Why we keep coming back: Stories from lives in sport
Sport Ireland’s Participation Plan for 2025-2027 is a vital part of our mission of helping people unlock the gateway to lifelong participation in sport and physical activity.
But what does a life in sport actually look like?
We asked people of all ages - from children starting out on their sporting journey to adults who have made sport a lifelong companion - to share what keeps them coming back.
What emerged is an honest, personal, and at times surprising picture of why sport matters: not just for fitness or medals, but for friendship, confidence, identity, and joy. These are their stories, in their own words.
Lucy – 7 – Swimming
I started gymnastics when I was 18 months old. I remember running around the floor and getting stickers at the end of the class. Now I'm almost eight, and I swim, do Irish dancing, ballet, football, and gymnastics - each once a week. I also do other activities, but they're not sport.
One of my earliest sporting memories is from swimming lessons, when my friend kept splashing me in the face at the end of every stroke. I remember it really well.
Football? My daddy made me start it. I didn't want to do it when I was starting, but now I love it. Irish dancing? I really didn't want to go, but now it's actually my favourite. I was so nervous when I started swimming, but now I love it.
What keeps me going? Sometimes when you do it you get like medals and certificates. And sometimes when I'm finished my gymnastics, I get stickers. But really you do it to meet new friends and meet new people. You do it to have fun.
What has sport given me? It's told me I don't want to be scared when I start another activity. I don't want to be scared ever again - because I really love it, as long as I start it.
Fionn – 12 – Brazilian Jiu-jitsu
My sport is Brazilian jiu-jitsu – I go to classes three times a week.
When I was younger it was really hard for me to pick a sport because I never really liked any. I'd go to one and then I would not want to do it anymore.
But when I started doing jiu-jitsu I thought that I will be doing this for a long time, or at least until I get to red belt. I'm a grey belt now.
I don’t want to do it to win medals or anything, because I don't like competing, but I just like to do it without a lot of pressure.
It just makes me feel calm. At some other sports I tried the coaches were all like shouting and stuff, but at my jiu-jitsu they just try help you to do it right and to be calm. I really like it.
Jiu-jitsu helps you get stronger and it also helps people with different abilities, like autism. If you’re feeling angry and you go to jiu-jitsu, it really kind of helps you calm down.
I’ve been doing jiu-jitsu for about two years. I have three coaches – Hugo, Mary and Larissa.
At jiu-jitsu we work really hard, but I also like to chat to my friends. I just really enjoy it.
Martin – 19 – Kickboxing
Sport has always been part of my life, although the way I’ve been involved has changed over time. I grew up in Limerick, where hurling was everywhere, so it was the first sport I picked up. I was around six when I started, like most kids at home.
My earliest memories are really about being part of a team. I remember the buzz of training, the friendships, and the excitement of match days. Winning a cup when I was eight or nine is something that still stands out. It wasn’t just the result — it was the feeling of everyone celebrating together.
As I got older, I tried different sports. I spent a few years boxing, but eventually I wanted something different and moved into kickboxing. That suited me much better. I trained regularly and later competed internationally, which was a huge part of my life for a number of years. I went on to become a three-time junior world champion, which remains a source of pride.
One of my strongest memories is from the 2022 World Championships in Wales. The atmosphere, the national teams, and the sense of occasion made it unforgettable. Experiences like that stay with you.
Being from the Traveller community, sport has meant something more to me as well. It was a place where you were judged on effort and ability rather than background. That mattered.
While I no longer compete, sport is still central to my life. I continue to train, and I now coach and officiate internationally. It keeps me focused, helps clear my head, and has given me lasting friendships and opportunities.
Sowmia – 28 – Hiking
At the moment, my main forms of physical activity are personal exercise, cycling, and hiking.
Hiking is what I enjoy the most, though it’s a bit weather dependent, which means I don’t get to do it as often as I would like.
I first got into hiking after moving to Ireland as a student. At the time, there was not a lot I could do without spending too much money so it was ideal. As students we just started exploring Dublin – looking for walks that were good, but not too challenging. It started off as an explorative exercise, but eventually, I just found myself really enjoying it.
Over time, hiking became a regular part of my life, and now my partner and I are really interested in it. And last year, we ended up doing half of the Wicklow Way.
