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County Limerick native has the “privilege” of driving Olympic Gold Medalists home

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County Limerick native, Kieran Duggan, has the “privilege” of driving Olympic Gold Medalists home. Pic: Facebook

Limerick native Kieran Duggan says it was “just a privilege” to drive Olympic Gold Medalists Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy home from Dublin Airport

Limerick native Kieran Duggan says it was "just a privilege" to drive Olympic Gold Medalists Paul O'Donovan and Fintan McCarthy home
Kieran Duggan pictured with the three athletes on their journey back to Cork. Pic: Facebook

County Limerick native, Kieran Duggan, found himself in the “right place at the right time” when he met Olympic Gold medalists Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy on a flight back to Dublin.

Duggan, a coach for Mallow LGFA, then had the privilege of driving them to Cork from Dublin Airport when the two arrived back from Paris 2024 planning to take the long bus journey home.

The Rowing Ireland duo were seen arriving at Dublin Airport on Wednesday, August 6, happily walking through the arrivals doors without a homecoming fuss in the airport terminal, the two were ready to make their way to take a bus to Cork when up stepped Limerick man Kieran Duggan, now living in Mallow, who offered them a lift back home.


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Speaking to RTÉ’s News at One, Mr Duggan explained he was on the same flight as the Olympic Gold Medal winners and overheard them say they would take the Aircoach home when a friend said, “Kieran has room in his car,” to which he replied, “yeah, I can fit three or four of you in if you want to jump in.”

Mr Duggan said he was surprised when Fintan replied, “I might take you up on that,” saying he sounded “quite genuine”. Although the Limerick man left the arrivals door ahead of the Olympians he waited 20 minutes before both the rowers came through, where they were met with applause after a few seconds and someone draping them in an Irish flag.

He offered Fintan a lift again and the rower accepted the offer and was joined by his teammate Paul, and fellow rower Naomi Long, all three packed into his car with “a good load of luggage”.

“It was just a privilege, to be honest, to have that length of time by myself with the three of them,” Mr Duggan told RTÉ news, saying he was “in the right place at the right time.

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Richard is a presenter, producer, songwriter and actor. He was named the Limerick Person of the Year (2011) and won an online award at the Metro Éireann Media and Multicultural Awards (2011) for promoting multi-culturalism online. Richard says that the ilovelimerick.com concept is very much a community driven project that aims to document life in Limerick. So, that in 20 years time people can look back and remember the events that were making the headlines.