Fiona Murtagh has claimed Ireland's second medal of the European Rowing Championships by taking silver in the single sculls in Plovdiv.
Murtagh, who won Olympic bronze in Tokyo, came in behind Britan's Lauren Henry and head of Dane Frida Sanggaard Nielsen.
At the halfway point, Murtagh was in second place and within striking distance of Henry, but the Briton gradually began to pull away.
Fiona Murtagh takes silver for Ireland at the European Rowing Championships in Plovdiv pic.twitter.com/cA0jd9VUZ3
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) June 1, 2025
The Galway woman eventually crossed the line in 7:21:11, just over three seconds off first place but about 2.5 seconds ahead of Nielsen.
"First singles final, it's been a long year - a tough year," she told RTÉ Sport afterwards.
"Really special, nice to be able to bring home a medal. An exciting season ahead.
"Throughout the regatta I've gained so much confidence. The single is really a confidence boat. I had to back myself for the first 20 strokes and be really confident at the front and at the finish.
"It got hard through the k (one kilometre mark) but I could see the field spreading out a little bit. I got a bit of a head wind with the wind against my back.
"One I saw those red buoys I was like, 'there's nothing left, empty it' so I'm happy with what I've done.
"But I've so much to learn still. Some of those girls are new to the field but a lot of them are quite experienced so this is my first step on the ladder.
"I've such a long way to go."
'Really special, nice to be able to bring home a medal'
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) June 1, 2025
A delighted Fiona Murtagh speaks to @DavidGillick after claiming Ireland's second medal of the European Rowing Championships #RTESport pic.twitter.com/kjGmR1GkMb
Murtagh also paid credit to Team Ireland, adding: "Shout out to my team mates, they're so good. "They've supported me so much throughout the year.
"Even today, some of the girls were with me at breakfast, they were with me in the tent - I never felt alone even though I'm out there in the water on my own.
"I'm never actually alone, I have them with me."
Yesterday, the duo of Fintan McCarthy and Konan Pazzaia took bronze in the men's double sculls. It was a first heavyweight medal for McCarthy, who previously won two Olympic gold medals in the lightweight category.
