The weekend highlights from the European Games in Poland included a Silver medal in TaeKwonDo for Jack Wooley and a Bronxe on the track in the 100 metre hurdles for Sarah Lavin.
A full three days after she raced Limerick’s Lavin claimed bronze once the Division One and Two athletics had concluded.
Despite having raced on Wednesday morning Lavin’s impressive time of 12.82sec was fast enough to earn her a podium place. Her time is the second fastest of her career; just 0.03s off the personal best she clocked at the European Championships in Munich last summer.
Gold went to home favourite Pia Skrzyszowska of Poland who ran a time of 12.77sec, while Nadine Visser from the Netherlands took silver in 12.81sec. Both athletes competed in the Division One race in Krakow on Saturday.
France’s Laeticia Bapté also clocked a time of 12.82 in the Division One race but Lavin’s time was faster by a very important one thousandth of a second.The twenty-nine-year-old Irish sprinter is notably the first athlete who won a Division Three race to take an athletics medal at these Games.
“I’m so so happy. I’ve dreamt of winning this, winning a major senior medal since I was a kid. It’s a really strange way to do it – to have that run by myself the other day and to have to play that waiting game to watch all the best from every country compete against each other. Division two was really stacked, and again division one today right to the wire.”
Referring to her support and her late partner Rally Driver Craig Breen Lavin said: “I’ve had incredibly special people helping me over the last few months, over last years, but ultimately I think someone very special up there is helping me. They like the drama obviously today to bring it right one thousandth of a second, to get that bronze when the best were there.”
“It’s for everybody; Jackie, Ray, Kellie, Darragh and Bobbie; my own family and extended family and of course my coach Noelle, thank you so so much. I dreamt this day probably a little differently but I’ll remember it forever.”
Team Ireland’s Jack Woolley became a European Games silver medallist at 58kg after an intense battle with Spaniard Adrian Yunta Vicente in Friday night’s final.
After a lengthy day of competition the twenty-four year old Dubliner impressed taking the first round 13-11, with Yunta Vicente edging the second 5-3 leaving it all down to the last round on the mat. In what was a gripping contest the Spanish athlete did just enough to take the final round 14-11, and with it the win.
“It feels amazing to come away with a medal,” said Wooley.
“You wake up in the morning and you think – I want to be on that podium so it’s great, but you want to be in the top spot and hear the national anthem. Unfortunately I haven’t heard that just yet but today was really positive. It was a step up on past performances over the last while so it’s good to show everyone a better representation of myself.”
“I’m excited now to see the flag it’s been a while, we weren’t actually at the last European Games. It’s great to see the support here and at home, and I’m looking forward to some time off and getting to spend some time with some loved ones.”
“They’re there every step of the way supporting me like literally more than I support myself half the time, so yeah it’s been an amazing day and I’m looking forward to the next one.”
The Irish rugby sevens team continued with winning ways on Sunday storming to a 38-7 victory over their Italian counterparts in their second pool encounter. Earlier in the day James Topping’s side cruised to a 66-0 win over hosts Poland, and will now face Germany today in their final pool game looking to make it three from three, followed by a Quarter Final in the early evening.
Today’s schedule of Irish competitors is as follows:
Archery
13:15 (14:15) Men’s Recurve Individual 1/32 Eliminations, Oskar Ronan (IRL) V Oleksii Hunbun (UKR)
Modern Pentathlon
15:30 (16:30) Women’s Fencing Ranking Round, Sive Brassil (IRL)
Rugby Sevens (Henryk Reyman Stadium)
12:58 (13:58) Men’s Rugby Sevens, Ireland V Germany
18:14 (19:14) Men’s Rugby Sevens Quarter Finals, Ireland V TBC
Badminton
10:30 (11:30) Mixed Doubles Group Stage, Joshua Magee & Moya Ryan (IRL) V Bailetti/Corsini (ITA)
13:00 (14:00) Women’s Singles Group Stage, Rachael Darragh (IRL) V Tereza Svabikova (CZE)
16:00 (17:00) Women’s Doubles, Moya Ryan/Kate Frost V Lambert/Tran ()
16:30 (17:30) Men’s Doubles, Joshua Magee/Paul Reynolds (IRL) V Greco/Salutt (ITA)
18:00 (19:00) Men’s Singles, Nhat Nguyen (IRL) V Milan Dratva (SVK)
Diving
09:00 (10:00) Diving – Men’s 1m Springboard Preliminaries (Jake Passmore)
17:00 (18:00) Diving – Men’s 1m Springboard Finals (Jake Passmore)
Boxing (Nowy Targ Arena)
12:00 (13:00) Women’s 54kg Round of 16, Jennifer Lehane (IRL) V TBC
12:30 (13:30) Women’s 60kg Round of 16, Kellie Harrington (IRL) V Elida Kocharyan (ARM)
14:00 (15:00) Men’s 80kg Round of 16, Kelyn Cassidy (IRL) V Kelyn Cassidy (IRL) V Taylor Jay Bevan (GB)
14:45 (15:45) Men’s 92kg Round of 16, Jack Marley (IRL) V Vagkan Nanitzanian (GRE)
18:00 (19:00) Women’s 66kg Round of 16, Amy Broadhurst (IRL) V Beatrise Rozentale (LAT)
18:30 (19:30) Men’s 51kg Round of 16, Sean Mari (IRL) V TBC
