Gráinne Murphy has announced her retirement from international competition, citing injury setbacks, illnesses, and education commitments as the chief reasons for the premature end of her career.
The European silver medalist realised her dream of qualifying for the London Olympics in 2012 but a sudden bout of glandular fever compromised her performance in the 400m freestyle which ultimately resulted in her recording a time of 10 seconds slower than her personal best in the heats.
She was a strong prospect for the upcoming Olympics in Rio and was pursuing qualification up until last November until a lung infection hindered her progress.
Much made of 'sacrifices' in various sports. Grainne Murphy moved from Wexford to Limerick at 13 so that she could train in top facilities.
— Kieran Cunningham (@KCsixtyseven) February 23, 2016
The Wexford-born athlete released a statement this evening in which she recounted the milestones in her career as well as rationalising her decision based on an unfortunate history of injuries.
''After thinking long and hard I have finally come to the decision to hang up my hat and goggles at international level. I have had many amazing memories and experiences during my years as a high performance swimmer and I will treasure them for the rest of my life.
''The highlights for me included winning three gold and a bronze medal at the European Junior Championships in 2009. Following this I competed in my first senior competition at the World Championships in Rome where I just missed out on a semi-final.
London Olympian Grainne Murphy Retires from International Swimming at 22 #SwimIreland pic.twitter.com/pGCqdw3Mkj
— Sportsfile (@sportsfile) February 23, 2016
''2010 marked my first year on the senior stage and I won a silver medal in the 1500m freestyle and was just pipped for a bronze medal in the 800m freestyle at Senior European Championships in Budapest.''
''Unfortunately tough times followed for me as most swimmers and sports people would understand. I had to undergo shoulder surgery which took me out of the pool for quite some time. I managed to recover from that well and qualified for the 2012 London Olympic Games.''
''Quite publicly, things did not go well for me in in 2012 when I suffered from glandular fever which forced me to withdraw after the heats of the 400 freestyle at the Games.''
''It was a slow road to recovery and in 2014 things finally improved. I then made the decision to move to France to train. Living in another country was an amazing life experience. I made some lifelong friends and trained with top class swimmers.''
Grainne Murphy has retired from international swimming at the age of 22. Crammed a lot in at a young age.
— Will Downing (@WillDowningComm) February 23, 2016
Murphy goes on to explain how she reached a pivotal moment of clarity in 2015.
''I reached a crossroads in November of 2015. I suffered a severe lung infection that took a long time to recover from. I realised that while I might make an Olympic Qualification time for Rio, I did not feel like I would be competitive at the Games.''
''I have always maintained that if I go to a major championship I want to be at the top of my game and in the mix.
''I would like to say a massive thank you to all the organisations and people that helped me during my career. I am grateful for the support received from Swim Ireland, Sport Ireland, The Irish Institute of Sport, The Olympic Council of Ireland, Castletroy College, The University of Limerick and UL Sport.''
''Most importantly thanks a million to my family and friends who have supported me during my career day in and day out.''
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