Ireland has a new World Champion; Paul O'Donovan has won gold at the World Rowing Championships.
The Skibbereen man claimed victory in the final of the Lightweight Men's Single Sculls in a time of 7:32.84.
A slow start in lane 6 left the newly minted Olympic silver medallist in last place early in the race.
Much like he did with his brother Gary at the Games in Rio, he picked up the pace significantly after the half way mark and stormed clear for the emphatic finish.
O’Donovan won the race by more than 4 seconds
The first stroke was bad, but then the second one was good so I went from there," O'Donovan said after the race.
The 22-year-old also gave a great response when discussing his motivation to win gold: "With 500m left I remembered I told my friends when I was in Rio that I would win here by open water.
“So I thought I should probably keep my promise. Then at 200m to go I guess I started smiling a little.”
