizing incident, showcasing her resilience and skill under pressure.

The interview concluded with McMahon expressing her gratitude for the support from Howth Yacht Club and her pride in representing the club on international stages.

Watch the full interview with Eve McMahon here: 

Full Interview Transcript:

Cormac HYC: I'm here with Eve McMahon in Howth Yacht club. Eve is the under 21 world champion for the ILCA6 class. Eve, let me dial you back to 2022. It started, I think, with you winning the Youth Europeans, then it was the youth worlds in The Hague, and then finally you were crowned ILCA 6 youth world champion in Texas. As far as I know, no other sailor, male or female, managed to do “The Triple”, winning all three championships in the one season. Tell us a little bit about what that was like.

Eve McMahon: Yes, it was an incredible year. There was a lot of hard work put into it and I suppose with support, a lot of people don't see the behind the scenes work that it takes to be on the podium and to be winning gold medals. And they don't really see the highs and the lows. So I just had to put my absolute all into the events. And I obviously had my Leaving Cert to sit, which was just a week before, but I just went into the events knowing that I did the most preparation that I could do. And I really just had to let the work, the hard work, kind of speak for itself. And to come out with three gold medals, it was absolutely incredible and a moment that will kind of always stick with me and it'll always make me very proud. But sport moves on and I'm coming up now with hopefully some bigger and better goals that I'm trying to work towards.

Cormac HYC: 2022 was obviously an amazing year, but then this year you had to step up a class. So you went from youth division up to senior division. And I know the expectations are huge and it's not an easy transition. So tell us a little bit about that.
Eve McMahon: Yes, so I have actually been competing in the youth, the under 21 and the senior division since I was 15. I did my first senior event in Australia. I went out to Australia for three months for the senior world championships. So I was really just trying to get all the experience that I can get from all the Olympic girls. So that was a huge stepping stone for me. But to be able to transition in and to be winning and being tipped as a known entity is really amazing.

Eve McMahon in action on the final day of the World U21 ILCA 6 championship title in Tangiers, Morocco. The Howth ace sailed a consistent race by race championships to win by a large margin

Cormac HYC: Many of us were watching you back in Tangiers in Morocco, and my recollection is that there were eight days of grueling racing. You're there on the last day, the last race, everything is up for grabs. You're very well positioned to become the ILCA 6 Under 21 World Champion, and then you capsize! What was going through your mind when that happened?

Eve McMahon: Listen, we're doing twelve races in a series and every race, it really can't be perfect when we're dealing with Mother Nature. So that's why we do so many training hours, to deal with those situations that go wrong and the adrenaline just kicks in and you just really had to get the boat back up quick. And I knew, although I wasn't looking at the results, I had somewhat of a comfortable lead, but there definitely was still a bit of panic. But that's sport. Things go wrong. So I really just had to get the boat back up quickly and finish right.

Cormac HYC: You're obviously very good at handling pressure! OK - I have to ask you about the Olympics. So I think it's no secret that your ambition was to get the nomination for Ireland, ILCA 6, for Los Angeles, 2028. But what about Paris 2024? Is that now a possibility?

Eve McMahon: Paris for sure. Listen, it's one of my ultimate goals to qualify for Paris. And as much as winning gold medals at youth and Under 21 are huge achievements for myself, they're for sure stepping stones for qualifying for Paris. So I'm heading off to Argentina. That's where I'll be while this whole awards (HYC Achiever’s awards) is taking place, and I'll be racing to the best of my ability and I'm loving absolutely every minute of it. And I'm really proud to be representing Howth.

Cormac HYC: Super. Just wrapping up on last year, you were Irish Sailor of the year. You were nominated twice by RTE for Young Sportsperson Of The Year… and now, which we're very proud of, you are the winner of the Howth Yacht Club 2023 Achiever Award for international sailing. I mean all of us in the club here are so proud of all your achievements to date, and you're such an inspiration, especially for the younger sailors. Can I ask you what it means to you to have won the Achievers award?

Eve McMahon being greeted by her mother Vicky and her father Jim upon arriving to Dublin airport after capturing gold in the single-handed ILCA6 class at the 2022 ILCA 6 Youth World Championships in Houston, Texas. The gold medal win was McMahon’s third consecutive gold medal this year, having also picked up a gold medal at the World Sailing Youth World Championships in the Hague, and at the ILCA 6 Youth European Championships in Greece. Photo: Tom Maher/INPHO

Eve McMahon: It really is huge to me and I really want to thank Howth Club for their continued support. I go out into international regattas and I really am proud to be representing Howth Yacht Club. This is where I grew up to sail with my two brothers when I was five or six, and it's just a fantastic club to represent while I'm away and I really want to thank everybody for their support. And, yes, I'm absolutely delighted to win and I'm really, really looking forward to hopefully representing Howth Yacht Club at the highest level.
Cormac HYC: Well, fantastic. So very well deserved. And we'll all be rooting for you in Argentina. Eve, it was lovely to talk to you. Thank you very much.

