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2020 TOKYO SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES
- When: Pool swimming: Saturday, July 24 – Sunday, August 1, 2021
- Open Water swimming: Wednesday, August 4 – Thursday, August 5, 2021
- Where: Olympic Aquatics Centre / Tokyo, Japan
- Heats: 7 PM / Semifinals & Finals: 10:30 AM (Local time)
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Another swimmer has dropped an event for these 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games which officially opened today, July 23rd.
27-year-old Shane Ryan has bowed out of the men’s 100m backstroke, his sole individual event for the Games. A semi-finalist in this event at the last edition of the Olympics in Rio, Ryan has been dealing with persistent shoulder pain which is exacerbated during his signature discipline.
Per Swim Ireland’s statement, ‘Ryan has been dealing with pain in his both of his shoulders for several weeks, ruling him out of competition at the Swim Ireland Performance Meet at the end of June, and this has been investigated and treated extensively in collaboration with the team of experts in the Sport Ireland Institute.’
Ryan himself stated,
“I am extremely disappointed and frustrated to no longer be swimming the 100m Backstroke at this Olympic Games, particularly as it is my main Olympic event.
“Unfortunately, this is a difficult decision that has to made in high performance sport at times and something that many athletes have to deal with at different stages of their athletic careers. Unfortunately for me, it is a decision that we’ve had to make at the biggest event.
“I’ve struggled with pain in both shoulders when swimming backstroke for quite some time now and I am so grateful that I have an amazing support team who have helped me through the whole process. Despite trying everything we could before the Games, there was nothing more we could do – and so we came to this difficult decision.
“However, I am excited that I will be walking out in five days’ time to compete as part of a historic moment in Irish swimming. For the first time in 49 years, Ireland has a relay at the Olympic Games.
“I know that the decision to compete in this event as planned is not only the right call for me, but also for my teammates Jack McMillan, Finn McGeever and Brendan Hyland. Despite this being the most challenging time in my athletic career to date, I’ve never been more driven to perform here and make Ireland proud of both me and this relay whilst we’re in Tokyo.”
National Performance Director Jon Rudd said: “Shane has made a very courageous decision here, one that we all respect and support.
“He will inevitably feel disappointment that he cannot swim the event in which his attentions have been primarily focused since 2016, but he will take some respite in still being able to swim in the relay, something he absolutely grabbed with both hands when named as part of the team.
“Racing with pain is never wise nor correct, and Shane has worked with numerous experts in their field in recent months to explore a number of interventions to help manage the situation. Unfortunately, these efforts have not given him an outcome that he or we hoped for in the time that we had.
“The support of the Sport Ireland Institute and their team of experts throughout this period has been extensive and welcomed – and Shane will of course live to fight another day in the stroke where he became Ireland’s first World Championship medallist in 2018.”
The men’s 4x200m free relay of which Ryan will be a part is set to take place on Tuesday, July 27th.
How sad for your venomous haters, to kick a guy when he is down! Shame on you!! (Even in another post on here about Brendan Hyland, your jealousy is apparent. Of course everyone wants the other 2 swimmers to be there. Bren & Shane would be the 1st to say it!) As if this was all part of some plan…for Shane to give up years of his life, hours with his face in the water, all to get a trip to Japan, where he can’t really travel due to Covid, stuck in a Hotel room most of the time. (Incidentally if there were no Covid, Shane would have been in top shape last year to swim.) Fake Theresa-you’re so wrong… Read more »
Wheres your real name? you are commenting anonymous too. I do agree hes been put in a difficult position and by swimming the relay is enabling 2 swimmers to go to the Olympics. The relay will not have a fighting chance, as others have mentioned, getting a relay to the olympics was part of a higher agenda. I dont agree re Ryans contribution to irish swimming. Whatever he came here for was purely for personal gain and frankly because hes not good enough for USA. He is taking away someone else’s funding, someone else’s sponsorship. Hes in it totally for himself which as an elite athlete is fine but own it and dont try and tell us that he has… Read more »
The reason most are anonymous is that they are well aware of the repercussion of speaking against Sham Ireland. As you appear to be anonymous too, I assume you know that, or are part of the Sham Ireland support act.
The majority of the posts here are very much annoyed with Sham Ireland and their ‘pick & choose’ application of their own rules, and their ability to change them on a whim to suit them selves.
From the published Sham Ireland Rules – Only FINA A swimmers should be selected for individual events, from the same rules, only IN FORM swimmers should go.
These clearly rule out the two swimmers. Absolutely nothing personal in making that statement.
Now contrast Sham… Read more »
Shambollix. No doubt about it. If the desired outcome is to undermine and impede the development of world class Irish swimming, then keep these charlatan’s snouts in the trough. I think enough is enough.
Very well written sir/madam!!
I am so glad I am not the only one that has seen through Rudds selfish, egotistical methods that are only based around him needing to look as if he has improved a countries swimming program.
Having been involved in Irish swimming for 2 decades I can catagorically say that Swim Ireland will be in its worst position in 20 years after this Olympics.
1. Dissalusion in how the program is ran has depleted our junior program as all the best juniors are heading to the USA.
2. Some of our most promising Senior swimmers were screwed over to allow Rudd to have his mythical ‘biggest ever team’ might think twice about… Read more »
What a remarkably specific injury.
Just like Hyland, if he didn’t go, when they knew he shouldn’t, but bent rules to suit themselves, then they don’t get to pad the ‘Biggest Team Ever’ out with relay swimmers, and don’t get the headlines the certain people in the hierarchy craves, and tweets, and all the other social channels that seems to guide the direction of swimming in Ireland.
Reality is that the 4X200 is a Sham Relay, featuring two swimmers that simply shouldn’t be there (According to the published Sham Ireland policies anyway).
This relay cannot perform anywhere near their qualifying time, and that was before one of them was injured.
This relay will be a massive disappointment
And it’s almost… Read more »
Would Voctoria Catterson not be a better option for the 200m free relay instead of an unfit, injured, American back crawler that hasn’t swam 200 free in 6 years??
Shame on you rudd
So he’s essentially going to be the weakest leg on the 4×2 now. Very doubtful he breaks 1:50. Get Jordan Sloan on a flight ASAP.
Unbelievable . So he went for a holiday and is going to swim in a free relay as a backstroker with a fly swimmer on a B time .with two others that didn’t make a A time yes will definitely make history .joke
Eh Is there Nobody who cannot see what’s happening here. Lies, untruths and manipulation of the facts.
Swim Ireland, or specifically Jon Rudd’s written policy, which he labours heavily on when it suits him, on ‘Competitive Readiness’ Specifically Section 17, explains who is responsible for this decision, Performance Director (aka J Rudd), & National Head Coach (aka Ben Higson), both of whom benefit by this fabrication, of events and perhaps medical details.
The Swim Ireland statement & Ryan’s personal statement, acknowledge the extent of time this injury has required extensive medical treatment.
NOT racing the Performance meet in June, should have been a Red Flag. Ryan is said to have informed multiple… Read more »
Ngl im kinda scratching my head at this