Athlone resident Tim McCarthy ‘blown away’ by reaction to his Olympics commentary

It's not every day that an Athlone resident is the focus of a profile in The New York Times, but that was the distinction given to Tim McCarthy last week as a result of the buzz generated by his Olympic Games basketball commentary.

The Barrymore, Kiltoom, resident's hyper-enthusiastic basketball commentaries caught the attention of the world's most famous newspaper, which shone a spotlight on the 64-year-old who represented Ireland in basketball as a player and coach.

This was McCarthy's sixth Olympics commentating for RTÉ, and in addition to newspaper coverage both in Ireland and overseas, his work became a focus of much social media attention during the Games.

Tweets on X referred to him as a legend and described his commentary as "incredible" and "sensationally unhinged".

Speaking to the Westmeath Independent earlier this week, McCarthy said he had been taken aback by the response to his work on the Games in Paris.

"I'm genuinely very humbled by it, and blown away by it," he said. "The last number of Olympics have had a good reaction, but I never experienced anything like this.

“The fact that it has had international exposure... to be interviewed by The New York Times is mind-blowing, really. I’m shocked that The New York Times firstly had an interest in my commentary and then that they interviewed me for an article and published the article.

“It really has been mind-blowing, but in a very humbling way.”

Originally from Cork, McCarthy settled in the Midlands and has been living locally for the last 25 years. But his pride in his native place hasn’t gone away. “I’m still a Cork man!” he pointed out.

In addition to his basketball work, he has contributed to some golf and GAA coverage on RTÉ in the past, and has interviewed global sporting icons such as Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods.

The New York Times article about him last Thursday was headlined, ‘Every Four Years, He Gives Ireland a Reason to Watch Basketball’.

Written by Ali Watkins, the article referred to McCarthy’s “fervent fan base” and the catchphrases he sprinkles through his commentaries, such as, “boom-shaka-laka!”, “coast to coast!” and “downtown!”

Speaking to the Westmeath Independent, the local resident said his commentary style wasn’t influenced by anyone else but developed organically.

“It is my own style in that sense... I am very clear on what my role is as a commentator and that allows me to be myself.

“My job is to inform the audience, to entertain the audience, and to perform to the best of my ability as a commentator.

“In (basketball) I have huge experience as a former international captain and player, a former international coach, and a Hall of Fame recipient. So I understand this game, technically, inside out. But that’s not what my job is as a commentator.

“My job is to inform the audience of what’s going on. They can see for themselves what’s going on, but my job is to inform them of different things within that.

“And it’s to entertain them. Because entertaining them leads them to stay engaged and keep watching,” he explained.

“I think of the young, the middle-aged, the old, the farming community, the professional community, the students, just everybody who may be into sport or may not be into sport.

“When I’m commentating, can I keep every one of them engaged with what they’re seeing and hearing?”

He acknowledged that the attention generated by his commentary could be helping to grow the profile of basketball in Ireland.

“I’ve had a lot of messages from people involved in the basketball scene in Ireland and they’re thrilled that the sport has gotten so much exposure,” he said.

“It gives them a great chance to build on that exposure at local club level and also at the regional and national level... So I have no doubt that there could be a spinoff benefit to basketball in this country.”

Over recent years, McCarthy has come through some significant health issues. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2018 and had to undergo further treatment when the cancer returned last year.

“My health challenges are very public. I’ve been very open about them. I deal with them as best I can every day, but I’m in good form at the moment and my health is very good at the moment,” he said.

And he is hopeful that he will be back on commentary duty at the next Olympics in four years’ time.

“LA will be fantastic in four years’ time. Please God I’ll be alive and healthy, and I look forward to that,” he said.