Sean Drea is one of the most distinguished athletes in the history of Irish sport, a world record holder and the only Irish rower to win a World Championship medal in the twentieth century, who finished an agonising fourth in the single sculls final at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games after breaking the world record in the semi-final.

He competed in the single sculls at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, finishing seventh overall – the country’s first significant rowing result at the Olympics – having won his semi-final in a new world best time of 6:52.46 on a 2000m non-tidal course.

He returned to Philadelphia after Munich where, no longer eligible to represent Temple University as an Olympian, he switched to St Joseph’s University and was coached by Ted Nash (a USA Olympic gold medallist in 1960) and later Jim Barker (a US national squad coach) – two legendary figures in American rowing.

Between Munich and Montreal he compiled one of the finest records in international single sculls: he won the USA national championships at New York in 1974, won three successive Diamond Challenge Sculls at the Henley Royal Regatta from 1973 to 1975 (setting a course record that survived for seventeen years), and won the silver medal at the 1975 World Championships at Nottingham, finishing runner-up to Peter-Michael Kolbe.

He was the first Irish rower to win a World Championship medal. In the summer of 1976 he based himself in Lucerne, working with Melchior Burgin, a former world champion, and won his final two pre-Olympic regattas at Lucerne and Amsterdam.

He arrived in Montreal, by his own assessment, ‘absolutely flying.’ In the semi-final, watched by Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Drea destroyed the field from the opening 200 metres, winning in a time of 6:52.46 – the fastest ever recorded in international championship sculling on a full 2000m multi-lane non-tidal course.

In the final, the cross-headwind generated very rough water and Kolbe’s ferocious early pace put Drea six seconds down at the 1000m stage. Finnish fireman Pertti Karppinen, in fifth place at halfway, produced one of the great surprises in Olympic rowing history to power through and win gold, with Kolbe second and Joachim Dreifke of East Germany third – narrowly edging Drea, who had battled Dreifke throughout the final quarter.

Drea reflected afterwards: ‘That was my absolute best performance, all I could do on that day. My competition for a medal was right there, in the lane beside me. And he beat me fair and square.’ Originally from Bagenalstown, County Carlow, Drea was a member of the Neptune Rowing Club in Dublin.

He spent years in Philadelphia after his Olympic career, coaching for the Fairmount Rowing Association, La Salle University and the US national team.