Fintan McCarthy

Fintan McCarthy

Rowing

BIOGRAPHY

Fintan McCarthy is a double Olympic gold medalist in the men’s lightweight double scull.

He started rowing after seeing the 2012 London Olympic Games and won his first Irish title four years later. McCarthy made his first European final with his brother Jake in 2019.

He and Paul O’Donovan won Ireland’s first ever Olympic rowing gold medal at the Tokyo Games, a feat they repeated three years later at Paris 2024.

Together, the pair have won three World (2019, 2022 & 2023) and two European titles (2021 & 2022). Fintan was also a European bronze medallist in a lightweight single, in 2020.

Team Ireland Number

878

Gender

Male

Discipline

Men’s Lightweight Double Scull (LM2x)

Games

Paris 2024, Tokyo 2020

Olympic Medals

Gold, Tokyo 2020; Gold, Paris 2024

Date Of Birth

November 23, 1996

Hometown

Skibbereen, Co Cork

OTHER ROWING ATHLETES

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Ted Ryan

Denis Rice

Davey Gray

Samuel ‘Sam’ Lynch

Neville Maxwell

Derek Holland

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Frank Moore

Martin Feeley

Iain Kennedy

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Jaye Renehan

Andrew ‘Andy’ McDonough

William ‘Liam’ Redmond

Christopher ‘Christy’ O’Brien

William ‘Willie’ Ryan

James ‘Jim’ Muldoon

Michael Ryan

Niall O’Toole

Neal Byrne

Timmy Harnedy

Gearoid Towey

Richard Archibald

Paul Griffin

Eugene Coakley

Sean O’Neill

Sean Casey

Richard Coakley

Jonno Devlin

Cormac Folan

Cathal Moynihan

Sinéad Lynch

Claire Lambe

Gary O’Donovan

Pat McDonagh

Nathan Timoney

Imogen Magner

Daire Lynch

Natalie Long

Zoe Hyde

Holly Davis

Ross Corrigan

Alison Bergin

Aifric Keogh

Fiona Murtagh

ROWING NEWS

Performance Round Up July 2026

Athletics LONDON DIAMOND LEAGUE Mark English delivered one of the finest performances of his career as he smashed his 800m personal best to finish second at the London Diamond League on Saturday. The Donegal athlete clocked a stunning 1:42.97, dipping below the 1:43 mark for the first time and becoming just the latest Irish athlete [...]

EVENTS COMING UP IN AUGUST

Athletics World U20 Championships, Eugene, Oregon: 5-9 August European Athletics Championships, Birmingham: 10-16 August ⁠⁠Lausanne Diamond League: 20-21 August ⁠⁠Silesia Diamond League: 23 August ⁠⁠Zurich Diamond League: 27 August   Boxing European U19 Championships, Loznica, Serbia: 11-22 August Boxing Ireland U23 Championships, 7-22 August   Cycling UEC Mountain Bike European Championships, Monteceneri, Switzerland: 30 July [...]

Irish Sailing and Rugby Sevens Shine in Action-Packed Weekend

Sailing McMahon Claims Sailing Bronze in California Eve McMahon secured a superb bronze medal at the Sailing Grand Slam event in San Pedro, California, after a composed performance in the Final Series against some of the world's best Olympic sailors. Racing took place in ideal conditions inside the bay, with 10–13 knots of breeze providing [...]

Finding New Confidence in a New Era – How Mags Cremen Turned Uncertainty Into Opportunity

What do you do when the parameters of your event have radically shifted after you've finished fifth at your second Olympic Games, leaving you unsure whether your body type will be a good fit for it anymore? Mags Cremen, who was still only 25 after the Paris Games, didn’t panic. She went back to the [...]

Performance Round Up – June 2026

Athletics Mark English finished second in a high-quality men’s 800m field at the Rome Diamond League. The Donegal athlete clocked a season’s best time of 1:43.80, his second fastest ever over the distance, as he closed strongly in the final metres to challenge for victory. Sarah Healy delivered a personal best time of 14:48.88 in [...]

SCHOOL’S OUT – DARE TO BELIEVE WRAPS A STANDOUT YEAR

The Olympic Federation of Ireland is celebrating a standout year for its Dare to Believe schools programme, proudly sponsored by Allianz and supported by Olympic Solidarity, which once again brought the Olympic Movement to the classroom, with values and learnings that cover resilience, respect and courage. As schools break for the summer, the programme is [...]

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