Paralympian with Mayo connections to compete in rowing in Paris

A Paralympic athlete whose mother is a native of Achill Island will make his paralympic debut tomorrow morning when he takes part in the heats of PR2 Mixed Double Sculls in rowing.

Tiarnán O'Donnell (26) from Boher, Co Limerick will compete in the PR2 Mixed Double Sculls in Paris alongside Galway's Katie O'Brien and the pair will take to the water at 9.30am tomorrow morning for the heats at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium. They will be the first rowers to compete for Ireland at the Paralympics since the London Games in 2012.

His mother Neasa, nee Fahy, who is the Senior Executive Sports Manager at University of Limerick is a native of Achill Sound and he is the grandson of Kathleen and the late Brendan Fahy who were both teachers at Tonragee National School.

Tiarnán's appearance at the Paralympics is quite an achievement as he is a relative newcomer to rowing having initially made a name for himself as one of Ireland’s top wheelchair basketball players. He has won several national titles and cups with his local team, the Limerick Celtics and has also won national player of the year awards as well as European All-Star awards. He captained the Irish U23 Wheelchair Basketball team to the medal podium in Finland in 2023.

In May 2023, he transitioned to rowing through the PTSB NextGen programme and moved to Cork to base himself closer to the National Rowing Centre. A graduate of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Limerick, he made rapid progress and natural talent earned him a place alongside Katie to compete in Paris in the PR2 Mixed Double Sculls.

Tiarnán O'Donnell whose mother is from Co Mayo will compete in the Paralympics tomorrow morning

In May, Tiarnán won his first international medal at the 2024 World Rowing Cup II in Lucerne, Switzerland in the PR2 single sculls. He followed that up by winning his second medal, another silver, at the 2024 World Rowing Cup III in Poznan again in the PR2 single sculls.

At the age of five, Tiarnán was diagnosed with a rare malformation in his right leg and underwent operations every few months throughout the rest of my childhood.

He underwent operations every few months throughout the rest of his childhood and when he reached his teens, his condition began to rapidly deteriorate. Following consultation with doctors from the USA, he was re-diagnosed with a rare tumour called a Fibro-Adipose Vascular Anomaly.

“I was just the sixteenth person in the world diagnosed with this condition. In the summer before my Leaving Cert year, I underwent an extremely risky procedure to try to remove a large portion of the tumour from my calf. Unfortunately, during the operation I got severe nerve damage leaving my leg paralysed,” he explained in an interview with the University of Limerick.

“Although my leg had been paralysed, the nerve damage caused excruciating pain in my leg and foot. The only way I can describe it is like having my foot on fire or being stabbed in the foot all the time. I underwent weekly treatment to manage the tumour and its side effects all while trying to attend school.”

Tiarnán continued: “I became extremely ill in my Leaving Cert year due to my treatment but was determined to sit my exams with my twin [Darragh] and my peers. In the days leading up to the exams I was in hospital paralysed from the belly down to give my body a break from the pain and stress it was under. This meant I was lying flat in a hospital bed when I should have been doing the last bit of cramming.

“After my Leaving Cert I made the difficult decision to amputate my leg. I was so tired and ill from fighting that this seemed like my only hope of a normal life. After consultation with experts in every field, my family and I decided it was the best option for me.

“So, I moved to London in 2018 for the procedure. I spent two weeks in hospital after the surgery and then moved home to allow myself to heal up. After six weeks I flew back to London and learned how to walk. This took me just 13 days of vigorous physio and gym work to achieve. I went from ten plus years of crutches to walking in just three months. This was the best decision I ever made, and I have never looked back,” he explained.

Tiarnán credits his strong work ethic to his parents, Neasa and Patrick, a native of Co Donegal and attributes his drive and determination to them.

“They were both extremely successful in their professional lives and in their sporting careers when they were my age. They have never pushed me in any direction but have allowed me to find my path and guided me along the way. They make sure to let me know how proud they are of me anytime I achieve something whether it be big or small.”

The PR2 Mixed Double Sculls heats take place tomorrow morning between 9.30am and 12.50pm. Depending on results in that heat, Tiarnán and Katie will either compete in the repechage the following morning or go straight through to the Mixed Double Sculls final on Sunday, September 1.