The 23-year-old world champion delivered a thrilling performance, finishing in an Olympic record time of seven minutes and 38.19 seconds, earning Ireland its first gold medal of the Games.


With his twin brother cheering from the stands, Wiffen edged out reigning Olympic champion Bobby Finke of the United States, who took silver just 0.56 seconds behind. Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri claimed the bronze medal.


Wiffen joins the ranks of Irish Olympic swimming champions, the only previous being triple gold medallist Michelle Smith from the 1996 Games. He also became Northern Ireland’s first Olympic gold medallist in 36 years.


The race saw Australia’s Elijah Winnington take an early lead, maintaining it for the first 350 metres. Wiffen gradually moved into second place by the 250-meter mark. As Winnington faded, the contest narrowed to Wiffen, Finke, and Paltrinieri. At the halfway point, Wiffen led with Finke in second, but Paltrinieri surged ahead at 650 metres, holding the lead until the final stretch. In a dramatic finish, Wiffen powered through the last 50 metres to touch the wall first.


Celebrating his victory, Wiffen put his hands to his head in disbelief before raising his fists to acknowledge the cheering crowd, which included a strong Irish presence at La Defense Arena.

Earlier in the year, Wiffen had already claimed gold in both the 800 and 1,500 metres at the World Championships in Doha. Although he did not make the final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which marked the return of the men’s 800 metres since 1904, he set the fastest qualifying time in Monday’s heats in Paris.


Reflecting on his victory, Wiffen said, “I don’t think a lot of people believed I could do it, but it was incredible. I’ve done it—that’s all I want to say! I was so nervous, the most I’ve ever been for a race, but hearing my brother shout for me as I walked out really calmed me down. I heard none of the crowd—just him—and that levelled my head.”


Addressing the challenge from Finke, Wiffen added, “There’s a saying going around about getting ‘Finked’—I’m glad to say I haven’t been ‘Finked’ today. I’m pretty happy to have touched the wall first.”