ELLEN KEANE BOWED out at her fifth and final Paralympic Games with a sixth-placed finish in her S9 100m Backstroke heat.
But Nicole Turner and Dearbhaile Brady both qualified for the final of the S6 50m Butterfly after finishing third and fourth respectively in the same heat. Their times of 38.10 and 38.73 were fifth and sixth overall.
And there was further success for Team Ireland in the men’s S9 100m Backstroke heats when Barry McClements finished fourth in his heat — eighth overall — a time of 1:05.36 to qualify for the final at 4.37pm this evening.
One last walk out.
— Paralympics Ireland (@ParalympicsIRE) September 3, 2024
One last wave to the fans.
One last swim.
Thank you Ellen 💚#TheNextLevel | #Paris2024 | #TeamIreland pic.twitter.com/0qoru68qWQ
While Keane clocked a time of 1.17.63, just outside her personal best in this event of 1.15.44 set in Rio 2016, it was not enough to book a final place as she brings a glittering Paralympic career to an end.
She was 12th overall in her retirement race, and bid farewell on her own terms.
“It’s really hard to put into words how I’m feeling, I’m just so grateful, I’m glad that finished on an event that isn’t my main one because I just didn’t feel the pressure,” said Keane, who finished fourth in the SB13 Breaststroke on Friday.
“It’s a really emotional day. The support and love I have been getting from here, in Paris, at home in Ireland and across the globe has really just been amazing
“Winne the Pooh said it best, when he said, how lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”
Turner and Brady, meanwhile, both explained the importance of “having a bit of fun” as they produced times to continue their Paralympic campaigns.
“I’m okay. This morning was about staying loose, getting rid out the nerves, having fun and coming back later and do my thing. I’m happy,” Turner, the Tokyo 2020 silver medallist, said.
“I felt very good, better than my 50m Freestyle,” Brady added to RTÉ.
“They (nerves) were kind of there in the call room, but not as bad. I was ready to get in there and swim. It went according to plan. It was fast, I gave it everything as I wasn’t sure about a final.”
Turner continued: “It’s all about being happy and having a bit of fun. It’s going to be really nice later on. All my friends and family will be there – my family were here the last day too – but all my friends came over last night. Those were the moments you missed from Tokyo. Tonight will be really nice.”
McClements feels he can go faster this evening, too. “The plan was to get into the final, I knew I just had to beat four people so I finished in eight and I think definitely I can go faster tonight (in the final). Hopefully, I’ll get a PB.”
- Additional reporting from Emma Duffy at La Défense Arena
