Ireland F40 take gold at FIBA Masters Open, while three Irish teams pick up silver

Four Ireland teams took home medals at the inaugural FIBA Masters Open in Athens, including gold for the F40 Women’s team. There was silver medal success for the Ireland F45, F50 and M45 teams, while Ireland’s M50 and M60 narrowly missed out on the podium positions with fourth place finishes.

Michelle Fahy, who was recently inducted Basketball Ireland Hall of Fame dazzled with 17 points in the F40 final, where Ireland defeated Italia Golden Players 66-45. Fahy would claim the final MVP for her preformance. Ireland took the lead midway through the opening quarter and never looked back, Carrie Stewart Moyles picked up 12 points and Amanda O’Regan had 11 points in the win.

Michelle Fahy receives her MVP award after the FIBA Masters Open F40 final. Photo credit FIBA

Speaking on her medal success, Fahy said: "To make history with Ireland at the inaugural FIBA Masters Open proves that with passion, dedication, teamwork, and the unwavering belief in each other, dreams don't have an age limit. We are a team of the most resilient women I've ever known. Seeing our children in the stands watching us make history with Ireland is worth its weight in gold.  Inspiring the next generation is what it's all about.”

 Ireland F40 women’s head coach, Mark Scannell, added: “We are proud and delighted to have won the gold medal. The team put in a magnificent effort especially over the last 3 months. Huge sacrifices were made by the players and support staff and to see them get their reward and play so well during the tournament was very satisfying. The team spirit support and camaraderie among all the Irish teams at the tournament was fantastic and but for a drop of a ball here or there we could have won another few gold medals.”

Carrie Stewart Moyles scored 12 points for Ireland F40 in the FIBA Masters Open final in Athens, Greece. Photo credit: FIBA

Ireland’s F45 claimed silver, losing out to Italia Golden Players 65-54 in the final. It was a tight in the opening half, with just two points separating the sides just after midpoint the second quarter, 29-27, following Grainne Tomlinson’s basket. Catherine Ashe scored 12 pointsin the final, with Georgina Ni Hasa Martin and Mary Cunniffe each getting 10.

It is back-to-back tournament silver medals for the Ireland F45 team, having claimed second place in the 2025 FIMBA MaxiBasketball World Championship.

Ireland F45 Head coach Sergio Irles Fernandez said: “This silver medal belongs to an extraordinary group of women, who have become much more than a team - they have become a family. Their commitment, resilience and love for the game inspire everyone around them. We should never forget that Masters basketball is made up of mothers, fathers and working people who give their time, energy and hearts to proudly represent their country.

The respect Ireland has earned on the international stage is a reflection of the incredible work being done across every Masters team. I couldn't be prouder of what this group has achieved together.

As I now say goodbye to Irish basketball, I do so with nothing but gratitude. It has been one of the greatest honours of my career to wear the shamrock, represent Ireland and fight for these colours alongside such remarkable people. Ireland will always have a special place in my heart.”

Ireland’s F50 team brought home a silver medal, they lost out to Hungarian Angels 44-31 in the final. Patricia Kelly scored eight points, with Karen Collins hitting six. Ireland finished top of Group A winning all three games, before overcoming Italia Golden Players 55-48 in the semi-finals. 

Ireland F50 head coach Fu Paapito praised his players in the aftermath. “We won our group beating Italy, Mongolia and Australia, played and won against a stronger Italy team in the semi-finals before facing a very strong Hungarians side in the final. They’re a very tall and talented team, who has won many Masters tournaments through the years. We gave it all we had but the injury to one of our star players, Ger O’Flynn, at the beginning in the 1st quarter made the game a bit difficult for us, especially on the offensive side. We were down by four points at half-time and eventually lost in the end by 13. The Hungarians were beating every team by 30-50 points in the tournament and we gave them their hardest game, so our ladies were proud of that because they competed till the end. 

Our women’s had great team performances throughout the tournament led by Jennifer Winders (Malahide) and Ger O’Flynn (Galway). To finish with a silver medal is a great achievement in itself. The O50 Women’s Irish team have never played in a FIBA Masters Finals, so it was great for them to accomplish that and walk away knowing they can compete with anyone. I was honored and blessed to coach this great talented group of players, traveling from as far as Galway, Wexford, Clare, Dublin, Portlaoise, Longford and Drogheda. Our physio also travelled from Cavan, so it was a great mix of players and staff. But all in all it was a very successful tournament for the O50’s women and they did Irish basketball proud.” 

Ireland’s M45 team came agonisingly close to gold, losing 60-58 to Argentinean side Trede in the final. Ireland had four players in double digits in the final, Peder Madsen with 11, while Daniel Deboss, Simon Behan and Kieran Quinn eached downed 10. Ireland led for the majority of the fourth quarter and were 58-53 ahead with a little over a minute to go, following Martas Kraniauskas’ basket, however seven free throws from the nerveless Rodrigo Ritoli in the closing stages saw Ireland just miss out.

Peder Madsen in action for Irleland M45 during the FIBA Masters Open final in Athens, Greece. Photo credit FIBA Europe.

It was an impressive showing from Ireland, having come through the group stage with a  4-1 record.

Ireland M45 head coach Darren O’Neill said: “The performance of our team was nothing short of superb. This was not a team full of ex superleague stars. But a team that came together and worked very hard to achieve their goals. In doing so, they made history, by being the first men's team to medal at the FIBA Masters Open. Unfortunately we came within a whisker of winning the Gold medal against an excellent Argentina team."

Ireland M45 team with their silver medals at the FIBA Masters Open. Photo credit FIBA.

Ireland’s M50 team just missed out on a medal, edged 55-47 by Italia Golden Players Marte in the third-place playoff.  Ireland trailed by just two points, 43-41, four minutes into the fourth quarter, following Greg Dunne’s basket, but Martin Conroy’s side couldn’t reel in their opponents. Bernard Walsh top scored for Ireland with 12 points in the game. The M50 team also had a group win over MaxiEspana and defeated Italian Golden Players Giove in the quarter-finals.

Ireland’s M60 team also reached the bronze medal game, but Niall McDermott’s team lost 63-45 to Italia Golden Players. John Clancy had 12 points, backed up by eight points from Ed Randolph and seven from Anthony Dunne. Ireland also picked up wins over Puerto Rico and Italia Gold Players in the group stage.

Ireland’s F60 team picked up a 53-14 win over Mexican side Angeles DePuebla, but were competitive throughout and unlucky not to get over the line in three their other four games, losing by less than seven points in three of those - 29-26, against Italia Golden Players, 31-25 to Chile’s Team Palmares (31 and 33-26 to Australia Masters Brolgas.

Irealnd’s M40 team topped Group C thanks to a pair of wins,  75-44 over Spain’s Erika Caimboplad Granada and a 81-70 success over Greek Veterans. They were unable to get past Greek side Korinthians in the quarter-finals, losing 69-44 and would claim fifth place overall.

Ireland Masters squads at the FIBA Masters Open in Athens, Greece.

Basketball Ireland’s Masters Lead, Mike Murray, hailed the success achieved by the teams at the tournament in Greece.

“Basketball Ireland’s Masters teams were delighted to be involved in the Inaugural FIBA Masters Open and the success we have achieved is  a testament to the dedication of the players, management and staff. The international masters programme continues to grow and embodies the lifelong participation, healthy lifestyles and inclusivity which is Masters basketball”, Murray said.