Emily Hegarty was collected by her parents at Dublin airport and Fintan McCarthy, a neighbour’s child, jumped in the back. Around their necks were Olympic medals — bronze for Hegarty, gold for McCarthy. On their laps was excess luggage, a spillover from the greatest adventure of their young lives. No word had been sent ahead, but it was the Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend, and the streets in Skibbereen were busy. Once they were seen, they were stopped. For two hours they crawled through town, showered with smiles.
Waiting for them at home was an outdoor reception at Ilen Rovers GAA club, a few miles further west. Like everything local, anywhere, the distinction is geo-political. The revolution in Irish rowing is forever associated
