IT’S NOT UNCOMMON to read about an athlete’s bravery or commitment. It’s one of those clichés that just pops up in one sports article after the next.
Often when you read it, your mind quickly moves on to the next sentence or the one after that. Reading is something most of us take for granted. Seeing is something most of us take for granted.
Imagine if you didn’t have that luxury. Imagine instead if you were told as a three-year-old you had Congenital Glaucoma, a condition that left you virtually blind in your left eye and with no peripheral vision in your right.
Imagine if you needed 28 operations on the back of that news. Imagine a five-year-old you being told you were unable to live the life of a normal kid. Riding a bike? No, sorry.
Learn to swim? Sorry.
Play competitive sport? Again, sorry – it’s not for you.
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Imagine hearing all that and then picture the person who not only swims, who not only cycles but who became the youngest para-competitor in last month’s World Triathlon final in Abu Dhabi.
Gunning with his running guide at the world championships.
Oliver Gunning is one of Ireland’s most impressive athletes. Still just 17, he’s already ranked 17th in the world, a competitor in the para category, or the Paratriathlon Visually Impaired Class B3 (PTVI B3) to give it its full title.
Irrespective of titles, he’s already a proven winner.
Advised not to ride a bike he did so from a young age, wearing a full-face helmet for protection. The thrill of guided running, of swimming through the water, he mastered the three disciplines in no time.
“For me, Primary school was tough, team sports, no real opportunity to join in fairly,” says Gunning. “When I found triathlon, it was amazing but there is still a lack of support and recognition for paratriathlon, and I think para sport in general should have the same exposure as other sports get.”
He deserves it. Aside from overcoming medical expectations, Gunning has mastered Triathlon’s three disciplines.
High performance called, and for three years now, he has engaged in a rigorous training programme with Triathlon Ireland.
At this year’s European Triathlon Championships, he finished 12th, backing up that impressive international debut with an eleventh place finish in Alhandra, before finishing thirteenth at the World Triathlon Championship Final in Abu Dhabi.
Ambition comes at a price. Gunning’s aim is to get to Paris in 2024 and to next year’s Commonwealth Games. He gets support from Sport Northern Ireland, the Mary Peters Trust and sponsors.
And it’s needed. Right now Gunning races on a 10-year-old tandem bike, one that has had three previous owners, and is built for someone seven inches smaller.
“As a result I’m unable to maximise my position and output on the bike,” he says.
He knows with better equipment and with the benefit of experience, his 35th world ranking will get better. Paris 2024 is not just a realistic goal, it seems inevitable he’ll get there.
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Twenty-eight operations later, Oliver is Gunning for Paralympic glory
IT’S NOT UNCOMMON to read about an athlete’s bravery or commitment. It’s one of those clichés that just pops up in one sports article after the next.
Often when you read it, your mind quickly moves on to the next sentence or the one after that. Reading is something most of us take for granted. Seeing is something most of us take for granted.
Imagine if you didn’t have that luxury. Imagine instead if you were told as a three-year-old you had Congenital Glaucoma, a condition that left you virtually blind in your left eye and with no peripheral vision in your right.
Imagine if you needed 28 operations on the back of that news. Imagine a five-year-old you being told you were unable to live the life of a normal kid. Riding a bike? No, sorry.
Learn to swim? Sorry.
Play competitive sport? Again, sorry – it’s not for you.
Imagine hearing all that and then picture the person who not only swims, who not only cycles but who became the youngest para-competitor in last month’s World Triathlon final in Abu Dhabi.
Oliver Gunning is one of Ireland’s most impressive athletes. Still just 17, he’s already ranked 17th in the world, a competitor in the para category, or the Paratriathlon Visually Impaired Class B3 (PTVI B3) to give it its full title.
Irrespective of titles, he’s already a proven winner.
Advised not to ride a bike he did so from a young age, wearing a full-face helmet for protection. The thrill of guided running, of swimming through the water, he mastered the three disciplines in no time.
“For me, Primary school was tough, team sports, no real opportunity to join in fairly,” says Gunning. “When I found triathlon, it was amazing but there is still a lack of support and recognition for paratriathlon, and I think para sport in general should have the same exposure as other sports get.”
He deserves it. Aside from overcoming medical expectations, Gunning has mastered Triathlon’s three disciplines.
High performance called, and for three years now, he has engaged in a rigorous training programme with Triathlon Ireland.
At this year’s European Triathlon Championships, he finished 12th, backing up that impressive international debut with an eleventh place finish in Alhandra, before finishing thirteenth at the World Triathlon Championship Final in Abu Dhabi.
Ambition comes at a price. Gunning’s aim is to get to Paris in 2024 and to next year’s Commonwealth Games. He gets support from Sport Northern Ireland, the Mary Peters Trust and sponsors.
And it’s needed. Right now Gunning races on a 10-year-old tandem bike, one that has had three previous owners, and is built for someone seven inches smaller.
“As a result I’m unable to maximise my position and output on the bike,” he says.
He knows with better equipment and with the benefit of experience, his 35th world ranking will get better. Paris 2024 is not just a realistic goal, it seems inevitable he’ll get there.
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Oliver Gunning