Ireland's Eve McMahon has kept her dream of a place in July's Paris Olympic Regatta alive by making the Gold fleet cut at the  ILCA6 World Championships in Mar del Plata, Argentina.

Just one race in light winds was possible on day three, and the 19-year-old Dublin sailor from Howth Yacht Club, did not get a front-row start in her 51-boat division.

However, the Irish Sailor of the Year' picked off places before finishing 14th in a light air race five to lie 21st overall.

With reports of thunderstorms again building over the city, safety officials advised against further racing and all boats were sent ashore.

The finals series that begins on Monday afternoon (Irish time) and three days of racing will decide the championship - and the next seven nation places for the Paris 2024 Olympics in the women's single-handed dinghy event.

Eve McMahon, the 19-year-old sailor from Dublin's Howth Yacht Club, made a striking comeback at the ILCA6 world championships in Argentina on Saturday. After a weather-curtailed first day of racing, McMahon climbed from 37th to 20th place overall after delivering two fourth places and a 19th in the second day of racing.

The 102-boat fleet was split into two groups, and the Irish Sailor of the Year's performance in the next two races will be crucial in her bid to secure one of seven nation qualification places for Paris 2024.

Currently, there are barely ten points between McMahon's overnight position and the top ten.

Last year, McMahon won the Under 21 world championship, and this year her priority is to secure a place for the women's single-handed event at Paris 2024 Olympics.

After Saturday's three races, the top half of the fleet will sail as the Gold fleet, with the top ten boats overall competing in a short medal race final. The final day of the qualification round is scheduled for Sunday, and it promises to be an exciting day of racing to determine the seven nation qualification places for Paris 2024.

The new championship leader emerged as Danish sailor Anne Marie Rindom, who won two out of the three races today and secured sixth place in the fourth race. Rindom is the reigning Olympic champion and holds three ILCA 6 world titles.

In second place, with only two points behind Rindon, is the Swedish sailor Josefin Olsson, the Olympic runner-up at the Tokyo 2020 Games. The United States sailor Charlotte Rose, who won the silver medal at the 2019 Pan American Games, rounds out the top three finishers.

Ireland's Eve McMahon kicked off her world championship bid for Olympic sailing qualification place in Argentina with a 19th-place finish on the opening day of the ILCA6 world championships.

McMahon is one of 103 sailors competing for a chance to represent their country in the women's single-handed event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

While two races were scheduled for the day, the onset of thunderstorms and heavy rain reduced visibility to less than 50 metres, forcing organisers to cancel the day's racing. McMahon has six races over three days to prove her mettle and stake a claim for a place in the Gold fleet final round next week.

The 19-year-old sailor from Howth Yacht Club, the Irish Sailor of the Year 2021 and 2022, is in her second year at the senior level and recently secured the Under 21 world championship. 

In the single race that did take place on the opening day, McMahon held mid-20's place and even picked up 15th at one stage before taking 19th at the finish. She needs to secure a top-30 finish at the world championships to ensure Ireland's place in the women's single-handed event at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Ireland's Eve McMahon, is set to participate in the first major Olympic-class world championship of 2024 in Argentina.

The ILCA 6 event, which starts on Friday, will see 105 sailors from 47 nations compete over six days to secure a place in the women's single-handed event for next summer's Olympics in Paris.

McMahon, a 19-year-old Howth Yacht Club sailor, the Irish Sailor of the Year for 2021 and 2022, is barely a year into her senior-level career, but she is hoping to secure one of seven places for her ILCA 6 class.

In Autumn last year, she won the U21 world title in her class in Tangiers, Morocco, and in 2022, she topped out her youth career with a hat-trick of gold medals at international championship events.

For McMahon, her primary focus will be securing a place for Ireland at the Olympic Sailing regatta in Marseilles next July. Eleven nations have already won places, with another seven spots up for grabs in Argentina. Further opportunities to qualify Ireland remain at the European championships and at the French Olympic Week in Hyeres in late April.

As the sole senior-level campaigner in the ILCA6 class, McMahon won't face a trials series, unlike the other two disciplines already qualified for Ireland. The ILCA7 and 49er skiff will decide Irish Sailing's nominees to the Olympic Federation of Ireland for the national team.

Annalise Murphy and Eve McMahon are among the nominees in this year’s Her Sport Awards.

After yet another historic and momentous year for Irish sportswomen, the Her Sport Awards aim to celebrate and recognise the incredible achievements of Irish athletes in 2023.

The awards ceremony will take place at UCD’s Astra Hall on Saturday 27 January and voting is open now on in the various categories, including Personality of the Year where the shortlist includes Olympic hero and National Yacht Club stalwart Annalise Murphy.

After calling time on her Olympic career last year, Murphy has had a busy 2023, both as part of the Olympic Federation of Ireland (OFI) Athletes’ Commission and in the velodrome, making headlines in track cycling.

