 O'Donovan at the 2016 European Rowing Championships | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1992-12-30)30 December 1992 (age 32) Lisheen,Cork, Ireland |
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft7+1⁄2 in) |
| Weight | 70 kg (150 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Ireland |
| Sport | Rowing |
| Event | Lightweight double sculls |
| Coached by |
|
| Achievements and titles | |
| Olympic finals | Silver Medal (Lightweight double sculls, Rio 2016)[1] |
Medal record | |
Gary O'Donovan (born 30 December 1992) is an Irish rower.[2]Together with his brotherPaul he won the gold medal in the lightweight double sculls at the2016 European Rowing Championships, silver in thesame discipline at the2016 Summer Olympics,[3][4] and gold at the2018 World Rowing Championships.[5] He was the flag bearer forIreland during the closing ceremony of the2016 Summer Olympics.[6]
Gary O'Donovan was born on 30 December 1992 to Trish and Teddy O'Donovan, and grew up in Lisheen nearSkibbereen inCounty Cork.[7][8] He attended Lisheen National School, later St Fachtna's De La Salle secondary school in Skibbereen.[9] He also went to study part-time atCork Institute of Technology in 2011, and graduated with a degree in Marketing in 2016.[10]
Gary and his younger brother Paul became involved with rowing in 2001 when he was aged around eight. His father, who was a rower, took the two brothers to Skibbereen Rowing Club where he coached them in the sport.[11] They were selected for the Irish junior team at theHome International Regatta held in Wales in 2008, and won gold in the junior quad sculls.[12]
In April 2016, Paul and Gary O'Donovan won silver in the lightweight double sculls at the firstWorld Rowing Cup events of the year inVarese, Italy.[13] In the following month, the pair won the2016 European Rowing Championships gold medal in the double sculls inBrandenburg, Germany.[14]
In August 2016 at the Rio Olympics, the O'Donovan brothers won silver behind France in thelightweight double sculls, the first rowing medal won by Ireland in the Olympics.[15]
In 2017, the brothers won silver in men's lightweight double sculls at theEuropean Rowing Championships in May 2017. They also won silver at the secondWorld Rowing Cup regatta of the season in Poland in June,[16] and bronze at the third in July.[17]
At the2018 European Championships inGlasgow, the O'Donovan brothers won silver in the lightweight double sculls,[18] and later became world champions in the same event at the2018 World Rowing Championships.[5]
