The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
‘They would gobble you up in a minute!’
IT seems everyone wants a piece of the O’Donovan brothers this week since the Cork duo rowed their way to Olympic silver last Friday, but here in Kerry their immense success was forecast some time ago.
While their hilarious interviews have been attracting legions of fans, Gary and Paul O’Donovan are far from the comical duo they appear on TV, according to one Kerry man who knows them very well - Mikey Joe Burns of the Workmen’s Rowing Club at Ross Castle, Killarney.
“People have no idea what dedicated athletes these lads are. They’d gobble you up in a minute,” he told The Kerryman
“They came from nowhere and have been working on a shoe-string so this is incredible for them.”
Mikey Joe knows the lads and their father Teddy very well from years of welcoming them to Kerry regattas and is also a great friend of the lads’ trainer in Skibbereen, Dominic Casey, who was also a regular competitor in Sneem and Kenmare regattas over the years,.
Mikey Joe’s son, Aodhán, meanwhile, has even more of an insight into the Cork siblings, having rowed with them for two years, leading to two championship wins.
“The boys would have raced in Killorglin when they were very young and their father Teddy and Dominic (Casey) would have raced in Sneem and Kenmare so we’re all very familiar with the lads here and are absolutely delighted for them” Mikey Joe explained.
Paying tribute to their immense success in Rio - bringing home Ireland’s first ever Olympic rowing medal - Mikey Joe said that the signs were good when they won the European Rowing championships earlier this year and now predicts a lot of more good fortune for the animated Cork brothers.
“The signs were good when they raced together earlier this year and as we [Workmen’s RC members] watched the times from Rio we were confident that they were in with a shot at a medal,” he said
“It’s amazing to think they have only rowing together competitively for two years. They are certainly destined for a lot more in the future.”