The Irish women's track cycling pursuit team have out of the Olympic Games despite setting a new national record with a time of 4:12.447.
The top eight of the ten teams competing in the event qualify for the next round, but the quartet of Lara Gillespie, Mia Griffin, Alice Sharpe and Kelly Murphy marginally missed out on a place.
They were pipped by the Canadian team to eighth spot by just 0.242 of a second.
Simply making it to Paris was a significant moment for Ireland, the only nation competing here that does not have a velodrome on home soil.
Ireland, who were the second team out on track in the velodrome, were slightly slower than the Japanese team through the first 2km of their ride.
In the back half of the race, they upped their pace and beat the Japanese, knocking a few seconds off the national record.
The Irish and Canadian teams are considered to be on a par with one another meaning Ireland were always likely to have to post a better time than the Canadians to progress.
However, it was not to be as Canada edged under the Irish time to progress.
Elsewhere, New Zealand laid down a marker as they came close to breaking the world record with a time of 4:04.679 to finish first.
That was just 0.437 seconds off the world record that Germany set at the Tokyo Games.
They were followed by the US in second place, and Great Britain in third.
Germany will not retain their gold medal from three years ago in Tokyo after Italy pipped them to fourth place. That means the best Germany can achieve is a bronze medal.
Australia qualified in sixth, followed by hosts France and Canada.
Speaking after the event, Kelly Murphy told RTÉ Sport that competing at the Olympics was "the culmination of two years of rally hard work".
"To come to the world's biggest race and do a big PB is something we’ve been dreaming of and to actually make it a reality today is a real joy," she said.
'We punch above our weight as a small nation'
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 6, 2024
The women's pursuit team of Lara Gillespie, Mia Griffin, Alice Sharpe and Kelly Murphy react to their national record#RTESport #Paris2024
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Alice Sharpe added that it was the team’s goal to set a new personal best and put in a performance that "we’re proud of and with that was a national record".
Ireland was the only nation of the ten to qualify for this event that does not have a velodrome.
However, a plan to build Ireland's first indoor cycling track in west Dublin has been given the green light by the Minister for Sport Catherine Martin and is scheduled for completion in 2027.
"We definitely punch above our weight as a small nation and we’re a small group of girls and together we’re a close-knit, tight team and we put on a display today that we can be proud of," Mia Griffin said.
Lara Gillespie added: "It’s really special to be here with all these girls and I’m so proud of us."
