It is always one of the most popular series we run through the year and our listing of 30 Under 30 Young leaders of Tomorrow for 2021, in association with our friends at PwC, starts on Monday, March 7th.
Our ambition is the creation of a network of people making a real difference within our industry.
Over the past five years, we have highlighted almost 150 individuals as part of the 30 Under 30 initiative and here we have taken a look back on who they are and where they have gone so far in their careers.
We have broken the list up alphabetically and will list 20 individuals a day as we build up to the 2022 list.
Shairoze Akram – Harry Connolly
During the 2022 run, we will also be dropping a new podcast series of interviews with some of those that have gone before.
They are an impressive group of individuals. Here is the third of the groups of 20…
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Sinead Finnegan 2016
Sinead Finnegan was nominated for the list in 2016 when she was working in PR with Teneo and starring for the Dublin Ladies Football team.
After taking part in the Sport for Business and AIG Game Changers network she switched career paths and returned to college studying to become a teacher at DCU St Pats.
She featured prominently in the Blues Sisters documentary about the team and has appeared in AIG content looking at how far the Dublin team have come.
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Paul Flynn 2016
Paul was nominated in 2016 when he had just joined Lincoln Recruitment after an early career with Aer Lingus.
The All Ireland winning footballer became CEO of the Gaelic Players Association in September 2018 and has overseen the negotiation of a new partnership between the Players group and the GAA, as well as navigating Covid-19’s impact on sport.
He has also been a key player in the merger of the Men’s and Women’s Players Association.
He stepped down from the CEO role to take up a new opportunity within Healthcare sector in 2021 and is currently the CEO of Mobile Medical Diagnostics while still keeping his hand in as a GAA Podcaster with The Second Captains.
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Aisling Fox 2018
Aisling was nominated for the list in 2018 when a senior digital marketing executive at AIG. She worked closely on the company’s sponsorship activations.
In 2019 she moved to a London agency Blue Robot where she was providing brand strategy work for Twitter.
In August of 2020, she moved to Matheson as a Digital Marketing Executive, and in January of 2022 she joined Tourism Ireland working on their Digital Campaigns.
Originally from Leitrim, she completed a Masters Degree in International Marketing with Consumer Psychology from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh and had previous spells working in marketing with Smith and Wollensky in Boston and In the Company of Huskies in Dublin.
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Aaron Gallagher 2019
Aaron joined the list in 2019 as a sports journalist on The42.ie. In October he left to work as a Digital Executive with Ryanair but has since returned to DCU to complete a doctorate, focusing on sports communication and digital media.
He was named as National Press Journalist of the Year at the 2018 Student Media Awards, having graduated with a BA in Journalism the previous year. He joined The42.ie following an internship but continued his learning with a Masters Degree in Social Media Communication, also from DCU.
His dissertation was on the impact of social media on the working life of Journalists.
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Hugh Gallagher 2018
Hugh was nominated in 2018 as the Head of Sport at Web Summit. After successfully leading the Web Summit content division for two years, he transitioned to head up events in North America, Europe and Asia. In November 2021 he became Partnerships Manager within the same organisation.
Since assuming this role in 2016 he has worked with the CEO’s of Liverpool, Ajax and the San Francisco 49ers and noted sports stars such as Rio Ferdinand, Ronaldinho, Brett Favre, Wladimir Klitschko and WWE’s Triple H.
A Graduate in Business, Economics and Social Studies from Trinity College, Gallagher then went on to secure a Masters in Journalism from DCU and worked as a reporter on Raidío na Life, Newstalk and 98FM before joining Web Summit in 2014.
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Maeve Galvin 2019
Maeve was nominated in 2019 as a Senior Sponsorship and PR Specialist at Electric Ireland. She became Marketing Effectiveness Manager at the company in September of 2021.
She plays a key role in managing the Darkness into Light sponsorship that won the 2018 European Sponsorship of the Year as well as the brand partnership with the GAA Minor All Ireland Championships.
It was Galvin’s idea to bring The Championship Haircut to life at Croke Park in 2018 and 2019 by erecting a barbers shop in the grounds of the stadium on the morning of the All-Ireland football and hurling finals.
She played underage hockey for Leinster and Camogie for Dublin before graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from NUIG and a Masters in Communications, Advertising and PR from the University of Ulster.
Prior to joining Electric Ireland in 2018, she worked as an Account Director with Maximum Media managing the SportsJOE/AIB GAA partnership winning Best Podcast and Best Video awards at the Digital Media Awards.
