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Gary and Paul O'Donovan win silver at Olympics

August 12th, 2016 2:56 PM

By Southern Star Team

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Skibbereen heroes make history in Rio

SKIBBEREEN brothers Gary and Paul O'Donovan have won silver medals in the men's lightweight double scull at the Olympics in Rio.

They are first ever Irish rowers to medal at Olympics.

Gary (23) and Paul (22) were fifth after the first 500m, with France leading the way.

At the halfway mark, the Skibbereen Rowing Club aces were still fifth and in contention, with little between the top five crews.

With 500m to go, the Irish crew were in second and they fought hard with the French to the line.

The Skibb duo made national and international headlines this week with their colourful post-race interviews and impressive performances.

They won their heat on Monday and finished third in their semi final on Thursday.
Congrats lads on putting Skibbereen and West Cork on the map.

Watch the race here live from Skibbereen Credit Union:

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