Olympic 800m champion and 1500m bronze medallist Daniel Wiffen has explained why he pulled out of carrying the Irish flag on Sunday’s Olympic Closing Ceremony in Paris.
In a statement on X (formerly Twitter), the Magheralin man said he had been hospitalised ahead of the ceremony:
“Thanks everyone who reached out, I’m incredibly disappointed to miss out on the opportunity to be flag bearer last night.
“Yesterday, I rushed to hospital as I was very unwell with a bug that I am being treated for, and am feeling better now. I hope everyone enjoys the evening and I hope to be well enough to seeing everyone when we get home,” he said.
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According to a statement from the Olympic Federation of Ireland, Wiffen is ‘unwell’ after competing in Friday’s 10km Marathon Swim in the river Seine.
Double Olympic gold medallist Fintan McCarthy together with swimming bronze medallist Mona McSharry acted as Ireland’s flagbearers in the Stade de France at last night’s Closing Ceremony.
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