Five Team Ireland athletes qualify for Finals in bumper morning of competition

Five Team Ireland athletes across Para Swimming and Para Athletics have qualified for Finals. In the pool Barry McClements was in action in the S9 100m Backstroke Heat and got Team Ireland to a great start with a fourth-place finish in a time of 1.05.35 and qualifying for the final. His final takes place this evening at 16.37.  

McClements said, “I’m happy, the plan was to get into the final, I knew I just had to beat four people so I finished in eight and I think definitely I can go faster tonight (in the final). My form has been building since Toyko and I’ve been getting faster so I’m happy the hard work is paying off. I’m very happy, finals tonight and hopefully, I’ll get a PB.” 

Dearbhaile Brady and Nicole Turner took to the water in the S6 50m Fly Heat. Turner came in third place with a time of 38.10 followed by Brady who came in fourth place with a time of 38.73 and both qualifying for the final which takes place at 17.05 this evening. 

Nicole said, “I’m okay. This morning was about staying loose, getting rid out the nerves, having fun and coming back later and do my thing. I’m happy.” 

She added, It’s all about being happy and having a bit of fun. It’s going to be really nice later on. All my friends and family will be there – my family were here the last day too – but all my friends came over last night. Those were the moments you missed from Tokyo. Tonight will be really nice. 

Dearbhaile said, “I felt very good, better than my 50m freestyle. They (nerves) were kind of there in the call room, but not as bad. I was ready to get in there and swim. It went according to plan. It was fast, I gave it everything as I wasn’t sure about a final.” 

Silver medalist, Róisín Ní Riain, was back in action this morning in the SM13 200m IM qualifier. Her time of 2.30.75, coming in second place in her heat was enough to secure her place in the Final, which takes place this evening at 19.04. 

“Speaking after the race she said, “It was a solid morning swim, and job done, it was good to get out. The plan was to feel good, have a good swim and make it back tonight (for the final) and I was able to do that so I’m happy out. I’d like to think I have more to give tonight, that’s always the aim for a final, is to swim faster than you do in the qualifying round.”  

Ellen Keane was also in action this morning in the S9 100m Backstroke qualifier. She came in sixth place with a time of 1.17.63, just outside of her 1.15.44 PB in this event which she recorded in Rio 2016. Despite a valiant display, it wasn’t enough to qualify for the final. This marks the end of the competition for Ellen. 

Speaking after her last ever Paralympic event, an emotional Ellen Keane said: “It’s really hard to put into words how I’m feeling, I’m just so grateful, I’m glad that finished on an event that isn’t my main one because I just didn’t feel the pressure. I just wanted to go out there and enjoy what racing feels like and enjoy the routine of it. Even putting on my racing suit and then sitting in the call room waiting to compete. I watched Barry (McClements) make the final and I was just so proud of him. I keep crying but I don’t know why, my face just keeps getting wet. I don’t even know it’s happening. It’s a really emotional day. The support and love I have been getting from here, in Paris, at home in Ireland and across the globe has really just been amazing. To have the support of my family and friends, even my dancing with the stars family have all been messaging me. I really really felt the love. Winne the Pooh said it best, when he said, how lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”

Away from the pool and on the track, three-time Paralympian Orla Comerford has qualified for the final of the Women’s 100m T13 race after a dominant first-place finish in her heat in a time of 12.02.

The Dubliner, who logged her personal best of 11.90 during the National Championships in July, finished just ahead of Canada’s Bianca Borgella to qualify third overall for tonight’s final.  

Comerford will face tough competition in the final in the form of reigning Paralympic champion Adiaratou Iglesias Forneiro of Spain and Azerbaijan’s Lamiya Valiyeva who stormed to victory in the first heat in a time of 11.81.  

Speaking after the race Comerford said, “I’m happy with that, that was the aim of the morning to be decisive in the heat, win it, so I’m glad to have done that and be safely through to later. I’ll go back now, rest up, get a bit of food and come back and hopefully do much the same.  

“I was feeling really confident coming into today’s race, really comfortable and really excited. This whole experience has been amazing. Tokyo was obviously really tough for me and it’s not till you get to Paris that you look back and think how weird that was. But even on a wet morning like this with not a full stand, I got such loud support which makes me really excited for later. The support has been overwhelming and I feel very lucky.” 

The final takes place this evening in Stade de France at 19:13 Irish time. 

In Para Equestrian, Wicklow rider, Kate Kerr-Horan, came agonisingly close to making the Paralympic final in Grade III dressage when Ireland’s Para equestrian team got their campaign underway at the spectacular Chateau de Versailles arena this morning. 

Horan is competing in her second Paralympic Games but this time with nine-year-old bay gelding Lyykebo’s Don Akino, with whom she had a super opening round.  

They scored 65.867 % which left them lying eighth, in the final qualifying spot, with just one pair to compete. 

But Sweden’s Renee Claesson-Ribring then scored marginally more (67:500%), to just edge out the 31-year-old from Tinahely into ninth place and out of the top eight to contest the Grand Prix final. 

She was still delighted with her performance. She said, “Honestly it was like a dream out there. He was so good the whole way through and we’re such a new partnership. We’ve only been together for a year, so to perform like that, on the biggest stage, I’m really, really happy.” 

Her early morning round was marred with rain so bad that it completely obscured the venue’s spectacular backdrop yet that didn’t deter the pairing. She said, “We’re well used to competing in this kind of weather at home but it did feel a little unreal,” she admitted. 

“I got into the arena yesterday for some practice rounds and to look around, to see Versaille (chateau) down in front of us, it honestly still doesn’t feel real. Tokyo (2020) was difficult because there was no audience. This whole experience is completely different because of the supporters and venue. I was actually very emotional today because of that.” 

Young Cork dressage rider Jessica McKenna also made a very impressive Paralympic debut in the same Grade III event, finishing 10th on Davidoff 188 with a score of 65.033%, just one place behind her more experienced teammate. 

“I feel like it hasn’t really sunk in yet,” said the 23-year-old equine business student whose partner only had one obvious falter on an early turn on the haunches. 

“You put so much preparation in and then it is over so quickly but I am very happy with that,” McKenna said. “We had just one moment that I’d say got us docked points but otherwise Davidoff was just great and it was an incredible experience.” 

Both riders could yet take part again in the Team event on Friday, depending on team selection. 

Michael Murphy, a bronze medallist at the 2022 World Championships, competes in Individual Grade 1 this afternoon (15:08 Irish time).

Day 6 Paralympics Games Morning Results (Tuesday 3rd September) 

Day 6 Paralympics Games Afternoon Schedule (Tuesday 3rd September) (times subject to change)