Conor McGregor
For the Irish spectators in particular, watching Conor’s rise to fame in a similar time to seeing our country rise out of a recession has given young athletes and entrepreneurs a new hope that they can also go on to achieve great things in their careers of choice. Conor can be perceived as a motivator for our small nation as we look forward to better times ahead, such as the Celtic Tiger era in which we once thrived on. The ways in which Conor can be related to our cultural history can simply be seen in his style, charisma and even on his body images with tattoos such as his new tiger tattoo which can be greatly related to the Celtic tiger era, almost bragging that ‘the boom is back’.
Katie Taylor
However, is there really a rigid plan in place to use these athletes in the correct ways that enforce the physical activity guidelines and encourage young athletes and entrepreneurs to reach for the stars? There has been brief attempts to promote healthier lives when Katie was involved in a role to promote healthy food and more exercise in 2014 but no follow up and maintenance plan for this scheme were put in place.
Obviously, to obtain these athletes outside of representing their countries participation in an event would cost a varied amount depending whether it was McGregor or Taylor, but in my eyes it should be money well spent. All in all, our nation needs more public figures, not just in sports but in an array of other areas. These figures inspire our youth, grow our eagerness to succeed and make us a braver, bolder nation. With Conor leading the way in creating confidence in our nation to achieve personal goals it has become a leading role for other sportsmen and women to fill in their own sports such as Katie Taylor, Michael Conlan and many more that carry the same fighting Irish heart. With the aim of our government focusing sometime in the near future on teaming up with these athletes to promote a healthier nation, we can hope that we keep producing world class athletes such as the ones named previously, which mirror the true nation that Ireland is.
Author - Cormac Bates
4th Year Recreation and Sport Management Student