Gary O'Donovan
{{short description|Irish rower}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
|name = Gary O'Donovan
|image = Gary O'Donovan 2016.jpg
|caption = O'Donovan at the 2016 European Rowing Championships
|nickname =
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1992|12|30}}
|birth_place = Lisheen, Cork, Ireland
|residence =
|alma_mater =
|height = {{height|m=1.72}}
|weight = {{convert|70|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
|country = {{IRL}}
|sport = Rowing
|event = Lightweight double sculls
|coach = {{hlist|Teddy O'Donovan|Dominic Casey}}
|worlds =
|regionals =
|nationals =
|olympics = Silver Medal (Lightweight double sculls, Rio 2016){{cite web|url=https://www.rio2016.com/en/rowing-lwt-mens-double-sculls-final-a |title=Rio 2016 |publisher=Rio Olympics |access-date=30 December 2016 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160922172749/https://www.rio2016.com/en/rowing-lwt-mens-double-sculls-final-a |archivedate=22 September 2016 }}
|highestranking =
|pb =
|medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport|Men's Rowing}} {{MedalCountry|{{IRL}}}}
{{MedalCompetition | Olympic Games }}
{{MedalSilver|2016 Rio de Janeiro|LM2x}}
{{MedalComp|World Championships}}
{{MedalGold|2018 Plovdiv|LM2x}}
{{MedalCompetition | European Championships }}
{{MedalGold|2016 Brandenburg|LM2x}}
{{MedalSilver|2017 Račice|LM2x}}
{{MedalSilver|2018 Glasgow|LM2x}}
}}
Gary O'Donovan (born 30 December 1992) is an Irish rower.{{cite web|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/paul-and-gary-o-donovan-show-olympic-credentials-1.2665015|title=Paul and Gary O'Donovan show Olympic credentials|last=|first=|date=|website=Irish Times|publisher=|accessdate=2016-06-03}}
Together with his brother Paul he won the gold medal in the lightweight double sculls at the 2016 European Rowing Championships, silver in the same discipline at the 2016 Summer Olympics,{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/olympics/37061543|title=Rio 2016: Gary and Paul O'Donovan win Ireland's first ever Olympic rowing medal|date=12 August 2016|work=BBC Sport|accessdate=16 August 2016|publisher=|last=|first=}}{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/olympics/2016/08/12/odonovan-brothers-these-irish-rowers-are-giving-the-best-intervi/|title=O'Donovan brothers: These Irish rowers are giving the best interviews at the Olympics|date=12 August 2016|work=Daily Telegraph|accessdate=16 August 2016|publisher=|last=|first=}} and gold at the 2018 World Rowing Championships.{{cite news|url = https://www.rte.ie/sport/rowing/2018/0915/993923-world-rowing-championships/ | title = It's gold for the O'Donovan brothers in Bulgaria| date = 15 September 2018 | work = RTÉ Sport}} He was the flag bearer for Ireland during the closing ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics.{{Cite web|url=https://www.olympic.org/news/the-flagbearers-for-the-rio-2016-closing-ceremony|title=The Flagbearers for the Rio 2016 Closing Ceremony|last=|first=|date=2016-08-21|website=Olympics.com|publisher=|access-date=2016-08-22}}
Early life
Gary O'Donovan was born on 30 December 1992 to Trish and Teddy O'Donovan, and grew up in Lisheen near Skibbereen in County Cork.{{cite news |url=http://www.thejournal.ie/odonovan-brother-rowing-drive-2837258-Jun2016/ |title=The O'Donovan brothers have committed their lives to rowing and it could all pay off in 2016 |date= 22 June 2016 |work=thejournal.ie}}{{cite news |url= http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/from-lisheen-to-olympic-medalists-gary-and-paul-o-donovan-winning-hearts-1.2754490 |title=From Lisheen to Olympic medalists – Gary and Paul O'Donovan winning hearts|work=Irish Times|date= 12 August 2016 |first=Liam |last=Gorman}} He attended Lisheen National School, later St Fachtna's De La Salle secondary school in Skibbereen.{{cite news |url=http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/wind-with-west-corks-rowing-odonovan-brothers-415522.html |title=Wind with West Cork's rowing O'Donovan brothers |date=12 August 2016|first= Catherine |last=Shanahan |work=Irish Examiner }} He also went to study part-time at Cork Institute of Technology in 2011, and graduated with a degree in Marketing in 2016.{{cite news |url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/video/sport/gary-and-paul-odonovan-irelands-olympic-brothers-talk-family-inspiration-and-beating-pain-410654.html |title=Gary and Paul O'Donovan: Ireland's Olympic brothers talk family, inspiration and beating pain |date=17 July 2016|first=Stephen|last= Barry|work=Irish Examiner}}
