Nora ‘Nono’ McHugh from Galway is a true pioneer in Irish sport. She made history in 1973 as the first-ever captain of the Irish Women’s National Football Team, leading her squad to a memorable victory against Wales. But her love of sport began long before that, from kicking a ball on the streets of the Claddagh to playing every game imaginable in the Swamp, her journey is one of passion, grit, and unwavering determination.

Nono’s sporting success spans far beyond football, with remarkable achievements across many sports including Gaelic football, camogie, badminton and more. Her dedication and contribution to Irish sport has been recognised nationally and locally with her induction into the FAI Hall of Fame last year, and more recently, she received the prestigious Galway Sports Stars Hall of Fame Award.

Nono takes us on a heartfelt journey through her life, sharing vivid stories from her early days growing up in the Claddagh, her adventures in sport both at home and abroad, and the challenges of balancing athletic ambition with personal responsibilities. She reflects on the power of sport to shape identity and build community, offering her signature wit and wisdom along the way.

Now in her 70s, Nono remains as active as ever, swimming daily at Blackrock in Salthill, going to the gym, and staying deeply connected to her local sporting communities. She’s a firm believer that staying active and finding a supportive and encouraging community is key, especially as we age.Despite her incredible athletic accomplishments, Nono’s humility shines through, for her, the greatest reward is the pride and recognition of her family.

This episode is more than a celebration of Nono’s life in sport,  it’s a powerful reminder that passion, perseverance, and a sense of community matter at every stage of life. No matter your age or ability, there’s always a place for sport in your story.

Two time Olympian Philip Doyle secured a historic bronze medal for Ireland in Rowing at the Paris Olympics with his teammate Daire Lynch. With an impressive resume that includes two World Cup Silver Medals, a World Championship Bronze and Silver Medal, and a Tokyo Olympic Semi-Final appearance, it was Paris 2024 where Philip’s Olympic Medal dreams came true.

A high achiever from a young age his sporting talent saw him embrace many sports from soccer and gaelic, to cricket, athletics and swimming before field hockey became his sport of choice.  Playing it to a high level he represented Ireland at U16 in the European Championship. Off the field of play Philip’s academic ability saw him graduate from Queen’s University in Belfast with a first class honours in Medical Science and a Medical Degree

It wasn’t until a decade or so ago that Philip first took up rowing, whilst at university, the former Abercrombie & Fitch model took to his new sport like a duck to water and it wasn’t long before he was winning races and excelling in his new found sport.

In this podcast Philip shares a snippet of his life as an elite athlete, the rigorous training routines, mental fortitude and nutritional strategies required to perform at his best, all whilst balancing a demanding medical career. Additionally, he shares his recent experience of competing at Ironman 70.3 Marbella and his future aspirations in both rowing and medicine.

Balancing his passion for elite sport with the demands of a medical career, Philip exemplifies extraordinary dedication, discipline, and a relentless drive to push boundaries in both arenas. This is a compelling episode offering a window into the life of an elite athlete and medical professional striving to excel in both fields.

In September of this year, Germany’s Laura Philipp was crowned the 2024 Vinfast IRONMAN World Champion in a thrilling race in Nice, France. Her rise to the top step of the IRONMAN World Championship podium has seen her achieve lots of success in a sport that was never even on her radar for many years, in fact she only learned how to swim when she was 24, something that has certainly not held her back from becoming a world class triathlete and one of the sport’s most successful athletes.

Her professional career took off after taking victory at IRONMAN 70.3 in Mallorca in 2016, and since then, Laura has consistently climbed the ranks, securing  titles and podium finishes around the world.  She is a multiple IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 Champion, the 2022 Ironman European Champion, the 2023 IRONMAN African Champion and IRONMAN 70.3 European Champion, she finished in 3rd place in Kona last year and this year she achieved her dream of becoming the IRONMAN World Champion.

Laura shares lots of insight about many aspects of her life as an athlete from the importance of aligning her training to her menstrual cycle, to balancing her fuelling needs as a vegetarian with the demands of her training and racing schedule. With her number one supporter; her husband Philipp by her side every step of the way taking on multiple roles as husband, coach, business partner and bike mechanic to name a few, she shares some snippets into life together chasing goals and the importance of maintaining a healthy balance between professional and personal life.

Laura’s happiness is infectious, she believes a happy athlete is a fast athlete, her enjoyment of a piece of cake every day important in ensuring she gets the balance right in life even at the highest level of sporting success. Her ‘train smart, have fun and kick ass’ mantra is one that we could all benefit from embracing as we each strive to pursue our own ambitions in sport and in life.

