Helen Murray is the voice behind the hugely popular podcast Inside Tri Show , she has been involved in media for many years fulfilling her goal of working for the BBC covering both the London and Rio Olympics and The Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Gold Coast. She has been podcasting since 2014, going solo on her own weekly show since 2019, which has been a huge hit with her listeners across the globe.

Athlete, adventurer and all round awesome human, Helen has a special way of interacting with and interviewing people to get the best stories and most out them for her show.  It’s no surprise that away from her love of media and meeting people she has carved a career for herself that she loves as a Cancer Rehabilitation Specialist with Move Charity supporting young people who are going through a cancer journey to get back to sport and exercise.

Helen has been involved in triathlon since 2011 which has seen her take on lots of races and challenges including IRONMAN Austria and IRONMAN Wales.  Her most recent adventure saw her complete the Pan Celtic Race earlier this year.  This episode was recorded in the weeks prior to IRONMAN Wales which Helen was due to participate in last month, but unfortunately her plans got side lined through appendicitis in the days leading up to the race. She does however have big plans for 2024 across triathlon, adventure and her podcast which she talks about on the show.

This is a lovely chat with Helen who simply loves sport and loves her job! Take a listen and be uplifted, inspired and energised by her outlook on life and her tenacity and commitment to achieving her goals whether personal or professional.

Anna Grealish is the Women in Sport and Youth Programme Lead with Triathlon Ireland, she has been involved in the sport of triathlon for many years, initially as an athlete and for the past nine years as an integral staff member of the Governing Body in Ireland. Returning to racing last year following the birth of her youngest child she shares lots of insight into her role within Triathlon Ireland and some of the many projects she has been involved with.

Coach, coach developer and a driver of change, she has worked in the area of triathlon development with clubs, schools, juniors, age group athletes and coaches to develop and grow the sport of triathlon in Ireland. Anna has been central to the development of the Tri Heroes and Tri Captains programmes for young athletes.  With a particular passion for women in sport she leads the women in sport programme for Triathlon Ireland and was elected to the Europe Triathlon Development Committee three years ago, subsequently leading on a number of European projects.

As an athlete Anna enjoyed a wealth of success; National Duathlon Champion in 2011, she was the 2013 winner of Hell of the West and winner of the Triathlon Ireland National Series in the same year.  Racing at home and abroad she clocked up an impressive number of podium finishes across a variety of duathlon and triathlon races over the years, her most recent podium finish was at Lough Cutra Castle Triathlon Sprint Race in May of this year.

Away from triathlon, Anna and her husband Máirtín have a busy household with three children, Saoirse, Jude and Annie all under 8 years of age.  Sadly in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic, Anna endured profound personal losses and grief, losing her mum to cancer and shortly after baby Joseph was unexpectedly stillborn at 38 weeks, both devastating losses for Anna, Máirtín and their extended families. Anna courageously shares her story with us on how she coped with the compounded trauma following the death of her mum and her baby, turning to sport and physical activity as a means of healing and dealing with the grief she experienced.

This episode may be triggering for some listeners, but Anna’s resilience and story is very powerful and may be of help to others.  

Olympian David Gillick is the Irish 400m indoor and outdoor record holder and two time 400m European Champion who has dedicated a huge portion of his life to his sport on the running track, representing club and country on the world stage.

His sporting career as an elite athlete saw him make history when he won Ireland’s first sprint Gold Medal in 76 years at the 2005 European Indoor Championships.  He retained that title in 2007 and in 2008 he fulfilled his dream of becoming an Olympian. The following year he competed at the Berlin World Championships finishing 6th in the 400m final, fulfilling another significant goal he had set himself in sport. His successful athletics career was speckled with some disappointment and injury along the way and, when you consider the minute margins between winning a race and not winning over 400m you can only imagine the intense pressure cooker within which athletes at this level perform.

Wrapping up his career as an elite athlete in 2013, David moved from the bubble of his life as a full time athlete with all the structure, routine and training that his life involved, into the ‘real world’ and struggled to come to terms with his life beyond sport. He has openly shared his struggles with his mental health and the importance of getting back to sport for him and back to running, to what he really loves.  This October he will take on his second marathon at the Irish Life Dublin City Marathon.

