BRONZE MEDALLIST Mona McSharry in tears after nabbing Ireland’s first Paris Olympics medal with BRONZE in tightly-fought final

IRISH swimmer Mona McSharry has nabbed Ireland’s first Olypmic medal in Paris 2024 finishing with bronze.

The 23-year-old Sligo star came in third with 1:05:59 on the clock, narrowly missing out on silver or gold.

McSharry was left holding back her tears as she emerged from the water, with her mum heard roaring in cheers from the stands.

As Mona was given her medal, the crowds backed her as they chanted her name, with the bronze medallist covering her mouth in disbelief.

McSharry missed out on silver, which was won by China’s Tang Qianting, and gold, won by South Africa’s Tatjana Smith.

And in a sweet moment to end, the three medallist stood together on the podium as Mona took a selfie of them.

Mona couldn’t wipe the smile off her face as she ran over to her loved ones for an embrace, donning an Irish flag the entire time.

McSharry swam the race of her life on Sunday, setting a new Irish record of 1:05:51 to progress to Monday night’s final.

It shaved 0.04 seconds off her previous personal best set last year.

Following the race, Mona said: “I’m very excited! I don’t think it’s fully sunk in yet that I’ve actually won a medal! I think once I get up on the podium it’ll all become really real but I think it’s just amazing because it’s years of hard work that have paid off and it just feels amazing!

“A little bit of relief, a little bit of “wow – okay this is actually happening!’ Then just really excited to be in that position.

“I could see the Chinese girl beside me so I knew that she was ahead of me so I was like I need to try and catch her because if she’s ahead then I don’t know what’s going on, on the other side – I can’t see that.

“I had a bad first fifty – my goggles filled up with water a little bit so not a perfect race but it just shows you’re in it until the end and you just have to keep going – I was like ‘I’m not giving up, I’m going, I’m going’ and I think it was 0.01 between me and the next swimmers so that’s kind of crazy, but that’s what racing is about – close finishes!”

McSharry, who reached the final of this event in Tokyo too when she came eighth, in a time of 1:06.94 – said: “It was very good.

“I’m happy with that, progressing through the rounds.

“I can’t ask for anything better and I have a place in the final. That was really the only job of the semis – to progress – so, yeah, I’m happy with that.

“I’ll rest up and see what happens, you’ve a one-in-eight chance to get your hands on the wall first.”

Sharing his congratulations on McSharry’s incredible achievement, Taoiseach Simon Harris took to X to share his pride.

He wrote: “That’s was magic from Mona McSharry!

“Unbelievable turn and technique at the halfway point and what a battle to the end to claim Team Ireland’s first medal.

“Ireland is proud.”

Adding to the long list of congratulations was Tanaiste Micheal Martin, who said: “Bronze medal! What a stunning swim Mona McSharry.

“Ireland’s first medal of the Olympic Games and a simply sensational performance.”

Comedian Dara O’Briain added: “Yes! Well done Mona McSharry! Was at her semi-final last night, where she was brilliant, and now look at her!”

While former Olympian Derval O’Rourke noted: “What a beautiful bronze for @MonaMcsharry to get on the podium. First medal for Ireland. Smashing to see.”

Earlier on Sunday, she had come second in her heat, behind world champion Qianting Tang, with her time of 1:05.74 the third fastest across the morning, from China in a time of 1:05.63.

It was also, until later in the day, the second fastest time of her career and she had predicted she could race more quickly. 

It is a remarkable turnaround for the 23-year-old who was on the brink of quitting the sport at the end of 2022 and may well decide to quit the pool after these Games.

The University of Tennessee-based athlete had got some sense of the excitement building ahead of the Games when she had 48 hours back at home in Grange in Sligo.

She said: “I know they want me to do well for me, it’s not that if I don’t do well they’re going to be really disappointing.

“I know they’re just supportive, and it’s just trying to stay on that positive side.

“You see it sometimes, and I’m definitely capable of doing this, is I know my goals and I put them on everyone else. I sit it in everyone else’s head: “Everyone thinks I’m going to do this”.

“When I don’t do it, I’m super-disappointed in myself and I also project that on to other people and think they’re disappointed in me.

“And that’s really not the case, but I just self-sabotage myself that way.

But viewers were well aware of McSharry’s athleticism long before the Olympic Games.

Under the guidance of coach Donncha O’Callaghan, Mona – along with her mother, father, and brother – won Ireland’s Fittest Family in 2019.

RISE TO OLYMPIC DREAM

McSharry became disillusioned with swimming from 2021 to 2022 but found her mojo again to put in an impressive showing at the Worlds in Fukuoka 12 months ago.

She came fifth in the 100m breaststroke and her only disappointment was that the new national record she set in her heat would have been good enough for a silver.

