Olympic and World champion rower Paul O’Donovan has been chosen as the RTÉ Sport Sportsperson of the Year 2024.
The Skibbereen man had a glittering year on the water, becoming the first Irish athlete to win medals at three consecutive Olympic Games.
In August, O’Donovan added to his Olympic medal hauls from Rio and Tokyo, winning gold alongside Fintan McCarthy in the men’s lightweight double sculls.
Little over three weeks later, he earned his seventh World Rowing Championships gold, winning the men’s lightweight single sculls in St Catharines, Canada.
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The 30-year-old fought off tough competition to take the Sportsperson of the Year accolade, with Olympians making up the majority of the 12 nominations.
Also nominated were O’Donovan’s fellow gold medallists from Paris, Kellie Harrington, Rhys McClenaghan (who won the 2023 Sportsperson of the Year award) and Daniel Wiffen, as well as Ciara Mageean, Rhasidat Adeleke, Katie Taylor, Katie-George Dunlevy, Róisín Ní Riain, Shane O’Donnell, Paul Townend and Anthony Cacace.
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Paralympic silver and bronze medallist Ní Riain (19) was chosen as Young Sportsperson of the Year, while Dunlevy and Linda Kelly were picked as Team of the Year after winning two gold medals at the World Para-cycling Championships and gold and silver at the Paralympics.
The night also saw champion trainer Willie Mullins named Manager of the Year and former professional and Olympic champion boxer Michael Carruth inducted into the RTÉ Sport Hall of Fame.
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