It was a successful start for the Irish rowers at the Paris 2024 Olympics on day one of competition with both men’s and women’s double sculls crews progressing directly into their respective semi-finals. The rain came down at Vaires-sur-Marne, but with good water conditions, there was nothing holding back the two crews from Team Ireland.
The Men’s Double of Phil Doyle and Daire Lynch set the tone on a positive note, finishing with a comfortable win in the last of the three heats. The top three crews gained direct qualification into the semi-finals, meaning Doyle and Lynch have now bypassed tomorrow mornings Repechage.
Through the first 500-metre mark, Ireland sat in third position but from this point they stayed the fastest crew on the water, moving up through the field as the race unfolded. They now head into Tuesday mornings semi-finals with the fastest time out of three heats obtaining a more favourable lane draw as a result.
Speaking afterwards Philip Doyle said: 'It was good, we got a lot of confidence from it, it was nice to just work on our race and then we came through in the middle just as we had planned. We knew that they would come off hot, and we just focused on ourselves and worked through the middle."
"Daire made some nice calls to push in the middle and we just started moving away from the other boats and that just gave us more confidence and then we kind of knew it was done and sealed from the 1500. It's only the first step of three, so we just need to take some confidence from this going forward and bring that into the Semi-final."
Olympic debutants Fermoy’s Alison Bergin and Killorglin’s Zoe Hyde also advanced directly into the Women’s Double semi-finals after a third-place finish in their heat. Bergin; 2023 U23 World Silver medallist, sitting in stroke of the boat led the Irish double through the race, winding it up as they came though 1300 meters.
Sitting in fourth place through the opening half of the race, Alison and Zoe needed to make a move to get into the top three qualification places. Doing just that, Ireland stepped up in the second half, cruising through the Lithuanian double of Rimkute and Karaliene. They race again on Tuesday morning in the semi-finals.
Afterwards Zoe Hyde said: "I think it was a good race and we learned a lot which I think is really important, and we know what we need to work on now to step up for the semi-final. We have a good second half so we're going to try replicate that in the first half and then we'll be laughing!"
Neville Maxwell, President of Rowing Ireland, praised the collective effort behind these achievements:
“Our success on the water is a testament to the dedication and hard work of everyone involved in the High Performance (HP) programme led by Programme Director, Antonio Maurogiovanni. Coaches have meticulously prepared the athletes, focusing on every detail to ensure peak performance. The support staff, from physiotherapists to nutritionists, play a crucial role in maintaining the athletes’ health and well-being, allowing them to compete at their best. Among our team are several first-time Olympians who are facing formidable competition on the world stage. The entire HP programme is a collaborative effort, demonstrating the power of teamwork and the pursuit of excellence.”
