Sport

Katie Taylor is Ireland’s most admired athlete for eighth year in a row

Kellie Harrington’s rendition of Grace with Irish supporters at Roland Garros considered top 2024 moment by Teneo survey

Katie Taylor after beating Serrano in Arlington, Texas in November. Photograph: Sarah Stier/Getty Images
Katie Taylor after beating Serrano in Arlington, Texas in November. Photograph: Sarah Stier/Getty Images
Thu Dec 19 2024 - 14:50

Katie Taylor has been named as Ireland’s most admired athlete for an eighth year in a row, according to the annual Teneo Sport and Sponsorship Index survey.

Irish women sports stars dominate the voting for the country’s most admired athlete, with Taylor topping the survey after her memorable fight against Amanda Serrano in November, winning 15 per cent of the vote.

Sprinter Rhasidat Adeleke, who competed in both the European Championships and Olympics this year, is Ireland’s second most admired athlete with 11 per cent of the vote, with gold medal winner Kellie Harrington taking third place on the list with 10 per cent of the vote.

Almost nine in 10 adults are interested in sport, according to the survey, led by Gaelic games, soccer and rugby in a highly competitive landscape.

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Team Ireland’s seven-medal haul at the Paris Olympics earned them the title of Team of the Year with 28 per cent of the vote.

Harrington’s rendition of Grace with Irish supporters at Roland Garros following her gold medal bout was considered the most memorable sporting moment by the Irish public, receiving 14 per cent of the vote.

Gaelic games (Gaelic football, ladies’ Gaelic football, hurling and camogie) was voted Ireland’s favourite sport for the seventh consecutive year.

The men’s Six Nations is the most anticipated sporting event for 2025 by a significant margin with 30 per cent of the vote.

The TSSI is a comprehensive 1,000-person nationally representative survey with quotas imposed across gender, region, age and social class.