- Rory McIlroy to represent Ireland at Paris 2024 Olympics
- This is the second time McIlroy will play in the Olympic Games after Tokyo 2020.
- The Northern Irishman could have played for Team GB, so why did he choose Ireland?
Rory McIlroy will begin his 2024 Olympics campaign on Thursday when he tees off at 9.11am UK time.
The Northern Irishman will be competing in his second Summer Games after coming very close to winning a medal at his first Olympics three years ago in Tokyo.
McIlroy finished outside the medals, in fourth place, but this time he hopes to be on the podium.
Ahead of Paris, the four-time major winner has opted to play for Ireland, as he has always done before.
However, she has finally revealed why she has chosen to represent Ireland rather than Team GB at the Olympics.
Rory McIlroy has revealed why he chose to play for Ireland rather than Great Britain at the Olympics
The 35-year-old will represent the Emerald Isle on Thursday in the first round of the golf tournament.
He will play alongside Offaly-born Shane Lowry for Ireland.
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Why is Rory McIlroy playing for Ireland and not Great Britain at the Olympics?
Athletes from Northern Ireland are eligible to represent both countries at the Olympic Games.
This is because the Olympic Federation of Ireland and the British Olympic Association have an agreement under which athletes from Northern Ireland can choose which team they want to compete for.
There has long been debate over which country McIlroy should represent at the Olympics, with Ireland and Team GB both attempting to recruit the golf ace.
The situation became so complicated that there were rumors that he might boycott the Olympics altogether to avoid public scrutiny.
Which he witnessed first-hand a few years ago when he said, “The fact is, I’ve always felt more British than Irish” in an interview, sparking anger and a huge backlash from his Irish fanbase.
After years of speculation over whether he would or would not, McIlroy finally chose his side and put an end to the debate when he declared he would represent Ireland at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
After years of speculation, McIlroy has decided to represent Ireland rather than Great Britain for the first time at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
His decision to choose Ireland over Great Britain is because he has always played for Ireland at youth level, so he does not understand why that should change.
However, the County Down-born star never revealed at the time why she chose the Emerald Isle over Britain.
But the mystery is no longer there as the 35-year-old recently explained why he opted to play for the Irish rather than the British.
Going into a lot of detail about his thought process in making the decision ahead of the Tokyo Games.
‘I made it harder on myself than I needed to.
“As I said earlier, once I left, I tried not to upset anyone, but it was a fairly easy decision. The decision was that I was going to play golf for the country or nation that I’ve always played for, from my junior and amateur days, right up to now in the professional game. And that nation is Ireland.”
McIlroy will tee off at 9:11am UK time on Thursday 1 August in the first round of the golf tournament.
Speaking about all the noise surrounding his decision to play for Ireland in Tokyo three years ago, McIlroy said:
“Although the Olympics gave me that option, there really wasn’t any other option because all I’ve done in my life is play golf for Ireland, so why would I change that just because the tournament has changed? That was my decision.”
Before adding: “I’ve never tried so hard to finish third in my life. Once you get into that Olympic spirit, something happens inside you and you realise what it means to so many people. Just saying I’m an Olympian is great, but winning a medal would be incredibly special.”
