Paul O'Donovan


Paul O'Donovan is an Irish rower. He became world champion in the men's lightweight single sculls at the 2016 World Rowing Championships. Together with his brother Gary, he also won silver in the Men's lightweight double sculls at the 2016 Summer Olympics, and gold in the same discipline at the 2018 World Rowing Championships.

Early life

Paul O'Donovan was born on 19 April 1994 in Lisheen near Skibbereen, County Cork to Teddy and Trish O'Donovan. Like his elder brother Gary, he attended Lisheen National School and St Fachtna's De La Salle secondary school in Skibbereen. He is attending University College Dublin where he studies physiotherapy part-time.
O'Donovan was introduced to rowing in 2001 aged around seven when his father took the two brothers to Skibbereen Rowing Club. His father, himself a rower, coached them in the sport and remained a coach to O'Donovan until 2013.

Rowing career

In 2008, the O'Donovan brothers were selected for the Irish junior team at the Home International Regatta held in Cardiff, Wales, and won gold in the junior quad sculls. Paul O'Donovan also competed in the single sculls; he became the junior single sculls champion of Ireland when he was 15, and was placed fourth in the 2011 World Junior Championships. When he was 19, he won the bronze medal in the men's lightweight sculls at the World Rowing U23 Championships held in Linz, Austria.

2016

In April 2016. Paul and Gary O'Donovan won silver in the lightweight double sculls at the first World Rowing Cup events of the year in Varese, Italy. In the following month in May 2016, the pair won the 2016 European Rowing Championships gold medal in Brandenburg, Germany.
The O'Donovan brothers had narrowly qualified for the Rio Olympics by beating Greece at the 2015 World Championship. In August 2016 at the Rio Olympics, the O'Donovan brothers won silver behind France in the lightweight double sculls, the first rowing medal won by Ireland at the Olympics.
Two weeks later, he won the lightweight single sculls final at the World Rowing Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

2017

The brothers finished in the silver position in men's lightweight double sculls at the European Rowing Championships in May 2017. They also won silver at the second World Rowing Cup regatta of the season in Poland in June, and bronze at the third in July.
In September 2017, at the World Rowing Championships in Florida, Paul O'Donovan won gold at the lightweight men's single sculls. His brother Gary was ill and they did not take part in the lightweight men's double sculls event.

2018

During 2018, the O'Donovan brothers won silver in the lightweight double sculls at the 2018 European Rowing Championships in August, and became world champions in the same discipline at the 2018 World Rowing Championships in September.