25-05-2025
Irish rowing's Dominic Casey era gets underway with medal win at European Under-19 Championships
The Ireland double of Jonah Kirby and Jack Rafferty overcame a not-so-great start to muscle their way into the bronze medal position at the European Under-19 Championships in Kruzswica in Poland. Greece won from Italy, with Kenmare man Kirby and Rafferty of St Michael's in Limerick holding off a serious push by Lithuania in the final quarter.
Two other Ireland crews made it to A Finals in Poland. The Ireland men's four, which had won its heat, got stuck in fourth in the final and finished there in a race won by Romania. The women's double, Aoife Hendy and Sophia Young, finished sixth in their final.
The women's pair and men's quadruple slipped into B Finals and took, respectively, eighth and 11th overall.
Casey, the long-term Ireland lightweight coach, now heads up a revamped Ireland system. Antonio Maurogiovanni, the Ireland high performance director at Paris 2024, was let go after the Games and has not been replaced.
