“I’ve been swimming for over half of my life. My physio at Enable Ireland, Aisling, recommended a swimming club to help with my physiotherapy when I was eight.  I wasn’t very good at doing my stretches at home, but I’ve always loved swimming since I was small. So, Aisling recommended the club as something that might help. It wasn’t about being competitive; I just went and tried out and got in. But it got me working, and I enjoyed it. I’ve not looked back since!

The club is called Titans Swim Club, in Bray. Swimming with them has been brilliant. I’ve met lots of new people and made new friends through the club. Although I wasn’t competitive when I started, I soon wanted to beat everybody in the pool! It’s a competitive club but also very inclusive. They have a para squad, which is not very common in Ireland. But our Para squad is the largest in the country. I swim with 10 other para swimmers, eight of them have CP (cerebral palsy) like me."

"I’ve been fortunate enough to swim with them in galas in Northern Ireland and the UK. In April 2025, I went to Derbyshire in the UK to participate in the Cerebral Palsy Sport Nationals for the second time. However, my proudest achievement so far has been competing in the British Junior Para-Swimming Championships. I was one of three Irish swimmers who qualified to compete over there in June 2024.

It was really exciting. Everyone was there to accomplish the same goal and do well. I’d seen a similar attitude at the Cerebral Palsy Sport Nationals, but this was another level up. Because everyone was competing at a higher level, the buzz of anticipation was even bigger. I competed against swimmers from Ireland, the UK and Spain. The Spanish team were really impressive!

I also got the opportunity to meet British Para-Swimming legend, Paul Noble. He’s won 15 Paralympic medals and is now a commentator for Channel 4. That was cool. I taught him how to pronounce Irish names correctly – so if you now hear him pronounce Roisin correctly on the TV, that’s thanks to me! The three Irish swimmers went out for dinner together, representing our respective clubs. It was nice to spend time with them and chat with like-minded people. We usually don’t get to talk as our faces are in the water!

The British Junior Para-Swimming Championships have been the biggest thing in my life so far. I achieved personal bests in most of my races, including 50-metre freestyle, 100-metre freestyle, and 100-metre backstroke."

My dream is to make the Paralympic team. I’m currently in the Development Squad for Paralympics Ireland. It’s great. They’ve given me so many opportunities. Once a month, I train with them at the National Aquatic Centre in Dublin.  They also provide workshops, so I’m learning what it takes to become a Paralympian. I’ve learnt about nutrition, paralympic psychology and more. We have the same coaches as the performance squad. Through them, I’m honing my training and techniques.

When I’m not in the water, I also regularly play tennis with the Greystone Lawn Tennis Club. We have a fantastic Wheelchair tennis gang. I also go horse riding with Equisteps and Festina Lente.

I’m hopeful that I’ll be a Paralympian one day. I’d love to inspire others and encourage people to live a Life with No Limits!”