Maurice Brosnan: Daniel Wiffen delivers famous night for Irish sport

The only time his steely poise cracked was on the podium. The tricolour was raised, the national anthem rang out, his lip began to twitch and his eyes blinked incessantly as if blinded by his own extraordinary stardom.

WIFFEN D'OR: Ireland’s Daniel Wiffen celebrates with his gold medal. Pic: ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy

For centuries human beings have scoured rivers, streams and other bodies of water in search of one particular chemical element.

Before Tuesday, no Irish man had enjoyed a successful expedition. Daniel Wiffen showed them where they had all gone wrong. He didn’t look for gold, he seized it.