Galwegian enjoys front row seat as Irish Olympians make sporting history
Heather Boyle sits in a cafeteria in the Olympic Village at the Tokyo Games, and munches on a plate of sushi and ramen.
It’s 2.30pm Irish time, on the final Friday of the delayed 2020 Olympics, and the Galway City woman is enjoying the local Japanese cuisine as she chats away to the Connacht Tribune.
As Athletes’ Commission Support and Public Relations Officer of the Olympic Federation of Ireland, Heather from Monivea Park, is used to organising interviews for athletes, not giving them.
But the Wicklow resident is at ease reflecting on what was a relatively successful Olympics for Ireland and her role in it.
As a former rower with Coláiste Iognáid (Jes), UCG (now NUIG) and Tribes Rowing Club, Heather found it easy to pick her top two highlights.
“Seeing medals going back to Galway was pretty special, especially in my sport of rowing,” she says of the bronze medal-winning feat of fellow Galway women, Aifric Keogh and Fiona Murtagh, in the women’s coxless fours final.
“I burst out crying when I saw the two lads (Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy) win gold,” she adds of the Cork-men’s exploits in the lightweight double sculls.
Read the full interview in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now – or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie