EVERY sportsperson has ambitions. Whether it’s winning a county final, improving their fastest time or scoring in a five-a-side, there’s always something to motivate, to aspire to. It’s what makes it interesting.
For a select few, those ambitions may be somewhat loftier. These gifted individuals, the best in their field, dream big. They dream of national selection, personal awards, the world stage and all that comes with it.
What usually comes with it is fame, fortune, at the very least, recognition.
And yet in this county, walking among us, is a national champion, a man nearing the pinnacle of his sport, a man who many of you wouldn’t give a second glance to should you pass him in the street.
Pa O’Dwyer is the strongest man in Ireland.
That’s not some boastful claim, the kind bandied about in gyms all over the country; it’s his official title. He earned it by winning this year’s Strongman event, in the process becoming the first competitor from the Republic to win the event in eight years.
Having conquered his compatriots, Pa’s next goal is to make an impact on the European scene, and from there, the world. He wants to compete with the best, test himself against those he once idolised and see just how far his talents can take him.
But it’s unlikely that he will ever be able to do that.
Because, unlike his fellow national champions, unlike those he came up against in the UK’s Strongest Man in August, Pa balances his sporting ambitions with a full-time job, a job that deprives him of valuable recovery time and ensures that he will never be able to compete with the best on a level playing field.
The current holder of the UK’s Strongest Man title and the third placed finisher in this year’s World’s Strongest Man is a contemporary of Pa’s. His name is Eddie Hall and he and Pa have competed against one another regularly in recent years.
During these battles Pa has held his own, even overcoming his illustrious adversary on occasion.
Eddie Hall earns approximately five thousand pounds a week from sponsorship deals. He devotes himself entirely to his sport. He has a manager and brings a masseuse and a personal physiotherapist to each event. He is, in essence, a professional athlete.
Pa gets up for work every day at 6am. He drives trucks up and down the length and breadth of the country all day and starts training as soon as his shift ends. He has no sponsors and has to self-fund everything. He spends a large chunk of his wage on a coach, in exchange for two hour’s tutelage a week.
This is what Pa’s up against, this is what’s preventing him from becoming not just a national champion, but a global one.
Born in Newcastle West 31 years ago, Pa grew up on a farm, spending his formative years helping out his father with whatever jobs and chores needed doing.
“I was always lifting and dragging as a young fella. From when I was walking I was cleaning out sheds, bales and stuff like that.”
Helping out on the farm was one thing, but once Pa began utilising his environment for his own ends, his parents expressed concern like only parents can: “I used to do a bit of training outside their house and when they saw the things I was lifting they’d say ‘Jeez will you give it up, you’re going to break your back. You’re going to burst your heart.'”
Thankfully Pa neither broke his back nor burst his heart and his parents are now his biggest supporters, although it did take them a while to fully embrace their son’s career.
“Up until I won the national title, they weren’t really following me as much, but they’re all about it now of course. Straight on the bandwagon,” he says, laughing.
Winning that title was the culmination of years of hard work and dedication, of sacrifice and adhering to a diet which would make even the most enthusiastic carnivore balk.
You may have previously read headlines about Pa’s penchant for horse meat and other unsavoury treats. But in truth, that’s only the half of it.
“Because of my dedication I’d probably eat anything. I’m up at six in the morning and I’m eating steak and my coach is telling me to nearly eat it raw. This morning it was sickening, I was literally eating lumps of blood, the blood was dripping out of my mouth; I could not put anything worse into my mouth, cold red meat. Horrible.”
When in training for an event Pa eats eight to ten thousand calories per day. To put that into perspective, the average intake for a male is two and a half thousand. “I’m so sick of it. All I’m doing when I’m eating is thinking about the trophy.”
A twenty-stone man eating raw meat for his breakfast conjures up a certain kind of image, one which might lead you to believe these strongmen are just muscle-bound freaks with little brain to match their brawn.
But, according to Pa, a strong mind is equally as important as a hulking physique.
“It’s all mental, if I’m going into the deadlift and if my head isn’t right, I won’t be braced properly and I will injure myself.
“I’ll try and bring my heart rate down before I go into lifts, bring it down to 80-90 beats a minute just counting the clock, but before I can lift again I have to bring it up to 130 beats. You have to bring your heart rate before you go to lift anything heavy.”
What becomes clear when talking to Pa is that he is a student of his sport, a man willing to leave no stone unturned in his pursuit for glory. His horse eating exploits are well documented, but he is always on the lookout for new angles.
He attends seminars presented by former weightlifters, speaks to nutritionists, dieticians and other experts in their field. His latest obsession is saltwater sourced from the Himalayan mountains which he drinks while training at The Body Building gym in Raheen.
What also becomes clear is how lonely a sport strongman is.
Pa may attend a busy, thriving gym every evening, he may be surrounded by people, but none understand his routine and the toll it takes on him.
“I love the training, but because I do it all on my own, it can be very lonely. I eat a lot of my meals on my own – I’ll go home and my girlfriend will be gone to bed or in her parents house. I am envious when I look at other sports, rugby, they all have team mates. The closest fella that I might train with is in Galway, and you’re not going to go that far for a couple of pints really.”
In an effort to address this unending solitude, Pa considered joining a rugby club – an offer to fill in as a prop remains on the table. He has resisted the temptation thus far, but may yet be coming to a scrum near you, so watch out.
Right now his focus remains on his sport of choice and, in particular, Europe’s Strongest Man 2017. In order to participate in that event, he must first navigate a qualifier in early December.
But if you want to watch Pa compete, you must do so in person as the tournament will not be televised.
This is a common theme in strongman. Pa’s victory in Armagh during the summer, the one which earned him the national title, has yet to be shown on RTÉ. Its cameras were there, it even interviewed Pa and the other strongman but, for reasons only known to itself, the national broadcaster has not yet aired the programme.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. The British television channel, Dave, has recently started broadcasting a strongman Champions League, a daily event that showcases the very best in European talent.
Pa has been invited to take part on more than one occasion but has, so far, rejected each invite.
“I want to wait until I’m up here”, he says as he gestures to a high level.
“I want to go and I want to be pushing them. I want to go to World’s Strongest Man and not just to make up the numbers.”
Yet in order to do that, in order to push those guys, Pa needs to go full-time. He needs to quit his gruelling job and adopt a new regime, a regime where his only worries are honing his body and his craft, where work stresses and lack of sleep aren’t dragging him down on a daily basis.
He also needs people to sit up and listen, not ignore him like his local TD did when asked about funding for his sport.
He needs a little recognition, to be championed by local dignitaries, paraded at civic receptions, given the kind of treatment in keeping with his status as a national champion.
After all, he’s the strongest man in the entire country.
Surely that counts for something?
Pa can be contacted at the following email address: [email protected]