That was also her position in Qatar five months ago, although her time was 0.35 seconds slower, much to her frustration, even if there was a reasonable explanation.

McSharry said: “It was challenging to not swim my fastest in Doha even though I knew going into the meet that I wasn’t fully tapered and not really prepared to swim top speeds.”

The Sligo woman is in no doubt about what being based at the University of Tennessee for the past four years has done for her career.

She said: “I love the push that I get daily from training with people that are as fast as me or faster and that may not necessarily be specifically in the 100m breaststroke long course.

“I also learned a lot about working on a team which is not something you experience or at least I haven’t experienced as much just because of the small programme that I came from in Ireland.”

The 23-year-old is unsure if she will swim beyond 2025 but her goals for Paris were clear, as she revealed her relief at being able to compete in the 200m as well as the shorter distance.

She said: “A while ago, I was on the pool deck crying because I thought that I wasn’t going to be able to swim the 200m which I was struggling with, almost feeling greedy because I’m already going to the Olympics for an event so why am I so upset that I can’t swim two?

“I’m always trying to do better than I did before.

“Once I get to the final I’ll just try and get my hands on the wall above as many people as possible and hopefully that’s top three.

“If it’s not, I know that I’ve given it my best.”

Also making waves in the pool is Daniel Wiffen who earlier stormed into the men’s 800m freestyle final.

The Armagh man, who won world 800m and 1500m freestyle gold in February, stated before the Games that he would not be leaving Paris without a medal.

And defiant Daniel put down a big marker in the 800m heats as he set the fastest time, and goes into Tuesday’s final as favourite.

Daniel said: “I was happy with my time, but I had my eyes on the Olympic record.

“But it’s only the heats, so it doesn’t really matter.”

Whippet Wiffen’s time of 7:41.53 was just outside the Olympic record of 7:41.28, which was set by Mykhailo Romanchuk of Ukraine.

The swim ace admitted he was “very nervous” ahead of his heat in a packed La Defense Arena as he embarked on his second Games.

Wiffen said: “I was more nervous than when I walked out for the World Championship final, I think it’s just the crowd size and knowing that I have a lot of support in the crowd.”

Ahead of Tuesday’s final, Wiffen continued: “I’m looking forward to it, 100 per cent.

“I’ve got to try and calm down a bit now. I’ve a long time until the final where I have to get my recovery right.

“I’m just going to go into the final with an open head and try to get on the podium.”

The hotshot says he is lapping up his Paris experience as he booked a spot in the 800m final by coasting to victory in the fastest time.

But the Armagh native did take a swipe at the food in the Olympic Village, branding it “terrible”.

Wiffen rapped: “The food is a bit terrible, honestly, in the village.

“Everything else is class; I love the flats, I love everything – the team atmosphere – it’s great. I love being part of Team Ireland.

“There is quite a lot of Irish support here and I’m really looking forward to the final because I heard a lot of people are coming so it’ll be good to see.”

Meanwhile, double Olympian Kellie Harrington is one step away from becoming a back-to-back Olympic medallist.

The Dublin boxer triumphed over Italian brawler Alessia Mesiano during their women’s 60kg round of 16 bout at the Paris Games.

Determined Harrington eased to a 5.0 unanimous decision win to move into the quarter-finals at the French Olympics after winning gold at 2020 Tokyo.

The grappler will fight for a place on the podium on Wednesday.

As she prepares for her quarter final medal match, Harrington told how she was savouring creating history as a double Olympian and declared competing in the Olympics “is what I love”.

Kellie beamed: “It was a fantastic fight, Alessia is a really smooth operator so it was great to get in there and to be able to take the win.

“What is there? Seven-and-a-half billion people in the world or something like that? I know back home I won’t be passing too many double Olympians on my street so history is made.”

In a masterful performance, Harrington frequently switched between orthodox and southpaw stances.

She explained: “I was fresh out of the womb when I was switch hitting.

“The key was to get my jab working, try and implement my fight.”

Harrington was also quick to thank the vocal Irish fans in North Arena in Paris who supported her during the fight.

After winning gold in an empty stadium in Tokyo, Monday was her first experience of competing in a noisy Olympic arena.

And it was also the first time Kellie’s wife Mandy and family could be present to see her box at the Games.

Harrington said: “It’s great to see the Irish flag being flown around the stadium there, it’s class, absolutely top class.

“I know Mandy and my brother’s (Joel) out there somewhere so it’s great to know that they got to come over and experience the Olympics as well as me.

“I think I heard Mandy saying ‘Come on Kellie’, I’m nearly sure it was her.

“No matter where you go in the world, the Irish come out of the woodwork so it’s great.”