Outsider.ie Olly O'Neill Most Inspiring Person 2024 Nominees sponsored by Craghoppers - Outsider Awards

Uplifting, unforgettable, and utterly inspiring! We asked for nominations of individuals whose passion and perseverance have motivated others to embrace the great outdoors—and the stories we received left us in awe. Welcome to the Most Inspiring Person 2024 sponsored by Craghoppers category in memory of Olly O’Neill.

Olly O’Neill was a close friend and our graphic designer at Outsider.ie, an inspiring and humble guy who loved to snowboard and give anything a go in the outdoor – and always with a smile on his face and a cheeky joke.

You’re Invited!

If you’re a nominee, consider this your official invitation to the Outsider Awards 2024, taking place on the evening of Thursday, 27 February 2025, at the iconic Sugar Club, Dublin.

We are beyond thrilled to announce the support of our incredible sponsors, who are helping us celebrate all the brilliance of the Irish adventure scene. With their backing, it’s shaping up to be an unforgettable night!

A special thank you to our title sponsor, Sport Ireland, as well as our supporting sponsors: Craghoppers, Sustainable Tourism Network, Fáilte Ireland, and Salewa.

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We were blown away by the quality and quantity of the nominations we received this year. So, prepare to be inspired by the incredible nominees who have been selected for the Most Inspiring Person 2024 in memory of Olly O’Neill and sponsored by Craghoppers.

Ger Copeland

Ger Copeland is a talented runner with over 300 marathons to his name. But his performance at the 2024 Dublin Marathon was his most incredible yet – as he raced despite suffering three brain haemorrhages and a stroke earlier this year, following a skiing accident.

Ger (46) – from Howth in County Dublin – was last nominated for an Outsider award 10 years ago when he ran 10 marathons in five days. And his inspirational story of triumph over adversity has seen him nominated again.

When a skiing accident left him with an artery dissection, Ger had to learn to eat, swallow and walk again. But he worked tirelessly to regain his mobility and, before long, his resilience and sheer determination saw him resume his beloved running again.

He was given the Lord Mayor’s Medal at the Dublin Marathon for the strength and tenacity he’s shown during his rehab but also for his work coaching and mentoring fellow runners of all ages and abilities at the Dublin Bay Running Club, which he founded.

“The outpouring of support for Ger’s nomination reflects the profound impact he has had on the running community, serving as an inspiration and source of encouragement to many,” said the Lord Mayor of Dublin, James Geoghegan.

Despite what he’s been through this year, Ger still managed to finish in the top 6% of the race, recording a time of 3:06, which most regular runners would be extremely proud of.

Ralph Mills

In tribute to his “wonderful” daughter Ella, Ralph Mills took on the incredibly tough physical challenge of running a marathon in a swimming pool this year, to raise money for the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust (KBRT).

Ralph (55) – who lives in Clontarf, Dublin – wanted to honour his daughter Ella, who died in a kayaking accident in the US, in a remarkable way. “She was one of the most wonderful people I’d had the privilege to know, so if something was being done in her name, it had to be spectacular.”

The idea of running in water also felt fitting to him. “Making forward progress against the resistance of water is almost an allegory for the struggle of coping with grief,” he says, adding that the extreme nature of the event also gave him focus at a time when he needed it most. “It became my Everest. And in practical terms, a never-before-attempted World Record is a stronger hook for a fundraising effort than, say, a gentle hike.”

Ralph trained for eight months, covering over 450km in the pool, so he was confident he’d have the stamina to see it through, but after nine hours his knee swelled up like a rugby ball which his physio had to re-strap every two hours. “Adrenaline is a fabulous medicine for pain,” he says, while he found the love and support of his army of volunteers life-affirming.

Why did he want to raise funds for KBRT? “Over the last decade, they have helped over 1,600 people negotiate the harrowing process of bringing their loved ones’ bodies back to Ireland from abroad after a tragic death. We didn’t need to avail of their services to bring Ella home, but the difficulties we encountered in doing so left us with a deep appreciation for the work they do.”

