Cheering supporters greeted Northern Ireland’s Olympic stars on their return from Paris on Monday.
Three athletes who won medals for Team Ireland were part of a celebratory homecoming to Dublin in front of more than 20,000 fans.
Meanwhile three who competed for Team GB were among those welcomed by cheering crowds at St Pancras International in London as they arrived back in the UK.
Daniel Wiffen (23), from Magheralin, won gold in the men’s 800m freestyle final and also took bronze in the men’s 1500m freestyle final.
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Meanwhile, Rhys McClenaghan (25), from Newtownards, won gold in the pommel horse final, in what he described as his “redemption story”, after a medal-costing mistake at the Tokyo Games three years earlier.
Banbridge rower Philip Doyle (31) and his Co Tipperary-born partner Daire Lynch, meanwhile, claimed double sculls bronze for Ireland on the Seine.
Swimmer Jack McMillan, from Belfast, was part of the GB squad which won gold in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay.
Coleraine rower Hannah Scott also won gold for GB in the women’s quadruple sculls, while Rebecca Shorten, from Belfast, won silver in the women’s four final.
Team GB’s Hannah Scott arrives by Eurostar into London St Pancras International train station after competing at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Photo: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire
In Dublin, the Olympians expressed gratitude to the thousands of fans who came out to celebrate with them at a free public event on O’Connell Street.
Rhys McClenaghan said: “Thanks, everybody, for coming out and supporting Team Ireland. It’s amazing to see you all here.”
The gymnast further reflected on his success following disappointment in the previous Olympic Games held in 2021: “One tiny error can send you landing on your head — and that’s what makes the sport exciting to me.
“It can happen to anybody at any time. It happened to me in Tokyo, but I’m glad it didn’t happen to me this time and we get to walk away as Olympic champions.”
The Olympian said this year’s Team Ireland “will forever be a close-knit group of friends, a family”.
Meanwhile, Wiffen added: “I definitely felt the whole country backing me going into it.”
He predicted that he and his twin brother, Nathan, will win gold and silver in the same event at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
Speaking to RTE upon arriving at Dublin Airport, he commented how it felt good to be back home to celebrate.
“It’s been amazing. What a journey,” he said.
“Thank you to everyone for showing us support over the past couple of weeks. You’re really what [made] us win these medals.”
After his success in the pool, Wiffen took on his first open water swimming marathon in the River Seine, finishing a very respectable 18th after a gruelling 10km.
He said that he had to pull out of carrying the Irish flag at Sunday’s Olympic Games Closing Ceremony in Paris, explaining that he had been hospitalised ahead of the event as he had taken “very unwell with a bug”.
Taoiseach Simon Harris said that “very little work” had been done in the country during the Paris Games as people went “hoarse” from cheering on Irish athletes.
Speaking from the stage, he said that the Team Ireland inspired children across the island.
“I’m so delighted about today, that the athletes and their families who’ve been away in Paris are getting to see what it’s like [here], because, up until now, they’ve been somewhat in the Olympic bubble.
“We’ve been hoarse from cheering them on. And today we got a chance to say one amazing thing to them: “Thank you, thank you, thank you.’”
Team Ireland member Rhys McClenaghan is welcomed home by supporters upon his arrival at Dublin Airport, before the team made their way to a homecoming reception at the GPO in O’Connell St, celebrating their remarkable achievements at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
Meanwhile, those competing for Team GB arrived at St Pancras International in London via the Eurostar.
Among those to meet them at the station was Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who shook hands with the athletes on the platform and praised them for “bringing the country together”.
He said: “These athletes are going to inspire another generation to get involved. Our Olympians have brought the country together and that’s what’s needed.”
Tom Daley, who revealed on his arrival in the capital that he was retiring from diving, won silver with partner Noah Williams in the synchronised 10-metre platform event in Paris, his fifth Games.
Mr Khan added: “Noah Williams was inspired by Tom Daley in 2012… Our canoeists say they took advantage of the facilities we built off the back of [London] 2012.
“It’s important to recognise that not only are the Olympics important to win the medals, but to also inspire fans of a new generation.”
Team GB’s 65-medal haul, which included 14 golds, matched the same number won by Team GB at the London Games in 2012.
The athletes, many of whom wore their medals round their necks, posed for pictures with adoring fans on the rail platform.
News Catch Up: Monday 12 August 2024