World champion Mags is Echo Women In Sport award winner

Following another golden day for Irish rowing, Mags Cremen is The Echo Women In Sports award winner for the month of September.

A star of Irish rowing for a decade, Mags made history again for Ireland last month when she won world gold with Fintan McCarthy in the mixed double sculls at the 2025 World Rowing Championships in Shanghai, China.

Having won their heat earlier in the day, they again set out in the final to lay down a marker for the rest of the competitors, and stormed off the blocks.

Producing a powerful performance, they seized the lead at the halfway stage and held off all challengers, in particular a strong challenge from the Netherlands in the closing stage.

But Cremen and McCarthy weren’t to be denied, they crossed the line to huge cheers and claimed gold for Ireland.

And they will be forever remembered for having become the first-ever world champions at this event, with it being introduced along with a mixed eight category, to bring an added dimension of excitement to the sport, especially as focus turns to the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.

Adding The Echo Women In Sport award to her trophy cabinet is not a first for Mags, who has won it previously with Skibbereen’s Aoife Casey for achievements up to an including the Olympic Games.

“Wow, thanks so much,” she said, speaking as she prepared to board a plane to America. “I’m delighted to win The Echo award.”

Speaking about the final win with McCarthy, Cremen said they were ‘buzzing’ afterwards.

“It was great, I’m so glad we did it, it was a good laugh, but we take everything seriously and obviously we wanted to do well.”

They’ve both been really good friends for years, both deeply involved in the Rowing Ireland family, and both having experienced their ups and downs.

“We didn’t know what to expect,” she said of this rowing category, admitting that they didn’t get to put any time into racing as a pairing.

“We only went in the boat together for the first time on the Saturday,” said Mags, and they took to the water to test themselves in the heats.

“Our own crews were our priority going into the championships,” she says, with the focus for Cremen being on representing Ireland with Zoe Hyde in the women’s double, while McCarthy was rowing with Philip Doyle in the men’s double.

But despite not having practiced together in the mixed double, it just worked, said the Rochestown rower.

“We did no practicing, but it just clicked. We both trusted ourselves and we’ve similar styles on the water, we’re absolutely demons rowing!

“We didn’t expect anything, we were a little bit nervous in the heat and wanted to do well; we didn’t know what pace everybody would be rowing it, and of course there were no world records in this category, ever.

“So we treated it like a heat of Cork Regatta.”

They were chill and in control throughout, managing to “save some energy for the final”, which was taking place 3.5 hours after their heat, and in extremely hot temperature.

“We met Fiona (Murtagh) just before the finals, and we were hyping each other up at the hotel, in great form and bouncing off each other.”

Murtagh was to race her final in the women’s single sculls just ahead of Cremen and McCarthy, and she delivered a superb performance to take gold for Ireland.

And the duo knew it, hearing the cheers for Ireland just ahead of their own final, and that spurred them on.

“We had a good feeling, we heard Fiona won when we were icing ourselves to cool down.”

They had ice towels over them, and ice in their hats trying to cool down in 35 degree heat.

“The heat adds a bit of stress, but we have great doctors, physios, nutritionists, and coaches — all world champions in their own right,” she said of the backroom team.

In the final Cremen and McCarthy bombed it, crossing the line to more cheers for the Irish. And it was even more impressive when you consider that these are two lightweight rowers now rowing in the open-weight category due to lightweight rowing being removed as a category from the Los Angeles Olympic Games. And there are hopes that this double will become an Olympic event.

“It’s not an Olympic event yet, but it was a stacked event in Shanghai, with lots of Olympic medallists taking part, including the Dutch.”

That makes the gold all the more special.

“And it was great to see former lightweights beating heavyweights.”

It was no surprise, when she returned to Cork, that she popped down to Lee Rowing Club to meet with her coaches from her time with the club, and her friends there.

“Yea, I popped down to say hello and it was lovely. It’s my rowing home, essentially, so it was great to see Teresita (O’Callaghan) and Dan (Buckley) and everybody at Lee Rowing Club.”

Cremen has been with UCC Rowing Club since she took up her studies at the university, and really enjoys it.

“They’re amazing, such a great community at UCC. I have such fond memories of rowing with the UCC girls, and many of them came to Paris to watch me rowing in the Olympics, and they were brilliant.”

Trying to combine being an international athlete with studying can be difficult, said Cremen, who is now beginning a Masters.

“I wouldn’t have gotten through college or the last two Olympics without my pal Michéle, who was so supportive,” she admitted, referring to Michéle Power, manager of the Quercus Talented Students’ Programme at UCC.

“The extreme stress of college and rowing can be challenging, but I could go to her with an issue and she would always sort it out, never judgemental, knowing that rowing was such a priority in my life.

“Michéle was always reassuring and always helped to find a way to make it work.”

With her Masters, Cremen will be keeping her mind busy, but she has her eyes “100% on LA and the Olympic Games in 2028”.

Bring it on!