Anaïs O’Donovan

Anaïs O’Donovan used her kayaking skills and all-round enthusiasm for paddle sports to raise over 15,000 euros for RNLI – an awesome haul, which included funds raised from a 24-hour kayak around Cork City.

Anaïs (34) – from near Skibbereen in County Cork – was ranked eighth in the world at the Canoe Freestyle World Championships in Nottingham in 2022, a sport she’d only recently taken up. A year later, she qualified to represent Ireland. However the sport is self-funded and she couldn’t afford to travel to compete so was forced to give up her spot to someone else, an experience she describes as heartbreaking.

But instead of moping around and feeling sorry for herself, she decided it would be a wonderful opportunity to give back to the community and brainstormed the idea of paddling for 24hrs for the RNLI. “Picking the charity was easy,” she says, “as if we ever get into difficulty on the water, the RNLI are the first people to help us out.”

Anaïs says the paddle, during which they circumnavigated Cork City twice, was an incredible experience. “I managed to rope 11 other paddlers to join in and it was definitely the hardest part of the fundraising, especially at 3am when we were so tired and cold, but it was also the most rewarding,” she says.

Anaïs and her friends also hosted free kayaking workshops, rescue skills development, and they ran a Rescue Olympics competition where five teams went head-to-head performing various rescue scenarios against each other. “Everyone was so competitive and involved, it made for a really fun, entertaining and wholesome day,” she says, of course while tying into the RNLI message of staying safe on the water.

Cathal Kelly

Cathal Kelly walked a gruelling 2,200km from Canterbury in England to Rome this summer raising over 70,000 euros for the Mayo Parkinson’s Association and the Children’s Health Foundation Crumlin (CHFC) – a mind-blowing figure from one individual.

Cathal (46) – from Swinford in County Mayo – walked the Camino Frances in Northern Spain over the course of 37 days in 2022 and really enjoyed the experience. A friend joked that he should do the Via Francigena, a pilgrim route from Canterbury to Rome next, which sounded ridiculous to Cathal at first, but it nonetheless planted a seed in his head.

He wanted to take a year out to step outside of his comfort zone and honour his two sisters, who had died as children in the late 1970s, and decided the Via Francigena would be a suitable challenge in their memory. It also meant he could raise funds for the CHFC who’d cared for his sisters at the time and the Mayo Parkinson’s Association, as his dad has suffered from the condition for the past 20 years. And he says: “I’d always wanted to visit Italy, and I thought what better way than to walk there!”

Cathal says one of the hardest parts of the walk was the enormity of it. “The distance was a very overwhelming feature,” he says, both while planning the walk and during the first month when the route stretched out a long way out in front of him.

He found the route through the Jura mountains and Alps the hardest physically, while the final third walking down through Italy was more of a spiritual experience. “You really felt you were nearing the finish line in Rome, and you could reflect on the journey that brought you here,” he says.

Jack Kavanagh

Jack Kavanagh is one of Ireland’s leading active disability advocates. In 2023, Jack, who is quadriplegic and has only 15% muscle function, hand-cycled an amazing 100km in a day. Since then, he’s been motivating others by highlighting how resources such as Ireland’s excellent off-road greenways can get us all moving.

Jack (32) – from County Meath – was inspired to take on his hand-cycle challenge after reading about the Japanese concept of ‘misogi’. “It talks about taking on a physical challenge as a means of spiritual purification and has been adopted by people who are into adventure such as myself,” he says. “One of the rules is that there should be a genuine 50/50 chance you won’t complete the challenge, and that’s how it was for me. I’d only ever done 54km a day, but it was a wonderful opportunity to spend a summer training and exploring the greenways, which are the perfect places to cycle in a safe way.”

Jack, who is a former windsurfing champion, says being active in the outdoors is very grounding and healing for him. “It helps me keep perspective on things,” he says.

He hopes he can encourage others to get out into nature and take their own steps to being active in a way that’s meaningful to them. “It’s medicine for the body, mind and soul,” he says. “The first step is always the hardest but then you start to build momentum and away you go.”

