Morgan McElligott captained the UCD Boat Club in 1947, leading the crew to the Senior VIII title and the Wylie Cup inter-varsity double, and rowed in the men's eight at the 1948 London Olympic Games. As captain, he transformed UCDBC's training regime, introducing mandatory early morning sessions and twice-daily practice that became the hallmark of the club's success. One legendary session ran from Islandbridge to Poolbeg Lighthouse. A Belvedere College graduate who had tried rugby, cricket and rowing at school before finding his sporting home in rowing at UCD, he was succeeded as captain by his close friend Paddy Dooley. The composite crew at Henley - the only Irish team designated 'Ireland' in the official programme - was beaten by Canada and Portugal in the opening heat and by Norway in the repechage.
Morgan McElligott studied at University College Dublin, earning a medical degree. While in school he was a member of the boat club that won the 1947 All-Ireland Senior Rowing Championship. He began his full-time medical career in Dublin, before moving to London in 1950. After six years working in England, McElligott moved back to Ireland and took a position in 1956 as a consultant at Portiuncula Hospital, and would then work at the facility for the next 33 years. He specialized in cardiology and helped establish the first cardiac care unit Ireland at Portiuncula.
In 1989 McElligott retired from Portiuncula and he and his wife moved to Baghdad, where he helped develop the Ibn Al-Bitar Hospital. After 18 months they left, with the first Gulf War imminent, moving first to Cyprus and then to a hospital in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia where he served as chief of internal medicine for the Royal College of Surgeons. McElligott finally fully retired after 18 months in Saudi Arabia. He moved back to Ballinasloe, Ireland with his wife, although they later settled in Coosan West. In retirement he was involved with the East Galway Hunt Club, serving as their President, and with the County Roscommon Hunt. McElligott was also involved in charity initiatives, such as generating funds that allowed the purchase of a CT (computed tomography) scanner for the department of radiology at Portiuncula.
Rowing
