Was Michelle de Bruin our greatest Olympian? Eamonn Coughlan says yes

irish Times wrote:

ONE OF Ireland’s most successful athletes says the treatment of Michelle de Bruin by the Irish public has been a disgrace and that the former swimmer is “our greatest Olympian”.

Senator Eamonn Coghlan, who was speaking before being given a distinguished fellowship of Athlone Institute of Technology yesterday, said the fact that de Bruin had never failed a drugs test left her at the top of the pile of our Olympians.

De Bruin won three gold medals and one bronze at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996, but was discredited after later being found guilty of tampering with a urine sample.

Despite possessing the best Irish record at the Olympics, de Bruin was not selected by the Olympic Council of Ireland as one of the 41 torch-bearers for the Olympic flame as it made its way through Ireland.

“There are athletes around the world that are tainted with positive tests and won medals who were never castigated in their home countries like Michelle was,” said Mr Coghlan.

“Let’s remember she never – ever – tested positive, particularly during her Olympic year. If you look at the record books, she is down as winning four medals at the Atlanta Olympics and it is because of that that I have to give her credit as Ireland’s best ever Olympian.

“There are a lot of people who would agree with me but there are also a lot of people who would disagree with me,” he said.