Congratulations for NI's new Olympic gold medalists
Daniel Wiffen won the gold for Team Ireland in the 800m freestyle final
- Published
Congratulations are rolling in for swimmers Daniel Wiffen and Jack Macmillan, who both won gold yesterday for Team Ireland and Team GB.
23-year-old Daniel from Magheralin, County Down, won the medal for Team Ireland in the 800m freestyle final in Paris and is the first Northern Irish athlete in 36 years to win an Olympic gold medal.
First Minister Michelle O'Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said it was "truly a momentous occasion.".
"Not only has he secured NI's first Olympic gold medal in 36 years, it is also the first medal of the Games for our athletes, and he set a new Olympic record," they added.
Speaking on Good Morning Ulster, Daniel's parents Rachel and Jonathan said they felt very emotional watching Daniel's win.
"It was electric, I had a wobble about 400 metres as it wasn't going how I thought it was going to go and then for that last 50 metres, it was just amazing," Rachel said.
Jonathan added: "By the last 150 metres we were all on our feet cheering him on, it was absolutely amazing".
Former Olympian Dame Mary Peters also commended both Daniel and Jack's success while speaking on the Stephen Nolan show, saying "we are all hoping that this is only the start of the medals for Northern Ireland".
'Perfect role model'
Young members of Larne Swimming Club - which is home to three Team Ireland swimmers - Danielle Hill, Daniel Wiffen and Conor Ferguson - were very excited to hear about the win.
"Amazing. Completely amazing," one told RTE.
Jack Baxter, a coach at the club, said they had always known Daniel had what it took to get the gold.
"It's just amazing. He's a perfect role model for all the young people here at the club," he said.
President Michael D Higgins said it was "a wonderful achievement of which he can be so proud", in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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Also on X, Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Simon Harris said the entire country "is hoarse from screaming at their televisions and computer screens".
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Richard Archibald from Sport NI said the swimmer is an "inspiration to us all".
"With two more events to come the sky is the limit for Daniel and we wish him all the very best," he added.
Sport Ireland said he "smashed" the 800m Freestyle final.
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Less than two hours after Daniel's win, 24-year-old Jack McMillan achieved an Olympic gold medal after Great Britain retained their Olympic 4x200m freestyle relay title.
Although he did not take part in the final, both Jack and Englishman Kieran Bird earned medals through their participation in the morning heats.
Speaking on Good Morning Ulster, Jack's girlfriend Anna said that Jack was "over the moon" with his win.
She added: "I see how hard Jack works and the discipline he has.
"The hard part is getting up every day and training twice a day so it's nice to see him getting the reward he deserves with the gold medal".
Jack McMillan swam the second leg of the morning heat of the 4x200m freestyle relay.