Rhys McClenaghan wins Olympic gold for Ireland in the pommel horse
GOLD: Rhys McClenaghan with his gold medal after winning the men's pommel final at the Gymnastics Bercy Arena in Paris. Picture: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Rhys McClenaghan has completed the set: European champion, World champion and now Olympic champion.
Three years ago he finished seventh in the final in Tokyo, a slight but significant slip costing him a place on the podium. There were no slips or stutters on Saturday afternoon. He nailed it with a score of 15.533 that none of the other seven could match.
“Listen, everybody at home, see this as an example of finding a dream that you love, chase it and enjoy that journey, because I can tell you if I fell off that Pommel today I still would have loved this journey, every single second of it. But I didn’t and today I’m walking away with an Olympic gold medal.
“After the routine I was happy. I wasn’t thinking about medals. When the score came up I was proud of that score because it was mine and I wasn’t thinking of the podium at all. I was just thinking I’ve done my job and I feel like that’s where the main emotions came from today.”
McClenaghan described the event as the best pommel horse final in the history of gymnastics. Louis Smith, a 13-time major pommel medallist, said McClenaghan’s routine was “the best routine ever seen”.
His is the sixth medal claimed by Ireland at these Games. That’s a number that matches the country’s best ever haul, at London 2012, and there is every likelihood that it will be beaten before the weekend is out with Daniel Wiffen and Rory McIlroy both in the hunt.
McClenaghan was fourth of the eight competitors in action. Nariman Kurbanov set a high standard from the off, the Kazakh scoring a very exacting 15.433 with his routine and that was too much for reigning champion Max Whitlock of Team GB.
Loran de Munck fell short too, quite literally in his case as the Dutchman came off the horse mid-routine. He got back on to finish but his race was run. The only worry was if the extra delay would affect Ireland’s great hope.
It didn’t.
McClenaghan had ignored his competitors up to then, sitting 50 feet away looking straight ahead, a man engaged in his own thoughts and processes as he shook his arms until it was time to take to the mat himself.
His turn was clean and tight and his smile and punch of the air when he was done told us everything an inexpert eye could not. There were tears of joy even then, and more when his score of 15.533 appeared on the jumbo screens hanging from the roof.
Stephen Nedoroscik of the USA, world champion in 2021 before McClenaghan succeeded him with the next two titles, was up fifth. He wasn’t wearing his trademark glasses but it was clear to see that he had impressed.
Not quite enough, his 15.300 enough for third as it stood. That was McClenaghan’s three main challengers done and dusted and it wasn’t long before the tricolours and the waves of green were hopping and cheering in the crowd once again.
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