Ireland’s Róisín Ní Riain just misses out on bronze medal at Paralympic Games

It wasn’t to be, not on this day.
Two Irish swimmers tried to emulate Mona and Daniel in the La Défense Arena on Thursday night but ultimately podium finishes proved out of reach for Team Ireland on day one of the Paralympics.
Róisín Ní Riain finished fourth in her S13 100-metre butterfly final while Nicole Turner came home sixth in the medal race of the S6 50-metre freestyle.
Fourth can be the loneliest of finishing spots in sport but afterwards Ní Riain exuded the conviction of somebody who had already moved on – for she swims in the final of her strongest discipline on Friday night, the S13 100m backstroke.
“Look, I don’t think of it as a disappointing place to finish,” said the 19-year-old Limerick native.
“It’s a place higher than I went into the heats this morning. It’s my first event of every championship, it’s just an enjoyable one for me. I get to go out and have a first swim and hopefully I’ll build on that for the rest of the week.”
You felt she meant every word.
Ní Riain had been closing in on third place throughout the second length of the final but her time of 1:06.04 just wasn’t enough to reel in Uzbekistan’s Muslima Odilova (1:05.43).
Carlotta Gilli of Italy won the race in a time of 1:03.27 with USA’s Grace Nuhfer claiming silver with 1:03.88.
Ní Riain’s contented energy was in contrast to an emotional Turner, who felt she had underperformed.
“That was tough, I am not going to lie,” said the Laois swimmer. “The aim of the final is to get faster than the heat swim, that didn’t go my way today.
“At this moment in time, I can’t tell you why. But that is the reality of sport. There is the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.
“I am sure I will look back on today and see how I can improve on that performance, but an initial reaction is that it is quite bitter at this moment in time.”
She posted a time of 35.65 seconds in the final, fractionally slower than her heat of 35.35 seconds from the morning session.
Her final was won by China’s Yuyan Jiang, who broke the Paralympic record for the second time of the day with a finish of 32.59 seconds. Silver went to USA’s Ellie Marks (32.90) and bronze was won by Ukraine’s Anna Hontar (33.01).
This place has been a lucky charm for Irish swimming in recent weeks after the performances of Mona McSharry and Daniel Wiffen during the Olympics, and there was hope within Team Ireland that a medal could be mined from the pool on day one of these Games.
The atmosphere in the 17,000 capacity repurposed venue, which is ordinarily the home ground of Racing 92 rugby club, was electric for both sessions on Thursday
The reception for the French swimmers was cover your ears loud, and when La Marseillaise got a rendition, well the whole joint swayed in unison. It was quite the performance from the locals. But there were stunning performances in the water throughout the day.
The sight of Lu Dong, who lost both her arms in an accident as a child, swimming on her back in the S5 200m freestyle heat against front-facing competitors who all had at least one arm was simply breathtaking.
Dong is a decorated swimmer who medalled in London, Rio and Tokyo, and qualified for the medal race with a heat time of 3:07.20. Consider the strength of core, and indeed the strength of mind, you need to get yourself to such a place.
She came seventh in that final but for the vast majority in the crowd the result was immaterial, it will slip away from memory soon enough but they will never forget watching Lu Dong swim.
Ní Riain and Turner were not the only Irish swimmers in the pool on Thursday either, 17-year-old Dearbhaile Brady also swam in the S6 50-metre freestyle. The Derry swimmer missed out on a place in the final with her fifth place finish but posted a personal best time of 36.45 on what was her Paralympic debut.
Ultimately, it just wasn’t to be for Team Ireland on day one, but they are far from done in the pool. Ellen Keane will become a five-time Paralympian on Friday when she swims in the SB8 100m breaststroke.
Barry McClements and Deaten Registe will also be in action over the coming days while Ní Riain, Turner and Brady are not finished yet either.
Ní Riain is the current World Para swimming 100-metre backstroke champion and she also holds the world record in the 200-metre backstroke.
Turner won silver in the S6 50m butterfly in Tokyo three years ago and will be hoping for another podium in that discipline on day six of these games.
“I have four full days of rest and recovery and the head will get down now for the 50 fly,” added Turner.
Ní Riain doesn’t have the luxury of a break but then you feel getting back in the pool is exactly what she wants.
“I have a straight final tomorrow evening, so we’ll go back to my coach and see if he wants me to swim in the morning. It’s about eating well and sleeping well before tomorrow evening,”
And then she was gone, no sense this was any sort of hiccup or disappointment. Business, it’s just part of the deal, you win or you don’t. She’ll be back in the office tomorrow evening.
Jürgen Klopp was among the spectators at the La Défense Arena for the evening session and found himself sitting close to a battalion of Irish fans.
“The stories behind [Paralympic] athletes are always special,” said the former Liverpool manager.
“That’s what I love about sports, that it can change the world. Sometimes only for a moment and sometimes forever.”
It wasn’t to be for Ireland’s swimmers on Thursday, not on this day.
But there will be others.
Very soon.