Brady Brings the Curtain Down on Europeans with Bronze for Ireland

Dearbhaile Brady brought down the curtain on a hugely successful 2026 World Para Swimming European Championships by claiming bronze, securing her fourth medal of the week and Ireland’s seventh overall at the championships.

Brady headed into tonight’s 100m Breaststroke (SB6) final ranked as the third-fastest qualifier. With three silver medals already to her name, the Derry native had her sights set on adding a fourth medal to her impressive championship haul. Sitting fourth at the turn, Brady produced a strong second half of the race, powering home to touch the wall in 1:44.49 and claim the bronze medal. In doing so, she shaved more than two and a half seconds off the lifetime best she had set in the morning heats.

The National Centre (Dublin) swimmer said: “I feel tired, I forgot how tiring the 100m Breaststroke can be. I’m happy with a bronze, it’s not one of my best events, I like to swim it to see where I’m at. I went to Europeans in 2024 with four events and came out with one medal, so there’s a big difference two years later. It’s been a good week, I’ve learned a lot to take into next year, a lot of positives. It’s about putting the head down and taking it day by day as we head into next year.”

Róisín Ní Riain headed to the main stage for the 400m Freestyle (S13) final. The National Centre (Limerick) swimmer clocked 4:49.19 to finish fifth overall. The result marked the end of a successful championship campaign for Ní Riain, who returns home with one gold and two silver European medals.

Speaking in the mixed-zone, Ní Riain said: “I’m pretty disappointed with that swim, I’m not going to lie. I gave it everything but just didn’t have it there tonight. This week I just wanted to come in and give some good performances, maybe with the exception of that swim tonight, I’m really happy. It’s probably a sign of the lack of training this year, I was still working really hard but probably a lack of race endurance, there’s no excuses., I just didn’t have it there tonight.”

Reflecting on the week, she added: “I’m absolutely delighted with the week as a whole, if you told me some of the times I was going to do at the start of the week, especially those first couple of weeks, I would have been happy. I would have liked to end if on a little bit of a better note, but I have to be happy coming away from this week.”

Luke O’Donoghue had a senior international debut to remember, setting lifetime bests on two consecutive occasions in the 100m Backstroke (S9). After lowering his personal best in the heats to secure a place in the final, the Kerry man went even quicker in the evening session, touching the wall in 1:08.42 to finish eighth overall, capping off an impressive first appearance on the European stage.

O’Donoghue said: “I’m very happy with that, it wasn’t a great swim, I messed up the turn so there’s definitely more there. I was really delighted when I saw the time, I’m absolutely delighted. It’s good to know the training has paid off, it’s good to PB twice in the same event. There’s a great team here, everyone is swimming really well, watching them every morning and night has been great. The goal is LA, so now it’s about keeping working at it and seeing if I can get there.”

Limerick native Ellie Lynch stepped onto the European stage to make her debut appearance at a senior international competition for Ireland. Lynch had to contend with a lengthy wait before donning the Irish cap, with her sole event, the 100m Backstroke (S9), scheduled for the final session of the championships. The Celtic Waves swimmer clocked a time of 1:23.20 to finish seventh in her first outing on the European stage.

Following the race, Lynch said: “It wasn’t in the race I was hoping for, but you know what, I’ve had a long week here. I just got unlucky with the last day of racing, I gave it my all today. I’m just really thankful to be here and to be wearing the Irish cap is such an honour. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the race I wanted, but I have so many more opportunities with that race, it was just amazing to be here and to give it my all. I think I found the wait the hardest. Just the anticipation waiting for the race and as I said, it wasn’t the race I was hoping for, but there’s always other opportunities that I’m just grateful to be here and obviously wear the cap and wear the green with pride.”