Murphy’s silver medal in Rio 2016 was in the Laser Radial, now the ILCA 6 — the boat of choice for Eve McMahon, a nominee for Young Athlete of the Year.

It’s the latest in a slew of accolades for the Howth Yacht Club talent, who is the current U21 World Champion in her class, is also shortlisted for the RTÉ Young Sportsperson of the Year — and was named as Afloat.ie’s Sailor of the Month for October.

Irish rowing double Alison Bergin and Zoe Hyde are also in the running for the Team of the Year gong as their Paris 2024 qualifying campaign made great progress.

Show your support by casting your vote at awards.hersport.ie.

 Irish Sailor of the Year Eve McMahon is on the six-strong shortlist for the RTÉ Sport Young Sportsperson of the Year.

The 2023 nominees include a Munster number eight, a Premier League star, two medal winners at the European U20 Athletics Championships, and world champions in sailing and para-swimming.

The 2023 nominees for RTÉ Sport Young Sportsperson of the Year include a Munster number eight, a Premier League star, two medal winners at the European U20 Athletics Championships, and world champions in sailing and para-swimming

As regular Afloat readers know, the transition from ultra-successful international junior sailing to youth and adult competition can be a tricky one, but ILCA-racing Gold Medal-winning multiple junior champion Eve McMahon of Howth found the perfect stepping-stone with the ILCA6 U21 Worlds at a breezy Tangiers in October.

The 21-year-old is currently in the hunt for a Paris 2024 Olympic place to bring to three the number of Irish boats heading to Marseille.

Joanne Cantwell and Darragh Maloney will present the RTÉ Sport Awards 2023 live from Studio 4 in RTÉ on Saturday, 16 December.

The awards are handed out on the night live on RTÉ One in front of an audience of Irish sports stars, including RTÉ Sport Sportsperson of the Year, RTÉ Sport Team of the Year, RTÉ Sport Manager of the Year and RTÉ Sport Young Sportsperson of the Year.

The winners will be selected by an independent panel of expert judges from across the Irish sporting media and performance world.

The transition from ultra-successful international junior sailing to youth and adult competition can be a tricky one, but ILCA-racing Gold Medal-winning multiple junior champion Eve McMahon of Howth found the perfect stepping-stone with the ILCA6 U21 Worlds at a breezy Tangiers in October.

Going into the final race in one of the strongest winds of all, her 18 points overall lead did not make her totally unassailable. But all seemed secure as she approached the finish in third, only to capsize almost at the line.

Her resilience showed through, however, as she calmly but very quickly righted the boat and finished eighth, enough to give her the Gold Medal by a clear 14 points. If, as Ernest Hemingway observed, “Courage Is Grace Under Pressure”, then Eve McMahon has an abundance of courage to augment her great sailing talent.

Irish Sailor of the Year Eve McMahon (Howth Yacht Club) has won the World U21 ILCA 6 championship title in Tangiers, Morocco, this afternoon.

As Afloat reported previously, after six days of racing, the Paris 2024 campaigner delivered an impressive result, coming in 14 points lower than her closest competitor.

Eve McMahon in action on the final day of the World U21 ILCA 6 championship title in Tangiers, Morocco. The Howth ace sailed a consistent championships to win by a large margin Photo: Osgar

On a windy final day of the event, in stark contrast to yesterday's drifting conditions, she started in the middle of the fleet and worked her way up into third place shortly before the finish.

But a capsize threatened to ruin her hopes, but she still managed to recover and finish the race in eighth, more than enough to secure the title.

McMahon, who sailed a consistent series and was never out of the top two overall, wrapped up the championships on 54 points after 11 races sailed.  Switzerland's Anja Von Allmen was second on 68, with bronze taken by Carlotta Rizzardi of Italy on 81.

Eve McMahon - U21 ILCA 6 World Champion Photo: Osgar

Results below.

Although Howth Yacht Club's Eve McMahon discarded a 35th scored in light winds, the Irish Sailor of the Year has a commanding 18-point lead going into the final day of racing at the ILCA6 U21 World Championships in Morocco on Sunday.

Day five began off with sunshine, warm temperatures and a light south breeze signalling that all the storms were over and the stable weather was back. Although some scattered clouds and a lower sun angle hinted at the arrival of autumn. The plan for the day was to sail two races; however, at 11:00 am, the AP flag was hoisted as the breeze was too light to sail.

At 12:30, AP was removed and sailors made their way to the race course with a light breeze of 7 knots. As the afternoon progressed the gentle breeze died down to 2-3 knots making racing impossible. However, at 2:30 pm the first warning signal was hoisted as the northwest breeze increased to 7 knots for some tricky sailing.

In the first race of the ILCA 6 fleet the Italian, Emma Mattivi came in first with a good advantage over the second Ginevra Caracciolo also from Italy. However, McMahon is still in first position, closing the day with 46 points, a good advantage over the second and third positions, which are very close. Overall, second-placed Italian Carlotta Rizzardi has 64 points, very closely followed by the Swiss Anja Von Allmen with 65 points.