Odhran Donaghy has targeted a medal at the U23 European Rowing Championships this weekend. The Lisnaskea rower only confirmed his place in the Great Britain boat for the coxless fours last week, but he is hoping on Sunday he can climb the podium in Germany to cap a memorable season.

“The hope is always a medal,” admitted the 22 year old.

“These guys aren’t used to losing, they are used to winning. In your training you are always comparing your times against the rest of the world and previous European Championships, and I think we have a good shot at a medal. That is what we are hoping for.”

The Oxford Brookes University student has been matched with a University colleague and two rowers based in London in the four man boat, and although they are forming a new team, Odhran reckons they have gelled well in the short time they have spent together.

“We have a pretty good crew,” he said. “We have two guys from Imperial College, London and then another guy from Brookes. We actually won the Temple Challenge Cup together and I have known him for a couple of years now, so it’s nice to do it with somebody from my own club.

"When we first got into the boat we obviously didn’t know the two Imperial guys. They were good friends, and myself and Toby were good friends, so it was about matching up and getting chatting and after about a week or so we got on pretty well together. The four person boat with two different guys will be a big change but I am excited for it.”

Odhran’s selection for the GB boat was the culmination of a trial process that started nine months ago with a training camp back in November 2022, and Odhran admitted that after the hard work and dedication over such a long period of time, he was afraid to get his hopes up.

“After all that, it was a relief,” he conceded. “You are still always wondering if you are in or if you are out. I have been training in the same boat for about a month, but I still wasn’t sure. Once you finally get the kit and you are told about your flight, that was a big weight off my shoulders almost.”

Odhran will take part in a training session in Krefeld, Germany on Thursday before two more sessions on Friday. The competitive action takes place on Saturday and Sunday. While his crew for the event is new, Odhran admits he already has a good idea of their main rivals.

“When I was with Brookes University I have raced internationally before and we have raced the likes of the German and Romanian team before,” he said. “Usually amongst the European countries, it is Romania, Great Britain, and then the German and the Polish can pull something out. Then there is the Danish, so it is a big wide field and you can’t rule anybody out.”

The European Championships will mark the end of Odhran’s eligibility for the U23 squad, but he already has plans to push for the GB senior squad.

“This is my last year with the U23s and then I want to try to step up to the senior group,” he revealed. “I was going to try my hand at sculling. To get to the Europeans I didn’t have a pair partner so I was in a single boat and had to do singles throughout the whole trials, so I will probably try that again."