'I’d love to bring a medal back to Ireland' - Shane Lowry

Shane Lowry is set to represent Ireland in the Olympic Games for the second time after the Olympic Federation of Ireland officially selected the golf team who will compete in Paris this summer.

The Offaly man is joined on the Ireland team by his close friend Rory McIlroy (Down), Leona Maguire (Cavan) and Stephanie Meadow (Antrim), replicating the team that competed in Tokyo.

In the Tokyo Olympics, held in 2021, McIlroy came agonisingly close to bronze, finishing fourth, and Lowry is also going to Paris with podium ambitions.

Lowry made his Olympic debut in Tokyo, and is now looking forward to competing in another Olympic Games.

“My first experience in Tokyo was amazing and it feeds you with the hunger of wanting to do it again and to come back and give it a better shot this time," said the Clara native.

"A lot of what I’ve talked about and done this year has been geared towards the Olympics in Paris. I have always said that I’d love to bring a medal back to Ireland, and that’s my number one goal. It’s great to be going back there with Rory too,” Lowry continued.

Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow are both heading into their third Olympics.

Maguire said: “It’s a huge honour to be selected for my third Olympics. There are not a lot of people who can say that they have been to three Olympic Games. Any time you get to represent your country is a huge honour, and to do it at an Olympic Games, there’s no bigger honour.

“As golfers we don’t get to be part of a team very often, so it is special to be part of a team heading to Paris.

“Me and Steph have known each other a lifetime now, it seems, and it is our third Olympics together. It’s been quite the journey over the last, almost 20 years, at this point. It is nice to see growth in each other’s games and lives, and nice to be able to share this together,” she added.

Olympic Federation of Ireland Chef de Mission for Paris 2024, Gavin Noble said: “Our golf team is hugely exciting, with each of the players capable of doing something big out there in Paris. This particular team gave us so much to cheer about in Tokyo, and we are really looking forward to working with Neil Manchip (High Performance Director with Golf Ireland) and the team on supporting them in Le Golf National.”

The golf tournament will take place in Le Golf National, in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, near Versailles to the south west of Paris.

Le Golf National is considered among the most beautiful golf sites in the world and is owned by the French Golf Federation. Out of its two 18-hole courses, “L’Albatros” stands out as the most competitive and complex, and has hosted major international competitions, including the Ryder Cup in 2018.

The confirmation of the golf team brings to 126 the official number of athletes who have so far been selected to represent Team Ireland at Paris 2024.

The Olympic Games in Paris will run from July 24 to August 11, with the Opening Ceremony taking place on July 26.