Flogas are thrilled to be the energy behind Team Ireland for the Paris Olympics 2024. Our hopes are high for Ireland’s best performance yet at what will be 100 years of Team Ireland’s involvement in the Olympics.
100 years of Team Ireland
The 1924 Olympics in Paris was the first time Ireland competed as an independent country with 10 athletes and 2 medal wins. Since then, we have seen some memorable sporting performances through the years which have inspired today’s participants. Below are just some of the standout memories from 100 years of Team Ireland.
1924 - the early days of the modern Olympics saw the inclusion of art as a discipline, with participants producing works of art usually with a sporting theme. Fondly viewed by many as Ireland's national painter, Jack B. Yeats produced his famous 'Liffey Swim' painting for these Olympic Games, the energetic scene showing swimmers and lively onlookers winning silver for Ireland in its first Olympic Games as an independent country. Today the much loved painting hangs in the National Gallery in Dublin.
1928 - Cork’s Pat O’Callaghan won a dramatic gold victory in hammer throw despite being new to the sport. A doctor by profession, he later went on to win many Irish titles in weight throwing, hammer and high jump, including becoming Ireland’s only double gold winner in 1932.
1932 - Bob Tisdall became an unlikely gold winner in 400 metres hurdles in Los Angeles in 1932. Although a decent sprinter and Irish champion hurdler, he wasn't considered world standard, until he arrive in Los Angeles, not only bettering the world record, but winning the gold. His time was not recorded however, as he knocked over the last hurdle. This was the year that Pat O'Callaghan won his second gold for hammer throw, as well as being the flag bearer for the Irish Olympics team.
1956 - Ronnie Delany became Ireland’s ultimate Olympic champion with his thrilling gold medal win in a talent packed 1500 metre event in Melbourne. He stayed close to John Landry a local favourite for much of the race, before leaving him in the dust in a stunning final lap. One of the first things Delany did after his win was to send a simply worded telegram - 'We did it Jack' - to his first coach Jack Sweeney, his teacher who helped him see and reach his potential. Delany's gold was one of a total of 5 Irish medals - the other 4, 1 silver and 3 bronze were won for boxing.
1984 - Dungarvan, Waterford man John Treacy won silver in the mens' marathon event in an iconic performance. With just 150m to go, he dramatically overtook Britain's Charlie Spedding to take his silver place on the Olympic podium. Treacy's win was outstanding, considering it came less than a year after a disastrous World Championships in Helsinki, where he came almost last in his 10000 heat.
1992 - Drimnagh's Michael Carruth ended a 36 year long Irish gold medal drought, wimming gold in the mens' welterweight event in Barcelona this year. Belfast's 'Pocket Rocket' Wayne McCullough won silver in the mens' bantamweight the same year at only 18 years old.
1996 - Michelle Smith’s stunning 3 golds for Ireland in swimming in Atlanta, making her Ireland's most decorated athlete, were later shadowed in controversy in the face of doping allegations. Her medals were allowed to stand as she did not test positive at the time of the Games.
2000 - Sonia O'Sullivan became Ireland's first athletics medal winner since John Treacy when she won silver in the 5000m event. The nation and the entire population of O'Sullivan's hometown of Cobh watched enthralled as she finished just milliseconds behind Romania's Gabriela Szabo, winning silver for Ireland and beating a national record in the process.
2012 - The London Olympics were Ireland’s most successful to date with 6 medal wins including Katie Taylor’s gold for boxing. This was the first year women competed in boxing in the Olympics, and the Bray Bomber made it a Games to remember for Ireland in a thrilling contest against Russia's Sofya Ochigav, including a dramatically delayed result at the end. Taylor's win broke barriers and blazed a trail for women boxers in Ireland.
2020/21 - Ireland sent a record number of athletes to Tokyo with a team of 116, striking a historic first gold in rowing for Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy. O'Donovan had previously won silver with his brother Gary in 2016 and treated the his gold medal upgrade with his trademark offbeat and deprecating humour. Ireland had an exciting gold win for Dublin's Kellie Harrington in boxing. Harrington, who was also one of Team Ireland's flag bearers in the opening ceremony, beat Beatriz Ferrera 5-0 in the lightweight division in a thrilling final.
