Two men died within 10 minutes of each other at Youghal Ironman, inquest hears

Coroner Frank O’Connell recorded a verdict of accidental death in the case of Mr Chittenden.

The inquest into Mr Wall’s death was adjourned and will resume at a later date for the evidence of a kayaker who was safety support on the day.

Dr Margot Bolster, the assistant State pathologists, carried out autopsies on both men at Cork University Hospital in the aftermath of the incidents. Dr Bolster said that both men died of acute respiratory failure due to drowning.

She said that Mr Chittenden had also suffered a recent mild blunt force trauma to the left temporal area of his head which had caused significant bruising. Dr Bolster said he was alive when the bruising occurred.

Dr Bolster said the blow to the head could have caused a concussion which impacted on his ability to swim. She said that she couldn’t speculate on what the item was that he may have hit.

He hit something with his head. That is as far as I can go. He was alive when the bruising occurred. That is beyond a doubt.

 Dr Bolster said there was no evidence of any cardiac event. She said a person can “drown very rapidly” in the water.

Dr Bolster said the bruising was “extensive” and greater than she would expect from an accidental kick by another competitor.

The coroner noted that there was no report in relation to rocks in the water on the day. Dr O’Connell said the death of Mr Chittenden had occurred in an “unexpected manner".

“There was no bruising on him going in to the water. One can only speculate as to how the bruising occurred. That he collided with something very solid. As a matter of probability, it happened before he was taken to the boat [for resuscitation.]” The coroner said there was a likelihood that this injury ultimate led him to drown.

Monday's inquest heard that that the half Ironman event was cancelled on Saturday, August 19, 2023, because conditions were deemed unsuitable following Storm Betty the previous day. It went ahead alongside the full Ironman event the following day — albeit with a staggered start time.

Legal representatives of Ironman and Triathlon Ireland were present at the inquest. However, no actual representatives of the organisation were in attendance.

Some 1,396 competitors took part in the Ironman event on the day, with 52 failing to finish the swim section of the race. Among that number were the two competitors who died.

John Innes, a volunteer who was involved in the course design and safety, told the inquest that he was very satisfied that it was safe for the swim to go ahead. He said that the sea was flat beyond the initial rolling waves about 50m or 60m out and “calm for the remainder of the course".

He had gone out early that morning with others to test conditions in the water.

Competitor Conor Hillick gave a statement to gardaí in which he said that conditions were very challenging on the day.

Mr Hillick, who had lifeguard experience in the US, said it was “very chaotic” in the sea.

Competitors were swimming in to each other… people were struggling.

Alarm raised

Competitor Colin Ryan gave evidence of finding Mr Chittenden motionless and face down in the water. Mr Ryan said that he saw what he thought was a rock or seaweed in his peripheral vision in the water. He then realised it was a wetsuit and that the participant was lying face down down.

He attempted to raise the alarm whilst also helping Mr Chittenden. When he realised Chittenden was unconscious he commenced CPR in the water.

“I found him [Ivan] face down in the water. I didn’t want to stop CPR so I put my hand up [to raise the alarm]. It was about 30 seconds or a minute before somebody was with me and that was a kayaker. He called [for help] on the radio. 

"I asked him if he knew CPR and I told him we would do it from the kayak.” 

Mr Ryan said the nearest safety boat was around 50m away. He said that a girl gave them her surf rescue board and they commenced CPR again on Mr Chittenden.

“I was looking for a sign of a response but there was none. I shouted at a small boat approaching. I told them to mind his head (lifting him on to the boat). Everyone was upset.” 

CPR continued on the safety boat when it was noted that Mr Chittenden was grey in colour and foaming at the mouth. Mr Chittenden was pronounced dead at 9.09am by Dr Hugh Doran. CPR had continued on dry land once he was taken from the water Resuscitation continued for an hour before he was pronounced dead.

At the start of the inquest, Mr O’Connell said that he had no intention of adjudicating on issues which were outside the scope of the inquest. Specifically, Mr O’Connell said he wasn’t adjudicating between Ironman and Traithlon Ireland in relation to controversies which arose in the aftermath of the deaths.

The inquest heard from Ciaran Lewis, for the Wall family, who said that he felt representatives of Ironman and Triathlon Ireland should have been at the inquest in person.

The inquest had heard that Triathlon Ireland had not been willing to issue a permit for the swimming part of the event to occur without alterations to the course. It was revealed by volunteers on the day that two alterations had been made to the swimming section on the day.

Experienced swimmer and volunteer David O’Brien, who is an instructor with Irish Water Safety, had gone out for a test swim in the water on the day after an Ironman official asked him to do so. He said he felt there was no issue with conditions and that he told the Ironman official it was “fine" and that the course was “very manageable".

Mr Chittenden had started training for Ironman competitions and marathons after his wife Dianne Dyer died suddenly in 2011. He had found love again following her death meeting his second wife Siobhan Hyland during a trip to Paris, France.

Siobhan Hyland said her husband was an experienced athlete who had completed five full Ironman events as well as half marathons over the course of 12 years prior to his death. He had also completed marathons.

He had a trainer at home in Canada and was wearing a special Garmin device which tracked his movement and vital signs during the Youghal event. She said that neither of them had concerns about him taking part in the event. She travelled from the US to Ireland when she was informed of the death of her husband.

The inquest also heard from Tina McKay, the fiancée of the Brendan Wall. She said that Brendan “was risk averse” and never skipped his training. He knew Youghal well as his sister Maria was living there. She had also lined up to compete in Ironman on the day.

Ms McKay said Mr Wall was mentally and physically prepared for the event. She had accompanied him to Youghal and he was “very excited” about it.

She recalled being informed that her fiancé was being worked on at the medical centre. Dr Jason Van Der Velde said that there was “no easy way to tell her that he had passed away.” She identified his body and also gave gardaí his Garmin watch with all his data.

Ms McKay said Mr Wall would never have participated in the race if he thought there were any safety issues. She noted that he was in “great health” prior to the race and was well trained.

Ms McKay said that endurance sport was the “main hobby” of her brother.

Siobhan Hyland, counsel for Ironman, offered her condolences to both families. When she expressed this sentiment to Ms McKay, she responded that the apology had come “two-and-a-half years too late".

Mr Wall got engaged to his fiancée Tina just months before his passing and was living in Solihull in the West Midlands in the UK. He was a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and also completed an MBA in the University of Hull. At the time of his death he was employed as a sales director at Top Tubes Ltd in Wednesbury in the UK.

Mr Chittenden had studied business at Wilfred Laurier University in Waterloo, Canada. He had retired from Ernst & Young where he was a senior partner in 2021.