2 days ago
See photos as Kerry town welcomes home world rowing champion
Ireland's Jonah Kirby and Jack Rafferty won the gold at the World Under-19 Rowing Championships with a remarkable performance in Trakai, Lithuania to win Ireland's first gold medal at World Under-19 level, and the first medal for a men's crew.
And this outstanding performance was celebrated in Jonah's home town this week when he received a hero's welcome home. Jonah trains with Kenmare Rowing Club and the club are thrilled to have brought home gold.
"We are ecstatic to have a world champion,' said Club PRO Tommy O'Sullivan who said Jonah deserved a huge welcome home given his huge achievement.
"If you had said this time last year that Jonah would win gold we wouldn't have believed it but it shows that determine and hard work pays off. He worked so so hard and he got selected for the Irish team and he hasn't looked back.'
Tommy said to have such a high performance athlete from a small club in Kenmare helps inspire others and promote rowing.
Jonah is from Killaha, just outside Kenmare and is the son of Julie and Mike. He is a Leaving Cert student at Pobalscoil Inbhear Sceine.
Jonah has been training with the club since he was 14 and under the tutelage of coaches including Clive and Tommy O'Sullivan (Arthur) and the late Noel Casey he began to flourish.
Having won the National Junior 16 championships and the Junior 18 championships he went on to win a bronze medal a the European Championships cementing his talent on the water and ultimately progressed through trials to make it the World team along side Jack Rafferty from St Michael's Rowing club in Limerick.
