Fiona Murtagh OLY MBA

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Fiona carrying her boat for the pre paddle at the 2023 World Rowing Championships where Fiona and Aifric later qualified

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Fiona Murtagh displaying her Bronze Olympic Medal which she won at Tokyo 2020 along with teammates Aifric Keogh, Emily Hegarty and Eimear Lambe.Photo courtesy of Liam Carroll, Photograph_resize

Liam Carroll

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*** EMBARGO - STRICTLY NOT FOR PUBLICATION UNTIL 00:01 on 20 JUNE 2024 *** 19 June 2024; Aifric Keogh, left, and Fiona Murtagh during the Rowing Team Ireland Paris 2024 team announcement at the National Rowing Centre in Cork. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile *** NO REPRODUCTION FEE ***

Sportsfile

From Moycullen to New York

Fiona Murtagh was born on July the 11^th, 1995 to parents Noel Murtagh and Marguerite Hurley. She has three siblings, Padraic, Lorraine and her twin brother, Alan. She was educated at Tullykyne National School, Moycullen and the Dominican College Taylor’s Hill Galway and from 2012 to 2013 she studied Science at the National University Ireland, Galway (NUIG), then she received a scholarship to Fordham University, New York which she attended from 2013 to 2016.

Punishing training schedules

Fiona started rowing in 2009 with Galway Rowing Club, then NUIG and then Fordham University. During the early years in Galway, she maintained a punishing training schedule-up every morning at 5.15 am to be on the water at Woodquay, for 6.00 o’clock. She trained until 8:00 am, hail, rain or snow then on to school, sometimes having to walk from the City to Taylor’s Hill if she missed the bus.  After school, her training continued from 4:30p.m. to 6:30p.m. then it was home, dinner and sleep. Initially as part of the Junior 15’s she rowed a single skull, progressing to a double as a Junior 16 and eventually the quad, a sculling rowing boat with four rowers.

The early achievements

In 2011 Fiona had her first major win with Galway Rowing Club in the Women’s Novice 8, coming first in the National Rowing Championships. That same year she won her first international gold medal for Ireland at the Home Internationals in Scotland in the Women’s 4 with her teammates Kelly Wade, Katie McEniff, and Eimear Byrne.

Fordham University Years defined her work ethic

Fiona studied Science in the University of Galway for one year before transferring to Fordham University.  She spoke about her time in Fordham in an interview with Alex Wolz (2020, WFUV) saying that her time there helped her to become the athlete that she is today. She said that the whole collegiate programme which she described as ‘a huge step’, ‘a shock to the system’ ‘defined her work ethic’ and she had Fordham ‘to thank for a lot of things’.  Whilst there she won the prestigious Head of Charles Regatta two years in a row, 2014 and 2015, setting a new course record and in 2016 she was Captain.  The Head of the Charles Regatta (HOCR) is a rowing head race held annually on the Charles River in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts. Since its inception in 1965, this event has attracted the world’s best crew teams for a two-day rowing competition. Fiona summed up her experiences at Fordham as being of fond memories, no regrets, and the training was an enjoyable experience inspired and motivated by those around her.

Fiona’s Fantastic Four.

What became known as Fiona’s Fantastic Four (Connacht Tribune Friday July 19^th 2019) occurred on her 24th birthday when Fiona won no less than four national titles at the Irish Rowing Championships held in the National Rowing Centre in Cork. Over the three days of competition, she was part of winning crews in the senior eights, fours, doubles and pairs in what turned out to be a fantastic weekend for NUIG Rowing Club. Fiona’s winning streak began on Friday when she was part of the fours and doubles successes. In the fours she rowed alongside Lisa Murphy, Sadhbh O’Connor and Alison Mooney while her partner in the doubles was Katie Shirlow from Bann in the north of Ireland. On the Saturday, Fiona and Sadhbh O’Connor stormed to success in the heat and final to win her third national title in the space of 24 hours. When it came to the senior eights on Sunday morning with teammates Clara O’Brien, Sorcha O’Donnell, Siuan Mannion, Lisa Murphy, Alison Mooney, Katie Shirlow and Sadhbh O’Connor with Josh Russell as Cox they beat the favourites, the UCC/Skibbereen team. For Fiona she said, ‘it is the best way to remembering turning 24’.

Invitation to join other elite athletes and the road to Tokyo

That same year, 2019, Fiona was invited to the National Rowing Centre in Cork to train with other elite athletes.  Here she describes (to Alex Wolz) the time as being ‘as all systems go’ to qualification in May and for Tokyo to go ahead. Then the Covid pandemic hit, and everything was put on hold, ‘one minute we were training on a lake, the next minute I was erging in my kitchen’ she said. There was talk of postponement, but the athletes were always hopeful that the Olympics would go ahead in 2021. They had a lot of camps, lots of winter training, they covered miles on water, then they trialled for the Four.

Irish rowing’s first women’s Olympic Medal.

Fiona described this as very competitive time in Cork with eight girls going for the Four spot. Success brought them to the 1^st competition in Italy at European Championships where they won silver. This boosted their confidence, she said. At the qualification regatta in Switzerland, they were the favourites and winning the silver medal qualified them as the team to represent Ireland at the Tokyo Olympics, so Fiona, along with fellow teammates Aifric Keogh, Emily Hegarty and Eimear Lambe, was on the road to Tokyo. There, they went on to make history winning a Bronze Medal in the Women’s Four at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics which was Irish rowing’s first women’s Olympic Medal.

‘Tokyo rowers home after their Olympic heroics but their parade is on hold for now’

‘Cheers greeted bronze medallists Fiona Murtagh, Eimear Lambe, Emily Hegarty and Aifric Keogh as they emerged from Dublin Airport on Sunday afternoon. (Covid) Restrictions meant only a small gathering of close family members were present as Ireland’s Olympic rowing squad landed back in the country. The history making women’s four were embraced by loved ones in an outdoor arrivals area. The bronze-winning women’s four said they will go their separate ways for the next few weeks to celebrate with family and friends, but raised the prospect of a road trip later in the year so they could celebrate in their respective hometowns’ (The Scottish Farmer 1^st August, 2021). Fiona and her teammates returned home from Tokyo but because of Covid their celebratory parade was put on hold. ‘Health chiefs and gardai …raised major concerns over the implications of any…Olympic celebrations as the triumphant Irish rowers returned home from the Tokyo Games (The Herald Monday 2 August 2021). Galway native Murtagh, 26, said she was looking forward to some time off. “I’ll definitely celebrate and spend time with family and friends, it’s been so long since we’ve seen anyone,” she said. The newspaper reports at the time give an insight into the other challenges which these young heroes also faced.

‘Time nor tide wait for no man (or woman) but if taken at the ebb lead to success’.

With Tokyo behind her Fiona Murtagh Olympian continued with her successful rowing career. At the same time she furthered her academic studies and  travelled from Cork to University of Galway gaining her MBA from there in 2023. Also in 2023, she was placed 5th in the Women’s 4- at the European Rowing Championships. Being placed 4th in the Women’s 2- at the 2023 World Rowing Championship’s alongside Aifric Keogh qualified the boat for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and earlier this year she was chosen to represent Ireland at the Paris Olympics.