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Fiona Murtagh rescued from the water in dramatic scenes at Irish Rowing Championships

Fiona Murtagh rescued from the water in dramatic scenes at Irish Rowing Championships

In disruptive crosswind conditions at the National Rowing Centre, the Galway woman was in charge of the senior single sculls final but fell in with 500 metres to go and had to be rescued. There were moments of real worry before she scrambled from the water into the launch. Mags Cremen of UCD went on to win the title.
'Because it's an easterly wind, the waves are quite big,' Murtagh told the Irish Independent. 'My blade (oar) clipped the water and just shot out of my hand. It was like a bullet. And by the time I realised it was out of my hand my face was in the water. Just one of those things!'
'That was my first flip in a single. And it's been captured on TG4 and on YouTube and on national television,' she says, laughing. 'We can teach the kids flip drills (with the video)!'
While the European and World Cup silver medallist was impressively calm as she told her story, she had difficulty breaking free. 'My foot got caught, so it was a bit tricky getting out of the boat,' she says. 'My heel restraint was quite tight, so my ankle got stuck. I was stuck under the boat for a bit. Which is a little bit scary. But the safety launches are great.
'But, sure, it was a good race. Fair play to Mags (Cremen) and the girls, they kept their heads above the water!'
Cremen, rowing for UCC, had rowed steadily to stay in a clear second place. She did not see Murtagh go in as she was concentrating on keeping her bladework clean in rough conditions. 'Unfortunate for her,' she said, adding that she was delighted to get a win for UCC in her last regatta with the club, as she finishes up in the college.
The men's single was much less dramatic. Skibbereen's Fintan McCarthy was peerless as he flew clear of his challengers, including the Olympic bronze medallist from Paris, Philip Doyle. 'I just clipped too many waves,' Doyle said. 'I stopped the boat about three times.' The Belfast Boat Club man wanted to get back into the Ireland double, and stepped back from the Ireland system when it was not happening. However, he said he will now go back into the squad.
Neptune also rued the waves. They were leading the men's junior 18 coxed four when they caught a crab (missed a stroke). Coláiste Iognáid came through to win.
Enniskillen added the women's junior 18 eight to the men's title in fine style.
UCD will wear black armbands for the women's and men's senior eights final later in the day to mark the passing of rowing great Tom Sullivan. A phenomenal coach and teacher, he guided UCD to the Ladies Plate title at Henley Royal Regatta and coached UCD women's crews well into his eighties.
UCD's women's crew have renamed their boat Tom Sullivan for their final.
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