This episode is packed with fun and laughter, motivation and actionable insights for athletes and fans alike. Whilst we don’t go into the specifics of her World Championship victory in Nice, we do get to know Laura on a personal level and discover just some of the formula of what it takes to become an IRONMAN World Champion

Paul Kaye is one of the best known and much loved voices of IRONMAN, a proud South African who from a young age was well travelled and exposed to many places, faces and cultures which helped to shape his love of travel and ability to connect with people from all around the world.

His background in broadcasting and his passion for sport has seen him carve out a career in the endurance industry that saw his hobby turn into his profession and since pivoting into his role as an IRONMAN announcer he has played a significant role in raising the game for others to follow in elevating the athlete experience on race day at IRONMAN events all over the world. A two time IRONMAN, Paul returned to racing this year taking part in IRONMAN 70.3 Belgium last month.

In this episode he reflects on the transformative power of sport and of IRONMAN specifically, sharing deeply personal stories of overcoming challenges, highlighting the importance of having a profound ‘why’ to push through adversity. The episode is filled with motivational insights and underscores the unifying and life-changing impact of IRONMAN on both individuals and communities alike.

Youri Keulen is a 25 year old professional triathlete from The Netherlands.  The eldest of triplets, he has been paving a path in sport from a young age, first as a footballer, then as a runner, where he claimed victory as a three-time national 800m champion in his teens. Picked up by a triathlon talent ID programme in the Netherlands on the back of his running and biking ability, his dream of becoming an Olympian never materialised and shortly after Tokyo 2020 he parted ways with the Dutch National team.

Switching distances to take on his first middle distance race at IM 70.3 Maastricht in 2021 he was the fastest overall age grouper on the day, a few weeks later he made his pro debut at Challenge Peguera Mallorca and came fifth.  Since then he has gone from strength to strength with some stand out performances including; Winning IM 70.3 Rapperswil -Jona in 2022. He finished in 6th place at last year’s IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship and followed that up with a win at Challenge Peguera Mallorca and Challenge Barcelona.

Earlier this year he came fourth at the T100 in Miami before a stellar performance saw him break the tape to win the Singapore T100 which changed the game for the young athlete and catapulted him into the triathlon spotlight globally.

Youri shares insight into his life as a professional athlete, the importance of surrounding yourself with people who have the same vision and drive for you as you have for yourself, and also what his plans and aspirations are not only to the end of 2024, but beyond the next few months.

A wise mind on young shoulders, Youri is excited about his future in the sport and is committed to being not only the best athlete he can be, but also the best triathlete in the world, whilst also hoping that his sporting endeavours will inspire future generations of young athletes at home and abroad.

With a special connection to Ireland, through his girlfriend, former professional cyclist Imogen Cotter, Youri loves coming to Ireland and indeed loves the game of hurling, especially when Clare win.

Irish Professional cyclist Fiona Mangan from Limerick has been blazing a trail on two wheels since switching her focus to cycling in 2020.  The Biomedical Engineer was recently crowned both the 2024 Cycling Ireland Time Trial and Road Race Champion in front of a home crowd in Limerick in June of this year, adding to her already impressive CV of cycling results.

A successful gaelic footballer from a young age, she took up triathlon during her college years when she went to Atlanta on a one year student exchange. It wasn’t until the pandemic struck that a real passion for cycling was ignited and from there she has excelled in the sport at home and abroad. From National Road Series winner in 2021 to becoming the first Irish woman to complete one of cycling’s Grand Tours – La Vuelta Femenina in 2023, Fiona has truly embraced life as a professional cyclist.

Using Girona as her base she travels and races with her team Cynisca Cycling and when the opportunity arises and time permits she loves to come back home to Limerick to spend time with her family and friends. Still relatively new to professional cycling Fiona continues to go from strength to strength and has her sights firmly set on success in the sport, and with her French heritage it is no surprise that the Tour De France is on her bucket list!

Last weekend a team of four riders from Galway Bay Cycling Club were crowned this year’s Mondello24 Cycle four person team Champions securing a new course record in the process. The team comprising of; Cathal Dillane, Ronan Burke, Liam Kilkenny and Kirill Korliakov embarked on their 24 hour cycle on the International Racing track in Kildare on Saturday at 12 midday.  A team with a diverse mix of cycling experience across a variety of disciplines, they had no experience of endurance racing, but that was all about to change.

