Irish sailor Eve McMahon ‘honoured’ to feature in Olympic torch relay for 2024 Paris Games

McMahon, a native of Sutton in Dublin, will compete in the Olympic sailing regatta which take place in the Mediterranean Sea with crews based in Marseille.

On Wednesday, celebrations are getting under way in the city to prepare for the arrival of the Olympic flame to French soil.

McMahon was selected by the French Embassy in Ireland as the Irish representative to participate in the torch relay as the flame embarks on a tour of France before arriving in Paris for the Opening Ceremony.

“I’m really excited and honoured to be invited to be the Irish representative in the Olympic torch relay as it arrives in France. The atmosphere in Marseille this week is incredible, and it really gives a taste of what to expect this summer,” she said.

“Being part of the Olympic torch relay is special, and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and is even more significant as it is taking place where I have been based with training over the past number of years,” said McMahon.

The Olympic flame is one of the most recognisable traditions of the Olympic Games and represents a link between the Modern and Ancient Olympics. Throughout the torch relay, the flame announces the Olympic Games and spreads a message of peace and friendship between people.

This year the flame was lit in Olympia, Greece, on April 16 and following a tour of the home of the Olympics, made its way on board the Belem to Marseille. The Belem is Europe’s oldest three-masted barque, and finishes its 12-day voyage from Piraeus to Marseille on Wednesday.

The Belem was owned for 30 years by Ireland’s Ernest Guinness, who was the Rear Commodore of the Royal St George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire, the base of Ireland’s High-Performance Sailing team.

Team Ireland’s sailing squad has based themselves in Marseille for the past few years, familiarising themselves with the location and conditions.

Howth’s McMahon will be one of the youngest members of the Irish Olympic team this summer, as she embarks on her first Olympic Games.

After arrival in the French port, the Olympic flame embarks on its epic journey across France, visiting 66 celebration sites, and more than 400 towns.

McMahon is one of the torchbearers bestowed with the honour of carrying the flame to its end destination on the July 26 at the Opening Ceremony in Paris, and will join fellow international athletes from across Europe in taking part in Thursday’s relay as the flame leaves Marseille.