Strong Opening Day for Rowing Ireland at World Rowing Cup I

Rowing Ireland enjoyed a strong opening day at the 2026 World Rowing Cup I in Seville on Friday (29th May 2026), with all eight crews progressing from their opening races.

Heat victories for Fiona Murtagh, Alison Bergin and Sophia Young, along with a heat win and Semi-Final qualification for Fintan McCarthy, highlighted an encouraging day of racing for the team.

Fiona Murtagh got the day off to a flying start in the Women's Single Sculls. Racing in Heat 1, Murtagh produced a strong second half of the race, making her move at the 1500-metre mark before pulling clear of the field to take victory in 7:37.33 and secure direct qualification to the Semi-Finals ahead of Germany. 

There was further success in the Women's Double Sculls as Alison Bergin and Sophia Young claimed victory in their heat. Bergin and Young raced strongly throughout to cross the line first in 7:06.30, finishing ahead of the Netherlands and Canada to secure direct progression to the Semi-Finals.

In the Men's Single Sculls, Fintan McCarthy continued his strong form with a composed victory in his opening heat. Sitting comfortably in third position through the early stages, McCarthy steadily worked his way through the field before applying pressure on Norway's Jonas Slettemark Juel in the closing strokes to take victory in 7:08.46 and progress to the quarter finals. McCarthy's heat victory was achieved in the fourth-fastest time out of the heats.

McCarthy returned to the water later in the day for Quarter-Final 3, where he delivered another assured performance to secure his place in the Semi-Finals. Leading through the opening 500 metres, he battled with Slovenia throughout a highly competitive race before crossing the line in second place. The result secured one of the three automatic qualification places and a place in the Semi-Finals.

In the second Women's Double Sculls heat, the established double of Zoe Hyde and Mags Cremen delivered another strong performance. In a closely contested race from start to finish, the crew remained firmly in contention before increasing their stroke rate to 32 strokes per minute in the closing stages to produce a powerful sprint finish. Their second-place finish in 7:01.20 behind the Netherlands secured another Semi-Final berth for Rowing Ireland.

Isobel Clements continued the momentum in the Lightweight Women's Single Sculls. Leading through the opening 500 metres, Clements maintained her composure under pressure from Uruguay to finish second behind Mexico in 8:09.49. Her result secured one of the two qualifying positions available and a place in the A Final.

The Women's Four of Natalie Long, Claire Feerick, Emma Fagan and Imogen Magner also progressed directly to the A Final following an impressive display. The four remained competitive throughout before executing their sprint sequence in the closing stages, increasing their stroke rate into the 40s to secure second place in 6:51.60. 

The Men's Pair of Adam Murphy and Fionnán McQuillan-Tolan produced a determined performance to secure progression to the Semi-Finals. Moving into fourth position at the 1500-metre mark, the crew launched a powerful sprint over the closing 200 metres, increasing their stroke rate to 42 strokes per minute to record a time of 6:58.67. Their performance ranked among the six fastest crews across all heats, earning a place in the next round.

The Men's Quad Sculls crew of Konan Pazzaia, Andrew Sheehan, Ryan Spelman and Martin O'Grady raced strongly in a particularly fast heat. The crew crossed the line in fourth place in 5:58.67 and will continue their campaign in the Final C. 

Speaking following the day's racing, Niall O’Carroll, High Performance Director said:

" Day one in Seville showed exactly where Rowing Ireland is right now - competitive, resilient and prepared to race hard against some of the strongest crews in the world.

What matters most to us is not just medals but developing people and building athletes capable of delivering their very best every time they represent Rowing Ireland. That is the standard we ask of every crew, and today our athletes demonstrated that across a range of boat classes.

There is a huge amount of learning, growth and belief being built within this team. It was a very positive start to the regatta, but the focus now turns to the next challenge. We have semi-finals tomorrow and several crews in contention as the racing progresses through the weekend.

I’m incredibly proud of the commitment, courage and professionalism shown across the squad already. Rowing Ireland is in a really good place and these athletes are showing that on the international stage.”