Irish fans praised for standout support of their athletes at European championships in Birmingham

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Paul O’Donnell was struggling in the marathon on Sunday morning. The Irish fans got him home.

“It was incredible, to see green and the tricolors all over the course,” the Irishman said. “The support kept me going. It was much appreciated. It was just a roar, ‘Go Ireland, go Paul.'"

Whether waving flags or roaring for their athletes, Irish fans have made their mark at the European championships in Birmingham. Ireland's athletes have taken note, as have broadcasters and organizers.

“It feels like a home championships,” O’Donnell, who finished 43rd, told The Associated Press.

The official Instagram account of the games, Birmingham 2026, posted: “Beginning to think the Irish fans are the best fans in Europe!" In another post, it added: “From Dublin to Birmingham and everywhere in between, they follow their athletes across the world, and the noise they bring is unmatched.”

Kate O'Connor won the heptathlon on Saturday to double Ireland's gold tally. Mark English had won the 800-meter final on Thursday, followed minutes later by a silver medal for Rhasidat Adeleke in the 200 meters. Andrew Coscoran picked up a bronze in the 1,500.

Husband-wife duo Eoin Murphy and Emma McNelis of Dublin were in Alexander Stadium to see O’Connor complete her heptathlon victory.

“It feels like there’s as many Irish as British here — at the stadium,” McNelis said as they watched the marathon.

Murphy bought an Irish flag at the Dublin airport for their weekend trip. For him, Coscoran's bronze was the highlight "because it was so surprising. He was in the middle of the pack for most of it.”

In interviews with Athletics Ireland, Irish competitors marveled at the support they’ve received in Birmingham.

O’Connor described the experience as “probably the closest we’ll ever get to a home games.”

“It’s a championships that I’ll obviously never forget for winning gold but also never forget the roars, the cheers, the support,” she said. “I’ve never experienced anything like that before.”

“Seeing so many kids as well out there that are screaming for autographs and photos," O’Connor added, "it kind of makes you realize the effect that you have on the country by, I don’t know, running, jumping, throwing, doing all those events as well as you can.”

Sarah Healy and Sophie O’Sullivan race in the 1,500 final Sunday night in the closing session of the championships.

In an annual survey, champion boxer Katie Taylor regularly tops the list as Ireland’s “most admired athlete” despite boxing not ranking among the favorite sports. Gaelic Games topped the list just ahead of soccer, with rugby third and "athletics/tennis" fourth in the 2025 edition of the Teneo Sport and Sponsorship Index.

Athletics stars from this week will likely get some love in the next version.

Adeleke was second to Taylor in the 2024 survey after winning a gold medal and two silver medals at the 2024 European championships in Rome.

This week, the 23-year-old Adeleke said she felt like she was home thanks to the Irish fans.

“Definitely trumped any other nation that was out there. So loud, so supportive,” she said.

Adeleke's silver on Thursday came shortly after English's gold.

“Twenty minutes, two medals. That’s a great night out for us.”

See full AP coverage of European sports here

Ireland's Andrew Coscoran celebrates winning the bronze medal in the men's 1,500 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Morgan Harlow)

Amy Hunt of Britain celebrates winning the gold medal with Rhasidat Adeleke of Ireland, who took the silver, in the women's 200 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Mark English of Ireland celebrates after winning the gold medal in the men's 800 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Ireland's Kate O'Connor celebrates after winning the gold medal in the heptathlon at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Ireland's Kate O'Connor celebrates after winning the gold medal in the heptathlon at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Hurricane Lala weakened to a tropical storm Sunday after skirting Hawaii without making landfall, but it wasn't done punishing the Big Island with hurricane-force gusts. Total rainfall of nearly three feet (one meter) was expected on the higher windward slopes, turning rivers into raging torrents and threatening mudslides.

Tropical storm conditions were spreading westward Sunday from Maui to Oahu and then Kauai, and the National Hurricane Center warned that wind speeds atop mountains and on the windward and leeward slopes are often up to 30% stronger than the near-surface winds used to categorize storms.

Powerful waves pounded the Big Island’s coast as Lala slowly passed by. Howling winds whipped palm trees and waterways swelled with fast-moving runoff from relentless rain that blew nearly sideways.

More than 60,000 households were without power, along with three hospitals that switched to generator power, Gov. Josh Green said.

At least one person died in a car accident in the South Point area of the Big Island, while 19 roofs were lost in the “enormous storm,” the governor said Saturday evening. “There have been a lot of roads impacted, our crews have already been out to more than 30 sites."

A search-and-rescue mission including Civil Defense, the National Guard and Coast Guard was launched after flash floods apparently swept several occupied homes off their foundations in Na'alehu and Wai'ohinu, Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda said after midnight.

“What makes this very challenging is that there's rushing water, there's debris, and there's boulders on the road and it's dark,” Alameda said.

Tropical storm warnings were in effect for the islands of Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Kahoolawe, Oahu, Kauai and Niihau as the storm moves west, raising the possibility of destructive flooding and even wildfires kicked up by strong winds.

As of 2 a.m. Sunday in Hawaii, Lala was centered about 105 miles (170 kilometers) west-northwest of Kailua-Kona and about 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Honolulu, with tropical-storm-force winds extending as much as 175 miles (280 km) from its center.

Lala was sustaining top winds of 70 mph (110 kph) and moving northwest at about 15 mph (24 kmh). Forecasters expect it to regain hurricane strength midweek once it's well west of the island chain.

By the time Lala's completely gone, some higher-altitude places on the Big Island, dominated by the towering Mauna Kea volcano, will have been hit with as much as 35 inches (89 centimeters) of rain, forecasters said, enough to loosen steep slopes where some of the 210,000 islanders live off the grid in improvised housing.

As the hurricane approached, shelters were opened, events were canceled and ranchers were urged to leave their cattle in pastures rather than structures that might collapse. Many residents are still dealing with the aftermath of devastating floods in March and were taking precautions.

Bobby Camara, a 75-year-old lifelong resident, said he planned to “hunker down, cross my fingers, hope the lights don’t go out” at a care home just outside Hilo. He said gas stations were busy as people sought fuel for chain saws and vehicles.

“I think stocking up is part of life over here. ... You learn to be self-reliant,” Camara said.

Mike Caputo, who lives in Keaau, near the Big Island's east coast, said his power generator was ready and a 10,000-gallon (37.8 kiloliter) home water tank was full. His main concern was flash flooding and fallen trees, especially albizia, a common tree.

“They’re not very sturdy, but they grow extremely large,” said Caputo, 50, a local fire captain. “They can make roads impassable."

Christine Matsuda, who lives in Waimea, on the northern side of the island, said “big gusts every few minutes rattle the whole house.”

“We're finding unexpected leaks in places that don't see water under normal conditions,” Matsuda said.

The hurricane center predicted 8 to 12 inches (20.3 to 30.5 centimeters) of total rainfall across Maui and the lower elevations of the Big Island, and 4 to 6 inches (10.2 to 15.2 centimeters) across the island chain.

Associated Press writer Jennifer Sinco Kelleher in Honolulu contributed.

This satellite image released by NOAA shows Tropical Storm Lala over the Pacific Ocean, near Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (NOAA via AP)

A resident carries supplies to a vehicle during Hurricane Lala in Hawaiian Ocean View, Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

A vehicle drives near a downed utility pole dangling above Mamalahoa Highway during Hurricane Lala near Ocean View, Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

A view of the rising water levels at the Wainaku Street Bridge in Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (Taylor Cozloff/Civil Beat via AP)

A resident carries supplies during Hurricane Lala in Hawaiian Ocean View, Hawaii, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)