Ireland's Rhys McClenaghan produced a sensational victory on the pommel horse at the Paris Olympics on Saturday, winning an Olympic gold medal and becoming an Olympic champion for the very first time.
McClenaghan's score of 15.533 (difficulty 6.600, execution 8.933), an improvement from 15.200 in qualifying, placed him ahead of Kazakhstan's Nariman Kurbanov (15.434) and the USA's Stephen Nedoroscik (15.300).
This win now means Ireland has equalled its best-ever medal tally from an Olympic Games. Ireland won six medals at the London 2012 Olympics, and with much action still to come, this marks Ireland's third gold medal in Paris.
McClenaghan's achievements have been the talk of the internet, with one viral clip of his parents expressing their delight at their son's victory gaining attention for all the right reasons.
After the result, RTE spoke to Rhys' parents, Tracy and Danny, about his stunning performance on the pommel horse.
"It feels a bit surreal, to be honest with you," said Rhys' mother, Tracy. "I knew this day would come sometime, but I just can't believe it, honestly.
"We're just over the moon for him. There is so much hard work that has gone into this. People often say it's four years of hard work to get to the Olympics, but Rhys has been working towards this since he was eight.
'I knew this day would come... It's been a lifetime of dedication..." 🥇
Rhys McClenaghan's parents Tracy and Danny speak to #RTESport after their son's incredible gold medal at #Paris2024
📺 Watch https://t.co/b2OI4OoWVJ
📱Updates https://t.co/7oDcUYslbX pic.twitter.com/DgEcwn63Co— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 3, 2024
"It has been a lifetime of dedication from him and sacrifice just to get to this one moment, and we couldn't be happier for him."
McClenaghan's mistake in Tokyo cost him an Olympic medal, and he ultimately finished seventh in what was his Olympic debut.
His mother, Tracy, humorously claimed that she would now be able to watch his Paris version of the pommel horse final after struggling to watch it live in Tokyo.
"I'll enjoy watching it back because I'm not even sure I watched some of it. I still haven't watched the Tokyo one, but I will watch this one over and over again."
Rhys' father, Danny, echoed similar sentiments with his wife about his son's major achievement.
"I just feel amazing; I can't believe he has done it. But at the same time, I think to myself, 'Oh, of course, he is a gold medallist, because that's the way he is—he's fantastic," he said.
