The Ballyshannon story behind Olympic swimming finalist Mona McSharry

One of the great insights into Mona McSharry's Olympic success came from RTÉ swimming analyst Earl McCarthy on Monday night prior to the 100m breaststroke final when he delved into the making of an Olympic standard swimmer.

"There is the coach and behind them is the parents, the community and the club and all of those people are now in that final. To take a young girl from the age of 10 winning in Mosney to an Olympic A final in less than 10 years is a phenomenal achievement.

"Ballyshannon is now the best and most successful pool in Ireland. Her coach Grace (Meade) has taken her from the age of 10 to an Olympic final and it is one that should be investigated. Like, what did you do to make this child so fast," said McCarthy, who reiterated "don't forget the coaches, don't forget the community and the club."

And one of the great stories from the success of Mona McSharry this week in the Tokyo Olympics is the part played by the Maguire family, The Knather, Ballyshannon, which has been a home away from home for McSharry for the last six or seven years.

Mona pictured with her Marlins relay team - brother Mouric, Róisín Maguire and Odhran O'Hara

Róisín takes up the story:

"I would probably have met Mona when she started in the Club (Marlins). She was still in primary school at around eight or nine years of age. I think she would have started after Christmas and we started in September.

"We weren't best friends immediately; we gradually grew friends over time."

It was not evident immediately that there might be an Olympic star in their midst but there was a great willingness to learn.

"Not particularly and I know in Grace's (Meade's) interviews she was just a very hard worker and really worked hard at things, no matter how hard it was. She would just work and work and she just shot up through the club over the years.

"She started to overtake us all over a very short space of time," says Róisín, who said that they would have been attending meetings up the north in Bangor and Belfast and some in Dublin as well.

"By the time she came to secondary school in Coláiste Cholmcille in Ballyshannon we would have become good friends, travelling to meets together and staying together, shared houses, whatever.

"Even before she came to school in Ballyshannon in her last year in primary, she was down at Division One meets in Dublin and the nationals," says Róisín, who would have joined her at that level a year later.

The move to secondary school in Ballyshannon saw the McSharrys and Maguires become very close with the Maguire house in the Knather in Ballyshannon becoming a home away from home for McSharry.

"That's when the early morning training began with sessions from 6.30 to 8.00 am. It started off in the beginning on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and built up to the point where it was six days a week, Monday to Saturday. So you were looking at each other from early in the morning until the evening, sometimes with two sessions," said Róisín, who said others involved in the sessions included Mona's brother Mouric, Cora and Cian Rooney, Hannah and Gero Gilmartin, Lauren McHugh, Clodagh O'Connor, Una Britton, Mary Loughlin, Erin McGowan and Ruby Hurst. "It was like a minitature family with the squad involved."

The part played by the Maguire family is pretty significant in the McSharry success. While the McSharrys transported Mona to the pool in Ballyshannon for the early morning sessions, Sylvester Maguire then picked up Mona and Róisín and took them back to the Maguire home for breakfast before the school day began.

HIGHLIGHT

Róisín Maguire had the great pleasure of travelling with McSharry when she competed for Ireland in the World Junior Championships in Indianapolis in 2017. "I had the opportunity go with her, Grace Meade and the family. It was an unreal experience to witness it, just watching her composure in person, on the blocks and in the race at such a massive meet.

"I remember the day before her final we just went back to her hotel and watched a movie and had the craic. It was really nice having the family there. It was a really nice atmosphere."

However, this week Mona McSharry has had to compete at the highest level without family and friends present and Maguire knows how difficult that was for her.

"Family plays such a big role and they were such a support to her from day one. They are all as down to earth as Mona. I don't think Viola (her mother) has missed many competitions. I think she has been at every single one of them; the same for Grace (Meade).

"But this year would have been tough," says Róisín, who said that they have been in regular contact when she went to the Tennessee University last year. "Thank God for social media we have been able to be in contact on FaceTime."

Indeed, Róisín reveals that she and Ruby Hurst had a video call with the Olympic finalist that morning (Tuesday), just after her Tokyo final. "She was happy out and ready to go and support the other members of the team in the relay. She was buzzing and getting ready for tomorrow (200m breaststroke)."

As regards her performance, Maguire says that McSharry will be happy with her overall performance at the Olympics and feels that there is plenty of room for improvement.

"She was delighted that she was hitting 1:06s and having broken 1:07 at the trials was so good. She was so close to being in the top four or five.

"I'd say that in the next few years and the fact that she is over in America, I know she is in a big squad full of women who are around the same level; she thrives on that and is always looking to beat her time and what's the next step and what to work on.

"The fact that she has been able to get where she has over the past year and end up eighth in the Olympics, I'd day over the next few years she will be over there in the NCAAs and SECs," said Róisín, who added that breaking into the 1:05s would be her target.

"I would say there is a lot more there and we will see it in that competitive environment. This is after just one year over in the US. The NCAAs is the fastest competition in the world," she said.

One of the remarkable little snippets about the McSharry family came after the Olympic final when mother Viola in a Morning Ireland interview on RTÉ Radio revealed that the other two family members Mouric (18) and Luca (12) insisted on continuing their early morning training in the pool in Ballyshannon just a few hours after Mona's Olympic final.

"They are all hard workers, diligent and down to earth," said Róisín, who agreed that the family influence from mother Viola was a pragmatic one. "If there's something to be done, you just get on with it."

As for celebrations when she returns, Maguire says there is bound to be a good homecoming. "Hopefully, there will be a celebration. She is not into fuss or anything like that. She will want to celebrate with close friends and family and hopefully we get some of that good weather again."