Thrilling gold for Ireland's Jack Rafferty and Jonah Kirby at the World Under-19 Rowing Championships
It was Ireland's first gold medal at World Under-19 level, and the first medal for a men's crew.
In May, Rafferty and Kirby had taken bronze at the European Championships, coming back from a slow start to grab a medal.
But there was no faltering come the test against the best in the world. In the heat and the semi-final they led right through.
In the final, they pushed into a small lead at 500 metres, and then built from there, leaving the field behind.
'You try to win. That gives you confidence in the heats and semi-finals, to know you can do it. Then in the final, you're all out trying to win [gold]," Kirby told the Irish Independent.
'Anything can happen in the doubles. I only started to think about [winning] in the last 200 metres.'
For both of them, it is their last year at this level, though Kirby is still 17 and Rafferty turned 18 on Thursday. The two young men looked emotional on the podium as Amhrán na bhFiann rang out.
'I've been waiting for this for years; it's an unreal feeling,' Rafferty told World Rowing. 'It's amazing to be able to represent the green jersey – to win a gold medal is a different kind of feeling. I can't process it yet.'
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The key to the big step up was their dedication, Kirby told the Irish Independent. 'A lot of training – like every day. We did have the odd day off.'
They get to prepare amongst world and Olympic champions at the National Rowing Centre in Farran Wood.
'Seeing all the [Ireland] seniors training is kind of inspirational,' Kirby said. 'You get an idea of what it is like to be at the very top. It's great.
'All the seniors are really lovely people. They make you feel like you want to be there.'
Clara O'Brien, Ireland's pathway coordinator, has overseen an expansion of underage crews competing at international events. The Limerick woman sees it as 'a bridge' to senior level. She was coach leader in Trakai and said she was very happy with the performance of the whole team.
The women's double of Sophia Young [Methodist College, Belfast] and Aoife Hendy [Skibbereen] finished fifth in their A Final, while the men's quadruple won their B Final to take seventh overall. The women's and men's fours took 8th and 10th.
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