Ireland go into the finals of the World Cup Regatta in Varese, Italy, with medals in their sights. The young double scull of brothers Paul and Gary O’Donovan and single sculler Sanita Pušpure won their heats in impressive fashion yesterday and will take their place in the centre lanes today.
The O’Donovans from Skibbereen have competed together for just one full season, but their progress has been startling. They squeaked qualification for the Olympics by taking the 11th — and last — spot at the 2015 world championships, relying on their brilliant finishing. Reports told of major progress — and yesterday’s performance confirmed that. They were in command down the course and won by more than a second from the Netherlands. It was surely significant