Eight Irish athletes and their boat handlers will represent Rowing Ireland at the European Rowing Beach Sprint Championships in La Línea de la Concepción, Spain, next week as Ireland continues to build momentum in one of rowing’s fastest-growing disciplines.
The team will head to Spain this Sunday, with Monday and Tuesday dedicated to training and familiarisation with the course ahead of racing. Time Trials and last 16 knockouts take place on Wednesday 16th, with the last eight knockouts and Finals taking place on Thursday 17th.
The Irish team brings together an exciting blend of international experience and emerging talent, with athletes from clubs across the country coming together to represent Ireland on the European stage.
Beach Sprints combine explosive power, speed, technical boat handling and running on the beach, making for a spectacular and highly competitive form of rowing. With Beach Sprints set to make their Olympic debut at LA28, these championships provide another important opportunity for Irish athletes to gain international experience and continue their progression towards the highest level.
Meet the Team:
Women’s Single (CW1x)
Miriam Sheehan is one of Ireland’s most experienced coastal rowers, having represented Ireland at multiple World and European Championships. She was part of the Castletownbere crew that finished sixth at the 2018 World Coastal Championships, before going on to represent Ireland in Beach Sprints and Coastal Rowing.
Her international highlights include European silver and World bronze in 2023, followed by another European silver in 2024 and 2025. Miriam has also raced for Ireland in the Beach Sprint Mixed Double at last years Worlds Championships Beach Sprints in Antalya, Turkiye.
Men’s Single (CM1x)
Patrick Boomer brings considerable international coastal rowing experience to the Irish team and has established himself as one of Ireland’s leading coastal athletes. He previously finished fifth in the Men’s Single at the 2018 World Coastal Championships becoming one of the fastest offshore solo rowers in the world. At the 2022 World Rowing Coastal Championships in Saundersfoot, Wales, Patrick teamed up with Monika Dukarska to win World Championship bronze in the Mixed Double, narrowly missing silver by just 0.09 seconds. It was Patrick’s first World Championship medal, and he now returns to the international stage in the Men’s Single.
Mixed Double (CMix2x)
Thomas Sheridan has emerged as one of Ireland’s promising young coastal athletes, gaining valuable international experience at the 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals, where he raced in the U19 Men’s Double. The crew progressed through the early stages before narrowly missing out on the semi-finals.
Now representing St Michael’s Rowing Club, Limerick, Thomas steps into the Senior Mixed Double at this year’s European Championships, where he will partner one of Ireland’s most experienced coastal rowers, Monika Dukarska.
Monika Dukarska – Killorglin Rowing Club
Mixed Double (CMix2x)
Monika Dukarska is one of Ireland’s most successful coastal rowers, with an outstanding five World Championship titles to her name. She has won World Coastal Championship gold in the Women’s Solo in 2009, 2016, 2023 and 2024, as well as World Championship gold in the Mixed Double in 2023. Her record also includes a World Coastal silver in the Women’s Solo in 2017 and bronze in 2008.
A former Olympian who represented Ireland at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Monika has also won a World Rowing Cup silver medal in the Women’s Pair in 2021. Domestically, she has been unbeaten in the Women’s Solo since 2018, underlining her remarkable consistency and longevity at the highest level. She now returns to international Beach Sprint competition, partnering Thomas Sheridan in the Mixed Double.
Junior Men’s Single (CJM1x)
Shane O’Flaherty is enjoying the challenge of Beach Sprinting as a relative newcomer to the discipline. Having raced in flatwater at the National Championships and Ghent International Regatta, Shane has embraced the opportunity to develop his skills in the fast and technical world of Beach Sprints.
His journey has seen him compete at a variety of new regatta locations, including Portnoo, Dineen and Lough Beg, each presenting their own unique challenges. As he continues to learn the subtleties of the sport, his selection for the European Championships represents an exciting opportunity to gain further international experience and test himself against Europe’s best junior Beach Sprint athletes.
Junior Women’s Single (CJW1x)
Kate Dunne is one of Ireland’s rising young Beach Sprint talents and has already gained valuable experience competing internationally for Ireland. She represented Ireland at the 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals and has continued to progress through the Rowing Ireland Beach Sprint programme.
Kate’s development has been further recognised with her selection to represent Team Ireland at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, where she will compete in the Women’s Solo Beach Sprint. Her selection is another indication of the exciting potential within the next generation of Irish Beach Sprint athletes.
Junior Mixed Double (CJMix2x)
Isabella Monahan is one of Ireland’s exciting young rowing talents, having already represented Ireland at international level in both flatwater and Beach Sprint rowing. She competed at the 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals, racing in both the U19 Women’s Single (qualifying the boat for this years Youth Olympics in Dakar) and Junior Mixed Double.
Most recently, Isabella added an international silver medal to her collection at the 2026 Coupe de la Jeunesse in Lucerne, Switzerland, underlining her continued progress on the international stage. She now teams up with Conor Kelly in the Junior Mixed Double as they look to make their mark in La Linea Spain. Conor Kelly – Ring Rowing Club
Junior Mixed Double (CJMix2x)
Conor Kelly has quickly established himself as one of Ireland’s promising young Beach Sprint rowers. In 2025 he represented Ireland at the Coupe de la Jeunesse Beach Sprint, racing in the Junior Men’s Double, before continuing his progress on the domestic Beach Sprint circuit.
In 2026, Conor won the U19 Men’s Single at Ring Rowing Club’s inaugural Beach Sprint Regatta, demonstrating his ability in the fast, technical format as he now steps up to the European stage.
Team Support Staff
- Orlaith Martin – Team Manager / Boat Handler, Sligo Rowing Club
- Noel Monahan – Team Coach / Boat Handler, Shandon Boat Club
- Shay Dunne – Boat Handler, Wicklow Rowing Club
- Marguerite Deasy – Boat Handler, Ring Rowing Club
- Andrew Fitzgerald – Boat Handler, Killorglin Rowing Club
- Sinead Murphy– Boat Handler, Castletownbere Rowing Club
With a mix of experience, international success and emerging talent, the Rowing Ireland team is ready to take on Europe’s best in Spain.
For the younger members of the team, the championships provide valuable experience on the international stage, while for the more established athletes it is another opportunity to compete for Ireland and add to their impressive records.
Best of luck to all eight athletes and their team as they take to the water.
Niall O’Carroll, High Performance Director, said:
“Wishing every member of the Rowing Ireland Beach Sprint team the very best as they represent Ireland at the European Championships this week.
Beach Sprints is an exciting and rapidly developing part of our sport, and this is another important opportunity for our athletes and coaches to test themselves against Europe’s best.
The whole High Performance programme is behind you.
Go represent Ireland with pride.”