Winner of Celebrity Masterchef and one of three finalists in RTE’s Ultimate Hell Week, the father of three is a two time best selling author who is passionate about sport, food, promoting a healthy body and mind and has become a vocal advocate on mental health.

This chat with David is both insightful and enjoyable as he provides a glimpse into his life in the world of sports and beyond.

Shane Williams is a household name in sport worldwide, the former Welsh International rugby player is regarded as one of the greatest wingers and players of all time. With 87 caps for his country and multiple British and Irish Lions tour appearances it is no wonder he is a World Rugby Hall of Fame Inductee and a winner of the World Rugby Player of the Year award. Embedded in sport for most of his life, when he retired from professional rugby in 2015 his love and passion for sport continued but took him in a very different direction.

Taking part in his first marathon in 2015, it wasn’t long before the Welshman became captivated with endurance sport, in particular triathlon and more specifically with IRONMAN. Somewhat cajoled into taking on his first ever IRONMAN, he didn’t have far to travel to take on his first full distance race at IRONMAN Wales in Tenby, which he has gone on to complete five times, first hearing the words Shane Williams You are an IRONMAN, in 2015.

It may come as a surprise to hear that on an IRONMAN Wales race morning he is more nervous than lining up to play for Wales in the Principality Stadium. But, the goosebumps and passion he feels as he hears the Welsh National Anthem resound on North Beach in Tenby is one that fills him full of the same pride, excitement and emotion he had as a professional rugby player and, when the gun goes he is more than ready, willing and able to race.

A high achiever in sport and competitive by nature, he is as passionate today about triathlon as he was for rugby during his playing days.  Always looking to get the best out of himself and his performance in sport, life and in business, triathlon has opened up a whole new world for Shane Williams, and in his own words says ’I’m hooked, it makes me feel so good’.

British triathlete Ben Goodfellow took up triathlon in 2017, since then he has gone from strength to strength in the sport. In 2022 he had an incredible year of success, winning IRONMAN 70.3 Staffordshire outright, he was the overall age group winner at IRONMAN 70.3 Swansea before being crowned the Mens 25-29 Age Group World Champion at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Utah last October.

Stepping up to full distance racing at IRONMAN UK in Bolton last year he finished in 4th place on debut at the distance. This year he moves from age group athlete into the professional ranks aiming to debut as a professional athlete at IRONMAN 70.3 Staffordshire in June.  He will continue to work fulltime as an engineer for the foreseeable future whilst he also pursues his passion for sport.

Prior to racing across the IRONMAN events in the UK last year, Ben had racked up a series of super results in recent years.  In 2021 he was the British Standard Distance Duathlon Champion, Helvellyn Triathlon Winner and Welsh Middle Distance Champion, his success coming on the back of his commitment and dedication to being the best athlete he can possibly be.

Although he was sporty as a child, as he moved through his teens he left sport behind in favour of time in the virtual world and in his own words became  addicted to gaming.  Enjoying and embracing his gaming a little too much, it was in his final year of university that he ditched the virtual world for reality and has risen steadily in the sport of triathlon.

Coached by Nathan Forde as part of Team NFT, Ben’s star continues to rise and I expect we will see a lot more success as Ben navigates through the world of professional sport.  Watch this space!

British Professional triathlete Indie Lee recently kickstarted her 2023 season with a podium finish at IRONMAN 70.3 Lanzarote finishing in second place, securing her slot for the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Lahti, Finland later this year.

No stranger to podiums or winning races, Indie is a three time IRONMAN 70.3 Champion, taking the win in Weymouth in her first outing at middle distance racing in 2018, she went on to defend her title in 2019 after breaking the tape at IRONMAN 70.3 Finland earlier in the season. Since switching her focus from sprint and olympic distance racing to middle distance racing she has found another gear that has seen her continue to excel as a professional triathlete. Racing her first IRONMAN in Israel last year she finished in sixth place which considering her short turn around after the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Utah in October was an even more impressive result than at first glance.