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Aileen Gaskin 2019
Aileen was nominated in 2019 when an Account Director with the Communications Clinic. She was most closely involved in sport working on Team Ireland and the Olympic Federation as well as on the promotion of the Dubai Duty-Free Irish Open on behalf of the European Tour.
She is still at the firm and is now a Senior Communications Consultant.
She joined the company as an intern having qualified with a BA Degree in Public Relations from Dundalk Institute of Technology.
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Jennifer Gleeson 2016
Jen was nominated in 206 for the work she did on bringing the Lidl sponsorship of the Ladies Gaelic Football Association. Before joining the retail giant she had worked as a sponsorship manager with the GAA for four years and at Wilson Hartnell PR.
In 2017 she joined Diageo where she is currently a Brand Manager for Lagers and Ales.
She oversaw the 2021 Carlsberg Christmas Campaign having returned to Diageo from Maternity Leave in March of last year.
She graduated from UCD with a first-class honours degree in Social Science.
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Sarah Gordon 2020
Sarah Gordon joined the list in 2020 as the Partnerships Manager for Lidl in Ireland and Northern Ireland. In December 2020 she stepped up as the marketing Campaigns Project Manager covering management of agency input and production of Lidl’s award-winning campaigns.
She graduated from UCD with an Honours Degree in International German and Linguistics and has renewed her connection with the University by becoming an Alumni Advisory Board Member in November 2019.
As if that was not enough to keep her busy she is also an actress involved in musical theatre and was due to appear in the lead role of Noeleen in last summer’s return of Copper Face Jacks The Musical at the Olympia Theatre, before Covid-19 hit.
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Scott Graham 2018
Scott was nominated in 2018 while a consultant with the sports and sponsorship team at Teneo. In August 2019 we joined Cycling Ireland where he is now the Marketing and Communications Manager.
He has extensive experience in mass participation sports across a variety of roles and as a participant himself. He is a competitive triathlete with two top 10 National Championship finishes and six Age Group National Championship medals.
Prior to his role in Teneo, he worked as a videographer on sports and travel shows for Irish and International TV stations and as Marketing and Sponsorship Manager with Triathlon Ireland.
He qualified from the Dublin Business School with a BA (Hons) in Marketing & Event Management and has gone on to study for a professional Management Qualification from the Institute of Commercial Management, and a Diploma in Sports law from the Law Society of Ireland.
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Philip Greene 2019
Philip was a Sponsorship Intelligence Manager at Core Sponsorship when nominated for our list in 2019, and was promoted in March of 2021 to become a Senior Sponsorship Client Manager.
He played a key role in the development of the National Sponsorship index and has contributed to a number of strategic projects for many of the leading brands in the marketplace.
These have included projects for the GAA, Guinness PRO14, Munster Rugby, Horse Racing Ireland, SuperValu and KBC.
Outside of work, Phil is a passionate sports fan, keen writer and Twitter aficionado and was a co-host of the “Hurlers on the Ditch” podcast.
He was an active member of the Horse racing society at Trinity College Dublin from where he graduated in 2016 with a degree in Business, Economics and Social Studies.
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Lauren Guilfoyle 2020
Lauren packs a lot in as a Chartered Physiotherapist, broadcaster and social media coordinator, and was nominated for our list in 2020.
She has worked on the physio side with Rugby Academy Ireland she is a broadcaster with a variety of media from Balls.ie and Red FM through to helping out on the 2 Johnnies Podcast, on Littlewoods Ireland coverage of Camogie and on a part-time basis working with the Camogie Association on its social media.
She completed studying for a Masters in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology at the University of Limerick, where she graduated in 2016 with a degree in Physiotherapy, and is now back there studying for a doctorate while also working as the lead physiotherapist with Cork Constitution Rugby Club.
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Ann Marie Guinan 2019
Ann Marie was a Client Relationship Manager at Future Ticketing when nominated for the list in 2019. In June 2020 she was promoted to become Country Manager for the expanding operation in the UK, where she remains working out of her base in Manchester.
In 2018 she was awarded the PRO of the Year by the Camogie Association for her work in that role with Offaly Camogie, and where she has also been Vice-Captain of the Senior Team.
Guinan joined Future Ticketing in 2018 from a previous role with Kilbeggan Racecourse. She has worked with Basketball Ireland, Gymnastics Ireland, Dundalk FC, Punchestown Racecourse, The National Aquatic Centre, Tattersalls International Horse Trials, Connacht Rugby, Virgin Media and others both in Ireland and the UK.
