Mona McSharry's Paris love affair deepens with second European bronze
Mona McSharry joked she should move to Paris after claiming her second European Aquatics Championship medal of the week, a bronze in the women's 200m breaststroke final on Friday evening. The 25-year-old from Sligo, who won Ireland's first medal at the Paris Olympics in 2024, added another chapter to her remarkable story in the French capital.
McSharry produced a scintillating final 50m to beat Dutch rival Tes Schouten by 0.24 seconds, touching in 2:22.43. She had already taken bronze in the 100m event 48 hours earlier. The venue shifted from La Défense Arena to the Olympic Aquatic Centre in Saint-Denis, but the result felt familiar to the Irish swimmer.
What did Mona McSharry say about racing in Paris again?
“I think Paris is a good city for me, I should just move here,” McSharry laughed. “It does have the same kind of feel. Having my family here to support me really made it feel a lot similar.
“I'm trying to soak it in as much as possible because I feel like I've had times in the past when I haven't done so. So I looked into the crowd, seeing all the Irish flags and looking at our team standing there, it was great.”
McSharry set a new Irish record of 2:22.22 in April after focusing on improving over the distance. She was just outside that mark in the final, but her resilience earned her the podium place after spending most of the race in fourth before producing a late charge.
How did the 200m breaststroke final unfold?
Britain's Angharad Evans, who had pipped McSharry for gold in the 100m final, faded over the final length and finished second. Evgeniia Chikunova, competing as a neutral athlete, took gold in 2:19.32, a new championship record.
“It was crazy,” McSharry recalled. “I was definitely burning up on the last 50, I could see Evans beside me but couldn't see anything else. I was hanging on for dear life and I'm glad I was on the right side of a tight finish.
“It's kind of similar to Paris (Olympics), they have the little red lights on the box now and immediately I was swinging my head around to see if there were three dots, two dots, one dot, so that's the immediate gratification.”
McSharry admitted she had doubted herself before the race. “As Ellen (Walshe) would say I was fighting demons during that one. Not the time I wanted, but I'm happy,” she said.
“I was a bit nervous today, just questioning the training, questioning everything. I had to remind myself that the 100 went well, that obviously wasn't the time I wanted but I got my hand on the wall, so I've got to be happy with that.”
How did the rest of the Irish team perform in Saint-Denis?
Danielle Hill finished 16th in the 100m backstroke semi-finals after her fifth race in three days. “It was just one step too far,” admitted Hill. “There's a lot more work that needs to be done (for LA), but it's confidence every time I step in the water.”
Grace Davison finished 15th overall, while Lottie Cullen had missed the semi-finals under the two-per-nation rule. Jack Cassin finished eighth in his 200m butterfly semi-final in 1:57.66.
Ellie McCartney finished eighth in the final in 2:26.93 before returning to the pool less than an hour later for the 200m individual medley semi-finals. The 21-year-old finished sixth in 2:13.85.
What is Ellen Walshe's schedule heading into the weekend?
New European 400m IM champion Ellen Walshe was third in the same semi-final, progressing to Saturday's final with the chance to double up on gold. After a day off on Thursday, Walshe clocked 2:11.26 after leading until the final turn. She will race the 200m butterfly heats on Saturday morning before the IM final in the evening.
“I just wanted to build through the rounds today and that's exactly what I did,” she said. “I guess the final will be fun tomorrow.”
Asked if she felt extra pressure after winning gold, Walshe replied: “No, absolutely not. The 200 and the 200 fly are so different to the 400 IM.”
How did Daniel Wiffen fare in the 1500m freestyle heats?
Earlier, Daniel Wiffen qualified fifth-fastest overall for the 1500m freestyle final after finishing second in his heat behind Germany's Oliver Klemet. Wiffen admitted he is not yet back to his best, despite significant progress since returning to Dublin from California three months ago.
The stifling conditions have also forced him to take extra measures, including bringing a fan into the call room. “It's about keeping cool, basically,” he explained. “For the 800 I was just sweating. Sleep, nutrition and hydration are the go-tos.
“You've got to really focus on what to wear as well, going to these things. There's a lot of different areas that kind of change up from a normal race. Plus, I'm not in the best shape and I have to take that into account. Yeah, we'll see what happens.”
Wiffen's twin Nathan was eighth in the final heat in 15:15.67.
Rosalie Phelan was 30th in the 50m freestyle in 25.55, while Ireland's four 50m breaststroke swimmers all missed out on the semi-finals. Jack Kelly was closest in 27.37, with Darragh Greene (27.77), Adam Bradley (28.24) and Eoin Corby (28.31) also eliminated.