Youth of the Year supported by Sport Ireland Outdoors: Outsider Awards 2023

Energetic, world-class and simply incredible! We put the call out for you, our readers, to let us know about the most amazing youths (under 18) and their achievements from the Irish outdoor and adventure scene in 2023! While there are many impressive achievements by youths this year, people seem to be shy about nominating them. This category did not receive many nominations, however the calibre of these nominations are second to none. We are convinced that this is the most impressive year for the youth category ever! Below you’ll find a list of nominees with boggling achievements to their name. One winner will be picked from this list by our panel of judges and will be named Outsider Youth of the Year 2023 at our event on 21 Feb 2024 in the Sugar Club.

If you’re a nominee, consider yourself cordially invited to our annual awards ceremony on the evening of Wednesday 21 February 2024 in the Sugar Club, Dublin. We are thrilled skinny to announce that our fab sponsors are on board to help us celebrate all that is great and good about the Irish adventure scene, so it’s guaranteed to be a good party.

Our hugely generous title sponsor for the Outsider Awards 2023 is Sport Ireland Outdoors, our other supporting sponsors are Craghoppers, Leave No Trace, Salewa, Vagabond Tours, Sustainable Travel Ireland and Nuasan.

For everyone else, a limited number of tickets are on sale through the link below. Subscribe to our email newsletter on our homepage to hear more about the Outsider Awards 2023.

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We were bowled over by both the quality and quantity of the stories you sent us. So sit down, make yourself comfortable and read the spine-tingling and inspirational stories of these extraordinary people who are now officially on the long list of nominees for the #OutsiderAwards.

Jessika Robson, swimmer

When Jessika Robson (17) became the youngest person to swim the North Channel, she didn’t simply achieve a stunning feat – she also broke a World Record.

The Northern Irish teen, who lives in Annahilt, Co Down, braved repeated jellyfish stings and choppy tides to complete the 41km crossing from Donaghadee, County Down, to Portpatrick in Scotland, showing huge mental fortitude in the process.

To comply with the Irish Long Distance Swimming Association regulations, Jessika wasn’t even wearing a wetsuit, so the stings – which came courtesy of the notoriously painful lion’s mane jellyfish – covered her entire body. “Some even got down my swimsuit,” she says. “It hurt like hell, and it was hard to get my focus back but my support crew in the boat helped push me through.”

Jessika, who only started open-water swimming in lockdown, completed the swim in 11 hours 46 minutes, stopping for energy drinks and gels and snacks including chocolate buttons and tiny cubes of jam sandwich every 30 minutes. She also had her favourite music playing from a speaker on the boat to distract her from the cold and fatigue.

Eventually, she emerged from the fog to see Scotland and her finish line. “The feeling of finishing and standing on the beach was just insane,” she says, “It was so overwhelming, I was crying and laughing at the same time.”

Her tips for anyone wanting to take on a sporting challenge?

“Fully embrace the whole experience. The training is so much easier if you’re enjoying it.”

Orlaith Kelly, climber

Orlaith Kelly (15) – one of the country’s most exciting young climbers – added to her roster of impressive achievements this year by completing 100 climbs of Carrauntoohil, Ireland’s highest mountain.

Orlaith – from Beaufort, County Kerry – started climbing when she was just three years old when her dad set up a climbing wall in their shed with strategically-placed marshmallows to entice her up. She started hiking in Killarney on the smaller hills when she was about four or five years old and eventually worked her way up to climbing in the Reeks, Scotland, and many other ranges around Ireland.

Both Orlaith’s parents are mountain guides, who run Kerry Climbing. Orlaith first climbed Carrauntoohil when she was nine and has been assisting her dad on guided ascents for the last five years. “I always knew I would do it over 100 times but the fact [that my 100th climb came] in winter conditions, when it was just me and my dad made it feel unreal,” she says.

Orlaith garnered lots of media attention for her achievement, which she found surreal, but she was proud to hear she’d inspired lots of young children to start hiking. “That was really special,” she says. Her advice for young hikers? “Push yourself and you’ll be surprised at what you can achieve.

Last February, on the family’s annual winter trip to Scotland, Orlaith also climbed Buachaille Etive Mòr via Curved Ridge and Jacobs Ladder in Coire an t-Sneachda in the Cairngorms, two challenging winter routes. “I’d had my eye on them for a while, so it was great to tick them off,” says Orlaith.

Leah Hough, kayaker

Young Leah Hough (17) continued to impress in a kayak this year, with an amazing fourth-place finish at the Freestyle World Kayaking Championships in the USA.

Leah – who is from Navan in County Meath – only started kayaking four years ago, so her rise in the sport has been swift and she is now a member of the Irish freestyling team. She describes the freestyle side of the sport “as gymnastics in a kayak” and loves the adrenaline rush it gives her.

In 2022, she placed ninth in the Freestyle Kayaking World Championships in Nottingham in the UK, but she knew she had more to give, so decided to set herself some goals for this year’s event. “I worked hard with what I had here in Ireland, kayaking in so many spectacular places,” she says. A first place in the junior women’s category at the team trials in Limerick booked her spot on the plane to America and then the hard work really began.

“I trained in places like Lahinch beach, kayaking on sea waves nearly 10 foot high to improve my ability and to challenge myself,” she says, followed by a three-week camping trip to Canada, where she kayaked on big volume rivers for the first time.

Leah enjoyed the competition and camaraderie on the water at the World Champs – she found it bittersweet to come fourth and narrowly miss out on the podium – but is also extremely proud of her achievement. “Hard work and training pay off,” she says. “And if you love what you’re doing enough, most of the time it doesn’t even feel like hard work.”

Joshua Karbus, surfer

At just 14 years old, Joshua Karbus, from the Irish surfing capital Lahinch, County Clare, has solidified his reputation as an Irish surfing prodigy. With an impressive track record in numerous national and international competitions throughout 2023, Joshua’s dedication to the sport and awe-inspiring style on the waves serve as a powerful inspiration for surfers young and old.

In 2023 alone, Josh has added some incredible accomplishments to his surfing resume. Remarkable second-place and third-place finishes in the Rip Curl Grom Search in Morocco and Biarritz, a prestigious European contest for under-14s, kicked off his season. Continuing his success, he secured a second-place and first-place finish in the Rip Curl Grom Search Series in Zarauth, Spain, and Tenerife, Spain respectively, where, despite his age, he competed in the more competitive under-16 category. Just before Christmas, Joshua claimed his most impressive result of the season, earning the title of European Champion in the under-16 category in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

Not limited to the international stage, Joshua has also dominated the Irish surfing scene and has been Irish national champion three times. He won all of the Irish national competitions he took part in in 2023 but missed out on the overall title as he missed some competitions due to international commitments. His relentless work ethic is evident as he spends a minimum of three hours each day honing his skills in the ocean.

Joshua’s extraordinary achievements in 2023 position him as a strong favourite for his upcoming competitions in 2024, and as an athlete to keep an eye on in the future.