A graduate with a degree in media and Public Relations from the Institute of Technology in Carlow, Guinan has also been a contributor to the Sports Show on Midlands 103.
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Amy Hacon 2020
Amy was a Senior Account Manager at Legacy Communications when she was nominated for the list in 2020. Since then she has relocated back to her native New Zealand where she is continuing to build a career in Public Relations with MYOB.
Hacon joined the Legacy team in May 2019 with a diverse range of experience in corporate and marketing communications.
She was working with Porter Novelli in Aukland when she decided to relocate to Dublin in 2018 and spent a year working with Drury Porter Novelli here before switching to Legacy.
She is a graduate of the University of Waikato, with a degree in Communications Studies, Public Relations and Management Communications.
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Ross Hamilton 2018
Ross Hamilton was the Sports performance Development Officer at Trinity College Dublin when nominated in 2018. In May 2020 he left to become Science and Innovations Officer at Innovation Zed, a health solutions company in Dublin. Then in June of 2021 he began studying for a Doctorate in his chosen field at Swansea University.
After completing a Natural Science degree in Trinity he focused on full-time sailing, competing for Ireland at three World Championships but narrowly missing out on London 2012.
He went back to college, completed a Masters Degree in Exercise Physiology and then joined Trinity where he managed elements of Talent ID, performance management and managing Trinity’s Sports Scholarship Programme.
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Colm Hand 2019
Colm’s most recent full time role was as Director of Operations with CBF developing football in the Middle East and Asia through Education, Performance and Management. This past year he has been studying for an MBA in Football Studies at the University of Liverpool
He was nominated for our list in 2019 when he was the Executive Administrator for the National Football Exhibition.
The Dubliner previously worked in the FAI’s International Department before transferring over to the Communications Department.
Colm previously worked as Events Manager with Anthony Travel and with Abbey Group
He is a graduate of DIT in Business Administration and completed the UEFA Certificate in Football Management in 2019.
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Declan Healy 2018
Declan was Head of Marketing and Events at Mondello Park when appearing on our list in 2018. Since then he moved to a different kind of horsepower as Marketing Executive at Leopardstown Racecourse.
He has a background in entertainment having graduated from DCU with a degree in Arts, Entertainment and Media before returning to secure a Masters degree in Business from the UCD Smurfit Business School.
Prior to lockdowns he still performed live as a musician with Two Guys Live.
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Des Holton 2020
Des Holton is a Business Development Executive at the Sport Ireland Campus. His love for sport and desire to work in the industry drove him to complete a Masters in Sports Management from University College Dublin in 2017, having spent five years working in the financial sector with Citi, State Street and BNY Mellon.
In his role at the Campus, Holton is responsible for developing client relationships, increasing sales and participation, identifying and developing new business opportunities.
He has played a key role in delivering two flagship annual events, the Family SportFest with Sport Ireland and the All Ireland Company Games with Sport for Business that highlight the Sport Ireland Campus as a venue not only for High-Performance Athletes but for the community.
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Eimear Hubble 2020
Eimear is the Safeguarding and Club Development Officer at Cricket Ireland, working as part of the organisation’s Participation Department.
She is a success story of Sport Ireland’s ASPIRE graduate programme, having joined Cricket Ireland under the scheme following completion of her BA in Sports Management and Coaching at the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown in 2018.
Meath-born Hubble has no background in cricket, instead being a keen Gaelic footballer and Badminton player but that has not held her back in the slightest.
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John Hyland 2020
John is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at OTT Software Solutions.
He founded the online club management platform in April 2019 and launched its first product “ClubSpot” in February 2020.
Hyland graduated from GMIT with a degree in Business and Marketing and spent some time working at the National Asset Management Agency before returning to the family business of Hyland Turfcare in Cavan.
He completed the MSc in Sport Management at UCD in 2017 prior to setting up ClubSpot.
So who do you think is worthy of inclusion this year?
Who do you work with that has shone over the past twelve months or more and is deserving of recognition as they rise through their career?
Criteria
The criteria for submission is that the person should be working within the sports industry, or in a sponsorship or agency capacity that is bringing sport to life, and that they should be born in or after 1992.
You are invited to submit names and a short precis of why an individual deserves to be recognised below.
Our ambition from the start has been to create a network of people making a real difference within our industry.
Who should we be looking to for the next wave of excellence?
This is not the time to be shy, this is an opportunity to put forward those you have come across that have struck you as having real potential, or indeed for you to put yourself forward.
It’s not about where you are now. It’s all about where you could get to with the right breaks.
