All good things come to those who wait and wait. What was a single day’s delay when Annalise Murphy had waited four years for redemption?
Once more on to breach the good folk of the National Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire came to watch the nation’s sailing sweetheart with anticipation and trepidation.
The Murphy family DNA is all over the National Yacht Club. Her father Con was once commodore; her mother Cathy McAleavey represented Ireland as an Olympic sailor in 1988. Annalise’s brother Finn and sister Claudine are also members.
“Sailing oozes out of every pore of the Murphys,” said Ann Blaney, a former physio to the Irish sailing team.
For the members of the club her success, or otherwise, was personal.
Four years ago the members had watched the agonising drama unfold from London in a packed, airless room. This time the weather proved clement enough to allow everybody watch the medal race on the big screen outside, which is adjacent to the harbour.
The NYC had cleverly hedged its bets accordingly with its banner erected in advance.
“The National Yacht Club congratulates Annalise Murphy on Rio Olympic success.”
What was the measure of success? It had to be a medal, but what colour would it be?
Helen Cooney, who wore a lime green t-shirt with the words “Annalise’s army” on it, watched through the cracks in her fingers. The postponement had only increased the tension.
“We were all just willing her on. We had been here before,” she said.
Sailing is not much of a spectator sport but the expert co-commentary of sailing Olympian Ger Owens geed up viewers.
“The cat has got claws,” he said of Murphy’s determination to stop at nothing to get a medal.
“A little bit of the Murphy magic,” he exclaimed on a few occasions.
Neither is it a sport that lends itself to fist pumping nor to loud exclamations to release the tension, but the assembled crowd allowed themselves a perfunctory cheer as she crossed two of the four marks in a good position.
The cheers grew louder as she rounded the last mark. Commentator Myles Dungan noted that she was now in the gold medal position, but gold was not to be.
Placings can change as capriciously as the wind and it was only when Murphy crossed the line in fifth place, thus securing a silver medal, that the crowd erupted.
“The tears are rolling down my eyes,” said Siobhan Leech, a long standing member of the club.
She said the nerves had threatened to get the better of so many of those present given what happened four years ago at the London Olympics, when Murphy finished fourth.
Murphy, she pointed out, had sacrificed everything over the last eight years to get to the near pinnacle of her sport. Not just on the water, that was the easy bit, but at the dinner table, the gym, the long kilometres spent on the road and the 10 visits to Rio to acquaint herself with the conditions.
“She has worked so hard for to this,” Ms Leech said.
Most mornings Murphy could be found on the water sailing her moth, a boat built for speed and endurance.
The club wasted no time in displaying the message on the big screen.
“Congratulations Annalise Murphy Silver Medal Olympian”.
The members are now preparing for the homecoming. It may take a few days. But there’s no rush, but they will be waiting for her. They have waited long enough as has she.