Cathal is the most experienced road cyclist of the four, cycling for over three decades with multiple race and stage wins under his belt and a Man of the Rás, this was his first time experimenting with an event of this nature. Ronan, an avid competitive road racer in recent years and Rás rider last year, had never ventured into the world of endurance cycling. Liam, a former competitive swimmer and Kirill are both fans and participants of multiple disciplines of cycling, however they were also completely new to this format of team and endurance racing which was both exciting and daunting in equal measures.

Embracing the unknown of the 24 hour challenge, the team cycled themselves into the history books of the Mondello24 Cycle event with a performance to be extremely proud of.  Managed by two time Solo Champion at Mondello24, Karen Cassidy, the team were in safe hands as she expertly steered them successfully to the finish line on Sunday midday and to a new course record. Completing 260 laps of the 3.5km track to finish with 902.2 km on the clock was a massive achievement.

Whilst their endurance racing experience going into the event might have been lacking, their passion, determination and willingness to give full commitment across the 24 hours, to support, respect and learn from each other was in abundance, as was the desire to succeed, to give as much as they each individually could to the team, supporting each other on and off the track, epitomising the “all for one and one for all” spirit throughout the event.

If you thought the challenge of Mondello24 was a step too far outside of your comfort zone to consider for yourself, then this chat will most definitely change your mind and give you plenty of food for thought, of what might just be possible when you gather a team of like-minded people with the same goal willing to go the distance collectively and individually.

Photo Credits: Mondello24

Greg O’ Shea is a proud Olympian, IRONMAN and Limerick man who spent a few short days in the Love Island Villa in 2019  and was catapulted to fame when he was crowned the winner of the hugely popular reality show with his love interest at the time Amber Gill. Shying away from the spotlight, breaking the unwritten rules of engagement post his Love Island win, Greg headed for home in Ireland to pursue a lifelong sporting dream of becoming an Olympian. With his focus firmly on achieving his boyhood dream, his drive, focus and determination saw him and his team mates achieve success as Ireland’s Rugby Sevens team at Tokyo 2020.

Retiring from professional sport, Greg started to dip his toes into the exciting world of endurance sport, from cycling a stage of the Tour de France, to completing a UTMB race, he completed IRONMAN Barcelona as his first ever triathlon last October and in April of this year he completed his first IRONMAN 70.3 and only his second triathlon at IRONMAN 70.3 Valencia.  It is fair to say that the bug for endurance racing has firmly been caught, his passion for chasing goals, fitness related in particular and for inspiring people to follow their own fitness journey has seen him set up his Bettr App designed to improve the mental and physical health of its users.

Whilst all might seem perfect from the outside looking in at the life that Greg has carved for himself, as an athlete, presenter and recognised name at home and beyond, a darkness descended on him not so long ago where his mental health was significantly affected, thankfully Greg sought the help and professional guidance needed to find his way through a very difficult time to come out the other side in a much better place.  Greg now uses sport and exercise as one of his five pillars to keep him on track with his mental health.

This is a great chat with Greg who has worked hard to get where he is today, his perseverance, determination and focus have paid dividends personally and professionally, the future is bright and the world his oyster as he pursues his passions in sport, love and life!

Triathlete Annie Brooks from the UK was diagnosed with epilepsy in 2012, in 2014 she completed her first triathlon and in October 2023 conquered the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona crossing the finish line like a boss with the biggest smile on her face.

Annie’s journey in sport and in life is one of resilience, determination and courage, her positivity and passion for life and triathlon spills over through her bubbly personality despite the challenges and obstacles her health can put in her way.

With stress and fatigue a key factor in triggering an epileptic fit it is a wonder she is able to get to the start line of a race in once piece, fit and ready to tackle the swim, bike and run adventure that lies ahead, never mind get herself to the finish line of the most iconic IRONMAN race in the world in Kona.

This really is an inspiring chat with Annie, who shares a snippet of her life, living and thriving with a hidden disability, one that when it strikes, and it can strike at any time, can be so debilitating, frustrating and cause havoc to her daily living, never mind her training for triathlon which she simply does for fun and because she loves it.

It was my sister Michelle who asked me to get Annie as a guest on the podcast after Kona, she herself inspired and in awe of Annie’s ability to live her life to the full despite her epilepsy. For those of you who don’t know, Michelle has had epilepsy since her early teens and coupled with her cerebral palsy and the nature of her epilepsy can struggle to live life to the full.  For Michelle and I think for many of us, Annie offers a beacon of hope into what is possible if you can find the adaptations to enable you to thrive despite your own individual challenges and when you find the sport or activity that ignites such a passion in you, it can help you to pursue a life brimming with fun and adventure.

If you enjoy this episode and want to follow Annie’s upcoming adventures go to her website www.talesofanniebean.com you can also follow her on Instagram @itsanniebean