WE’RE fairly used to the feeling of swagger associated with the Olympics down here in West Cork at this stage. You could say that a lot of the self-belief now coursing through the collective veins of Team Ireland was born on the waters of the Ilen river.
The winning combination of absolute dedication, meticulous standards, raw talent and an unshakeable inner confidence seems to have wormed its way into every sinew of our sporting heroes in Paris this week. It seems that this generation of so-called ‘snowflakes’ has a different way about them altogether.
No imposter syndrome here. From Rhys McClenaghan’s physical artistry on the pommel horse, to the heroics of Daniel Wiffen and Mona McSharry in the pool, to Kellie Harrington’s unflappable performances in the ring, this is a generation of young sporting people who do not question their place on the world stage and who are able to perform when they reach it.
Last week, our own Paul O’Donovan became the first Irish athlete to win three medals at three different Olympic Games and who would doubt his determination to win a fourth?
It’s easy to overstate the significance of all this, of course. But in times past, any sporting glory was accompanied by a dominant side serving of ‘sure, isn’t it great to take part’. I remember the pervading feeling around Italia ‘90, like we were lottery winners who were being given a go at the big time, rather than it resulting from any sense of being there by merit.
Of course, our good friend Roy Keane railed against this self-defeating attitude and in many ways walked away from Saipan to draw a line in the sand against the accepted mediocrity that was the norm across Irish sporting organisations at the time. ‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail’ is the motto he has rolled out again and again.
And isn’t it glorious to see Irish youngsters so prepared and ready for their moment?
That’s a rap, Snoop Dogg!
ANOTHER unlikely highlight of this competition has been the growing cult of rapper-turned-Olympics meme Snoop Dog. He has been entertaining us all – torch bearing through Paris, swimming with Michael Phelps, befriending Billie Jean King and getting into riding gear for the dressage event. In his role as ‘special correspondent’ on NBC, one of the highlights was his commentary as Antoine Dupont sped down the pitch during France’s rugby sevens victory. ‘He’s got wheels, he deals, he falls, he spills when he gives to his homie, who gets five to stay alive. See, that’s five points and now they groovin’.’ Sign him up for the URC this winter!
My own personal highlight of these games, however, has been the gloriously dramatic commentary of Cork’s Timmy McCarthy, whose performance on the mic during the various basketball events has been worthy of a gold medal itself. Legend!
The chips are really down
AS sure as kingdoms rise, then so shall they fall, and last week was not a good week for computer chipmaker Intel who said it would cut 15% of its workforce, which is just under 15,000 employees. Shares in the company tanked last Friday and it’s a very worrying time for the large workforce based in Ireland. Intel was once the biggest chip supplier in the world, supplying much of Microsoft’s needs, but it missed out on the shift to smartphones and was also out-paced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co, and South Korea’s Samsung in transistor production.
They have also largely missed out on the AI gold rush. An estimated $100bn is being spent this year on AI infrastructure but it’s Nvidia, not Intel, who are winning that particular race. Nvidia sells $20bn worth of AI chips each quarter; Intel will sell $500m over the entire year.
A reminder for Ireland that our fortunes should not be tied to any particular businesses even if they have been massive contributors to our economy over the years.
A tale of two Harrises
AS Kamala Harris inspires women to get behind her campaign in the US, giving the Democrats a much-needed bounce after a disastrous few months, our own Simon Harris is having no such luck when it comes to the fairer sex and electoral prospects. Fine Gael has now selected 28 general election candidates in 17 constituencies.
And nearly halfway through the party’s candidate selection process there are only six female candidates, alongside the 22 men. Not a great look is it?
