Gold for Nicole Turner and bronze for Dearbhaile Brady in 50m freestyle at European Championships
Ireland swimmers Nicole Turner, joint gold medallist, left, and Dearbhaile Brady, bronze medallist, after the Women's 50m Freestyle S6 final during day five of the Para Swimming European Championships in Funchal, Portugal. Photo: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
In a race that went right down to the wire, Ireland emerged victorious with two medals from the 50m freestyle final at the Para Swimming European Championships in Funchal, Portugal.
Nicole Turner touched the wall at the same time as her Swiss counterpart to claim joint gold, her second European medal this week. This is her first gold medal at a major championship.
Speaking after the final Turner said: “That was special and to do it as a joint was even more special. To be honest the 50 free I love it. It’s an event that I really enjoy and I did really enjoy that race”.
Teammate Dearbhaile Brady followed right behind to win bronze, her first ever major championship medal.
Speaking after the final Brady said: “It was quite a shock seeing my name come up there. I was really nervous coming into the race but I’m really proud of how I swam”.
Ní Riain finished eighth in her 50m freestyle final in a time of 28.75.
Tomorrow, Ní Riain will contest the 400m freestyle. Barry McClements is back in the pool for his second event the 100m backstroke.
Both swimmers have heats during the morning session. Nicole Turner is in a direct final tomorrow evening, the 100m breaststroke.