Brenda O’Keefe

Brenda is an incredibly passionate runner and human and she was nominated for this award by her brother Geoff, who says he loves her resilience, determination, and courage in the face of incurable cancer.

“She is the living example of stoicism – enduring pain and hardship without complaining,” he says. “She is also the kindest, funniest, and most caring person you could meet. I am in awe of her. She brings those who know and love her along on her wave of positivity. “

In June 2009, while in a local pub, Brenda (48) – from Cavan Town in County Cavan, who now lives in England – was struck by the happiness and sense of achievement she saw amongst runners, who were celebrating their completion of the Dublin Flora Mini Marathon. There and then, she decided to sign up for the following year’s evebt. In 2010, she ran her first mini-marathon event. In October of the same year, she ran her first full marathon and then six days later she ran the Frankfurt Marathon. From then on, she never looked back. She kicked a 60-a-day smoking habit and running became her new way of life.

When Brenda received her incurable cancer diagnosis, her first thought was about her life expectancy, but her second was whether she’d be able to run her marathon that weekend. But she vowed to keep running. She has chemo every Tuesday with her amazing partner Sean alongside her, but it is the weekends that she lives for, when she competes in a marathon, which now takes her eight hours to complete.

Running will not cure Brenda’s illness, but it will prolong her sense of self-worth, and it helps her to find joy in the world. She’s now completed 570 marathons and intends to carry on her adventures to reach 600 next year.

Frank Conroy

To Frank Conroy, age is no barrier to adventure and achievement. At 82, Frank remains an active member of the Irish Mountain Running Association (IMRA) taking part in multiple mountain running races per year as well as giving back to the community by volunteering regularly at races.

Frank (82), originally from Dublin, began his journey into mountain running with IMRA over five years ago. What started as a way to stay active after retirement has evolved into a lifelong commitment to embracing new challenges. From taking part in the Liffey Swim and the Dun Laoghaire Harbour Swim to completing triathlons and cycling events like the Sean Kelly Tour of Waterford, Francis’s dedication to pushing his limits has been nothing short of remarkable.

Following his retirement, Frank seized the opportunity to travel and spend time with his grandchildren, including trekking in the mountains of Slovenia. It was during these adventures that he encountered IMRA and discovered the rich diversity of challenges offered by Ireland’s mountain trails.

Frank is quick to credit his success to the incredible volunteers at IMRA, who ensure that every participant—regardless of age—has the chance to test themselves in all kinds of weather, and over all kinds of distances and terrains. “There’s no age that’s too old to challenge yourself,” Frank says. “You only live once, and of course, you only die once, so pushing yourself a bit is never an age problem.”

Frank’s advice to others, particularly retirees, is simple: take advantage of your time and don’t be afraid to challenge some of the younger runners. His energy and outlook have turned him into a beloved figure in Ireland’s mountain running community, proving that adventure truly has no age limit.

Jim Callery

James Callery marked his 90th birthday in a truly extraordinary way—by walking 165km to raise awareness and funds for immigrant support charities, ultimately raising over €160,000.

When James Callery (90) – born and raised in Cloonahee, Creeve, Elphin, Co. Roscommon – began planning his milestone birthday, he knew he didn’t want a traditional celebration. Instead of a lavish hotel gathering, he chose to dedicate his time and energy to a cause close to his heart: supporting immigrants as they build new lives in Ireland.

James embarked on his journey with a deep sense of purpose, inspired by both the struggles of present-day immigrants and the hardships faced by Irish emigrants during the Great Famine. His walk was more than just a physical challenge; it was a statement of solidarity and a call for greater compassion, integration, and understanding.

A historian at heart, James is also the founder of the National Famine Museum, an institution dedicated to ensuring that Ireland’s history of migration informs how we treat newcomers today. He believes that history should not sit lifeless in a museum but should be used to foster empathy and action.

For James, even small efforts can create waves of change. “Even drops can culminate to create ripples and oceans of change,” he says.

His advice for those looking to make a difference? “Welcome people, integrate them, and create a sanctuary for their transition to a new life.”