A Belfast rower has become the fifth athlete from Northern Ireland to win a medal at the Paris Olympics.
Rebecca Shorten won silver at the Games on Thursday along with her Team GB team-mates in the women’s four final.
The 30 year old rowed as a junior in Belfast before walking away from the sport temporarily after becoming disillusioned, only for her father to encourage her to get back into a boat and chase her ambitions.
Her passion was recaptured while studying at Roehampton University, combining rowing training with 36-hour weeks working in a sports shop and as a nanny.
This determination led to her joining the GB Rowing Team in 2017 before making her Olympic debut in the women’s four at the delayed Tokyo 2020 games.
She became women’s four European and World Champion in 2022. At the 2023 World Rowing Championships in Belgrade, she won a bronze medal in the women’s four, qualifying the boat for Paris 2024.
It was a close race on Thursday with the team narrowly losing out on a gold medal to the Netherlands.
Shorten, along with her teammates Helen Glover, Sam Redgrave and Esme Booth had been the fastest in qualifying ahead of the event.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill and deputy First Minister Emma Little Pengelly congratulated Rebecca on her success.
They said: “This medal is a wonderful achievement and testament to Rebecca’s talent and dedication to her sport. It was a terrific performance by Rebecca and her teammates.”
