Irish judoka Lisa Kearney retires

Lisa Kearney announced to retire from the sport of judo. Kearney was doing judo for 20 years and became an Olympian for Ireland. One of her highlights was a bronze medal at the Grand Prix in Samsun in 2015 and various victories at World Cup events all around the world.

Lisa noted ‘it is with a mixture of sadness and joy that I have made the decision to officially retire from sport. The past 20 years have been an incredible journey and one that was made possible by the people around me. The support I received allowed me to represent my country on the world stage and together we overcame many obstacles along the way. I want to say the most genuine thank you to every single person who supported me and made this journey possible. I hope I was great ambassador in my time as performance athlete, and I hope to take the lessons I have learned to future generations within and beyond sporting circles. We have significantly progressed the opportunities, pathways and standards of Judo in Ireland and NI, and no doubt this will positively impact the lives of many individuals, who will again pay it forward into society.

I wish to say a huge thanks to; Sport Northern Ireland, SNI Sports Institute, Sport Ireland and Sport Ireland Institute, the Olympic Council Ireland, the Irish Judo Association, Judo Scotland, Heriot-Watt University and Yamakwai Judo Club for your world class support over the years, and of course my world class coach Ciaran Ward who was with me every step of the way. I am passionate about giving back to society and helping others become their best self, because this is what I have been given. To all our athletes of the future, I wish the very best of luck on their journeys that sport will take them on.’