Carolyn Hayes
Triathlon
BIOGRAPHY
Carolyn Hayes represented Ireland in the women’s triathlon at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, finishing 23rd.
Hayes came to elite triathlon late, having first taken up the sport at 25 while studying medicine at the University of Limerick. Before triathlon she had represented Ireland in water polo and played hockey, and had completed the Dublin and New York marathons. A qualified doctor, she put her medical career on hold in 2018 to train full-time for Olympic qualification. She was inspired to pursue the sport after watching the Brownlee brothers compete at the 2012 London Olympics.
She made her international debut at 26, and went on to become the first Irish woman to stand on a World Triathlon World Cup podium in over a decade when she won silver in Lisbon in May 2021. She qualified for Tokyo ranked 32nd in the world.