Gary and his younger brother Paul became involved with rowing in 2001 when he was aged around eight. His father, who was a rower, took the two brothers to Skibbereen Rowing Club where he coached them in the sport.{{cite news |url=http://www.irishmirror.ie/sport/other-sport/irish-olypmic-rowers-paul-gary-9524605 |title=Irish Olympic rowers Paul and Gary O'Donovan reveal how they axed dad as coach just three years before winning medals in Rio |first=Colin|last= Brennan |date= 27 December 2016|work=Irish Mirror }} They were selected for the Irish junior team at the Home International Regatta held in Wales in 2008, and won gold in the junior quad sculls.{{cite web |url=http://www.ucd.ie/businessalumni/newyorkbenefitdinner/paulgaryodonovan/ |year=2017 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025081211/http://www.ucd.ie/businessalumni/events/newyorkbenefitdinner/ |archivedate=25 October 2017 |title=New York Benefit Dinner |website=ucd.ie |url-status=live}}
Rowing career
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.{{cite web |url=http://ucdbc.ie/silver-paul-odonovan-varese-world-rowing-cup/ |title=Silver for Paul O'Donovan at Varese World Rowing Cup |work=UCD Boat Club |date=18 April 2016}} In the following month, the pair won the 2016 European Rowing Championships gold medal in the double sculls in Brandenburg, Germany.{{cite news |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/gold-for-o-donovan-brothers-at-european-rowing-championships-1.2639881|title=Gold for O'Donovan brothers at European Rowing Championships |date=8 May 2016 |first=Liam|last= Gorman |work=Irish Times }}
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 in the Olympics.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/14/ireland-odonovan-brothers-internet-sensations-silver-medal-win-rowing-rio-olympics|title=Ireland's O'Donovan brothers become web sensations after medal win |first=Nicola |last=Slawson |work=The Guardian |date=14 August 2016 }}
In 2017, the brothers won silver 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,{{cite news |url= https://www.rte.ie/sport/rowing/2017/0618/883624-odonovan-brothers-take-silver-at-world-cup-regatta/ |title=O'Donovan brothers take silver at World Cup regatta |date=18 June 2017 |work=RTE}} and bronze at the third in July.{{cite news |url=https://www.rte.ie/sport/rowing/2017/0709/888923-odonovan-brothers-take-bronze-at-world-cup-event/ |title=O'Donovan brothers take bronze at World Cup event |date=9 July 2017 |work=RTE}}
At the 2018 European Championships in Glasgow, the O'Donovan brothers won silver in the lightweight double sculls,{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rowing/45075761 |title=European Championships: O'Donovan brothers take Lightweight Double Sculls silver medal |work=BBC Sport |date=5 August 2018 }} and later became world champions in the same event at the 2018 World Rowing Championships.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{commons category}}
- {{FISA|44151}}
- {{Twitter|gary_o_donovan}}
{{Authority control}}
{{World champions – Lightweight men's double sculls}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:ODonovan, Gary}}
Category:Olympic rowers for Ireland
Category:Olympic silver medalists for Ireland
Category:People from Skibbereen
Category:Rowers at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Category:Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Category:Olympic medalists in rowing
Category:Alumni of Cork Institute of Technology