Rory McIlroy, the four-time major champion, confessed that he doesn't know the words to the Irish national anthem. This revelation came after he put to rest the debate over his international allegiance during the last Olympics.
McIlroy made his Olympic debut in Tokyo 2021, narrowly missing out on a medal as he fell short in the bronze playoff. Despite competing against seven rivals for the third-place spot, he was unable to secure a win, with Xander Schauffele taking gold for Team USA.
However, the Northern Irishman avoided an awkward situation as he had previously admitted that he wouldn't have known the words to the Irish anthem 'Amhran na bhFiann' if he had won a medal. Born in County Down, McIlroy is eligible to represent both Ireland and Great Britain at the Games.
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Reflecting on the past, McIlroy admitted in 2016 that he found the debate over which nation he would represent at the Olympics frustrating, expressing 'resentment' over the discourse. Golf returned to the Games in Rio de Janeiro that year for the first time since 1904, but McIlroy did not participate.
After years of speculation, he finally chose to represent Team Ireland at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. Reflecting on the intense scrutiny over his national allegiance in an interview with the Sunday Independent five years earlier, he expressed his frustration: "All of a sudden it put me in a position where I had to question who I am.
"Who am I? Where am I from? Where do my loyalties lie? Who am I going to play for? Who do I not want to (upset) the most? I started to resent it. And I do. I resent the Olympic Games because of the position it put me in. That's my feelings toward it. And whether that's right or wrong, that's how I feel."
He also shared a personal revelation about his potential reaction to national anthems: "I said, 'Justin, if I had been on the podium (listening) to the Irish national anthem as that flag went up, or the British national anthem as that flag went up, I would have felt uncomfortable either way'," he confessed. "I don't know the words to either anthem. I don't feel a connection to either flag. I don't want it to be about flags. I've tried to stay away from that."
In the end, his decision was influenced by his past experiences representing a nation at junior and amateur levels, as he explained the motivation behind his choice: "As I said, previously, once I left trying not to upset anyone aside, then it was actually a pretty easy decision.
"The decision was I'm going to play golf for the country or the nation that I've always played for through my junior and amateur days and now into the professional game. And that's Ireland."
In further comments, McIlroy highlighted his happiness over his decision to participate in the Olympics, stating: "So at the end of the day, I think with where golf is, with it being part of the Olympic movement, I think if I had to look back on my career and not played in one [Olympic Games], I probably would have regretted it. So that was part of the reason I wanted to go, for the experience, as well."