Indie has been immersed in sport from a young age with running most definitely on her radar, her early success in sport saw her move to the US on a college scholarship to pursue her passion for sport. It is triathlon that she has now found as her sport of choice, having raced successfully as an age group and elite athlete, the 2016 European Triathlon Champion has gone from strength to strength as she has journeyed through the sport of triathlon as a professional athlete.

This is a super chat with Indie who shares great insight into her career, her struggle at times with her own self belief and confidence all whilst embracing a career that she simply loves. Indie has an exciting future in sport ahead of her, watch this space as she continues to rise to achieve her goals in life and sport.

Paddy McLaughlin of Podiumfit.ie has embraced a life in triathlon and sport as both his profession and his passion. Working in sport and fitness for over 20 years with a variety of qualifications, he is a Level 3 Coach, a physical therapist, Bikefit® and Gebiomized qualified Bike fitter and an athlete who has tackled some of the toughest triathlon races in the world.

Not shy of taking on a challenging race he has completed multiple extreme events including the CELTMAN on three occasions,  he finished with a black jersey in the Norseman and has also taken part in The Brutal Xtreme Triathlons.

Paddy has completed over 20 full distance triathlons including multiple IRONMAN events, was the winner of the Irish Double IRONMAN in 2013 and as well as completing four marathons in four days around the Inishowen Peninsula in Donegal, he took part in the first edition of The Race Around Ireland in 2009.

Sport has been in his life from a young age from karate, kickboxing and rugby to triathlon, he is passionate about sport not only as an athlete himself but in supporting his coached athletes achieve their goals and potential, it is no surprise that he was Triathlon Ireland Coach of the Year in 2015.

Shying away from the spotlight generally, he is not afraid of pushing himself outside of his comfort zone when it comes to participating in sport himself or setting lofty goals and challenges that push him physically and mentally all the way to the finish line.

Tricia Strelioff from Canada has spent the last 20 years in Ireland embracing a life in sport.  A chartered physiotherapist working out of her practice, Maple Motion Chartered Physiotherapy in Galway, she has embraced many adventures over the years through her love of cycling and triathlon.

With her appetite for a challenge and travel, she took up triathlon just before she turned 40 and has raced at five IRONMAN events and a multitude of middle distance races since then. She makes a conscious effort to rarely return to the same place for a race, always seeking new locations to explore and enjoy. She recently raced at IRONMAN 70.3 Oman, finishing third in her age group stamping her ticket to race at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Finland in August of this year.

Triathlon and indeed cycling is a huge part of her life, the friends she has amassed over the years through sport becoming her tribe and a very important ingredient in her success in sport and beyond.  With her vibrant, energetic personality and can-do attitude you cannot but be motivated to keep moving forward, chasing and achieving goals when in Tricia’s company.

This is a great episode of the podcast, slightly different to many of our other episodes but the perfect guest choice to celebrate International Women’s Day

Irish Olympian and World Champion Gymnast Rhys McClenaghan has been blazing a trail in gymnastics since first taking up the sport as a young boy, and despite the lure of swimming and football, he knew from an early age that gymnastics was the sport that would capture his heart and his mind.

He has had huge success in the sport and his star continues to rise as he performs intricate, technical and fast paced routines on the pommel horse.  With a trophy cabinet bursting at the seams he was Ireland’s first gymnast to win medals at European and World level and to reach an Olympic final.

Some of his key achievements include; becoming World Champion on the pommel horse and winning a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games last year.  In 2021 he competed in his first Olympic Games in Tokyo finishing seventh in the final. Prior to that Rhys has won bronze in the World Championships in Germany and won Gold at the World Cup in Slovenia in 2019. In 2018 he became European Champion and Commonwealth Champion.  In 2016 as a junior gymnast he won the first European Championship medal in history for Ireland, taking silver on the pommel horse at the Junior European Gymnastics Championship.

Based in Dublin, Rhys along with his coach Luke Carson, have one golden goal in mind over the coming months, that is winning gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics.  At 24 years old Rhys is determined, committed and dedicated to his craft, his love of gymnastics and passion for success driving him to strive every single day to be the best gymnast he can possibly be.