My favourite route is probably Crone Wood to Roundwood in Wicklow. At one point you just have hills all around you, but at the highest point of the trail you’re able to see the sea as well and the Great Sugarloaf. It’s one of the most beautiful hikes that I've been on.
My relationship with physical activity has definitely changed over time. I used to play tennis competitively as a child, but I later dropped out, because I developed a very negative relationship with the sport. There were some good moments, but I got to a point where I couldn't enjoy it anymore. There was a long gap before I got back into sport.
That transition, I think, can be really challenging, particularly when you don't have that support to really change your identity from a competitive athlete. When you choose to drop out, you're suddenly a nobody.
You have to recreate your identity. Break out of that initial identity that you had as a tennis player or as an athlete and then form into another person who's now active.
Sport and physical activity have given me a lot of confidence, and I think it has really shaped me and continues to do so. You feel confident when you feel good at something, and being active plays a big role in that for me.
When I’m exercising regularly, I feel more efficient, more creative, and more organised in my thinking. I also find that I communicate better and generally feel more capable. I attribute a lot of this to staying active. There’s something about being physically agile and moving regularly that carries over into my mental state. When I’m active, I just feel more balanced.
Joanne - 49 - Triathlon
Over a drink one New Year’s Eve, a friend and I decided we wanted a challenge. Looking back, picking triathlon was so random – we had no idea what was ahead of us, but that’s what made it fun. At our first race, I had a panic attack in the water and my friend had her tri suit on backwards – how we survived I don’t know but we loved it.
My friend didn’t stick with it, but I was hooked. I joined a triathlon club, and ten years later I’m still at it. I volunteered as the Women’s Lead for 3 years, and in 2023 I ran a Women’s Try a Tri programme resulting in 10 women completing a triathlon in Athy, where it all began for me. Seeing them finish with huge smiles felt like a full-circle moment - capturing the same 'give it a go' spirit that started it all for me.
Growing up, I wasn’t the kid on the pitch playing team sports. I’m one of three girls and we spent our time trying out many activities including drama, Irish dancing, badminton or just tormenting each other.
Sport was always in the background - the joke in our house is that Dad picked up a new hobby for every child born: running for the first, golf for the second, and squash for the third. My earliest sporting memory is of running with my mum’s running group when we’d run the local roads at night. I can still remember that carefree feeling of freedom and enjoyment.
These days, triathlon is my main sport, but it has led me into other events too, from marathons to open sea swim races. I’m active most days whether it’s club swims, S&C sessions, running or cycling on my own or with friends. I genuinely love the structure (those who know me know I love a good plan!!).
I plan my training and races well in advance, often shaping my life plans and holidays around them. I’m not in it to win it - although I once finished 2nd in my Age Group and I’ve never been prouder! For me, it’s more about personal progress and having the space to switch off and clear my head.
It has become much more than a sport for me, it’s brought new friendships and even influenced my career path when I left financial services for the sports sector. It’s definitely not what I expected to happen when that conversation kicked off on that New Year’s Eve, and I wouldn’t change it for anything.
Paddy – 79 – Cycling
Cycling’s my main sport. I do a bit of walking now as well. I probably go out on the bike about three times a week.
When I was 11 I got a job, a part-time summer job as a messenger boy in Pigeons grocery store in Sundrive Road in Crumlin. That started me cycling.
Then, when I was about 16, I started racing. I’d have fond memories of it. I was junior champion in cycling in 1964. And then I was a full international at 17, believe it or not.
It's completely different now, to where people are training and all that. I was sent on a plane over to England to compete in the Harp Lager Grand Prix when I was 17, but I also competed as a junior international in Germany.
All my life sport has given me a real feel-good factor. And you make great friends at it as well. I made friends years ago that I still have years later.
I’d say my relationship with sport has got better over time because I understand it more now. I’m not as competitive now, but I was racing in the vets up until about three years ago.
I did stop for a while, when I got married, but when I got divorced I started back up again.
Sport has given me a way of life, a good way of life. I don't drink and I don't smoke and sport keeps you active. It keeps me very active.
What’s kept me involved all this time I suppose is that the comradeship and the meeting of people.
