THE Irish women’s four went to World Cup I with the target of finding out where they stand ahead of next month’s final Olympic qualification regatta and came home knowing they are right in the mix for a spot in Paris.
Skibbereen Rowing Club’s Emily Hegarty, a bronze medallist in this boat at the Tokyo Olympics, is joined in a new- look Irish women’s four by Natalie Long (Lee Valley RC), Eimear Lambe (Old Collegians BC) and Imogen Magner (Carlow RC). Last weekend’s World Cup opener was their first regatta together, and they finished the best of the non-qualified Olympic boats.
On Friday, Hegarty and Co won their heat, finishing ahead of reigning world champions, The Netherlands; this sent the Irish boat straight into Sunday’s A final at Varese in Italy.
In the medal race, the Irish boat just missed out on the podium. Sitting in sixth place at the halfway mark, it was in the second half that they made their move, and by the end they crossed the line in fourth, in 6:26.34, behind Great Britain’s two crews and The Netherlands, both countries having already qualified for this summer’s Olympics.
Of note, the Irish four was ahead of Denmark in fifth, and the Danes, who finished ahead of Ireland at the 2023 Worlds, will be one of the rivals at the last-chance saloon regatta in Lucerne in May. Off the back of this showing, the Irish women’s four will be right in the mix. Elsewhere at the World Cup event, the Irish women’s pair of Fiona Murtagh and Airfic Keogh won silver medals, and the men’s double of Philip Doyle and Daire Lynch brought home bronze.
