A former Belfast Trust doctor has picked up a bronze medal in the Paris Olympics.
Ireland rower Philip Doyle has become the fourth athlete from the north to win a medal, competing in the men’s double sculls with partner Daire Lynch.
Doyle has been involved in competitive rowing for more than a decade, winning the British University Championship in 2013 as a novice.
He then went on to compete in several high profile events including the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
Securing a bronze medal had been a long-awaited moment for the 31 year old from Banbridge who spent a percentage of his training on a machine in the garage of his house.
Coming home three years ago, Doyle wasn’t sure if he had the drive to continue competing at that level.
For the first year, he focused on his career, working in Altnagelvin hospital and training when he could until his ambition drove him to try again at this years competition in Paris.
Doyle then relocated to Dripsey in west Cork, just 10 miles from the national rowing centre where he works at Cork University Hospital.
Doyle and Lynch recorded a time of six minutes 15.7 seconds with Romania, in lane one, taking gold to upset second-placed Netherlands second.
Romania’s winning time was six minutes 12.58 secs with the Dutch just over a second behind.
