Meet the Committee

CHAIRPERSON

The Club Chairperson is responsible for coordinating the running and operation of the club, organising and chairing committee meetings with a view to defining and achieving club goals and objectives, and acting as an official club contact and representative.

Adele Hall [email: chair@piranhatri.com]

I joined Piranha in 2018 and within a few weeks I was hooked – the standard of training provided and strength of the community blew me away.
The weekly training options that the club provides in each discipline are amazing and the coaches are second to none – friendly, approachable and so skilled at coaching in a fun and relaxed environment. Between daily coached swim sessions, coached bike sessions, coffee and cake spins on a Sunday morning and the track sessions with Gary & Maria, there are options for every level of athlete from a first timer to those training for specific goals.
The other huge benefit of Piranha is the social side – there are nights out, domestic and foreign training camps, awards nights, end of season parties and organized club races and weekends away.

I have made great friendships in Piranha and I have no doubt that the people are the reason that Piranha is such a vibrant and successful club. If you are new (or returning) to the club my advice is to get stuck in and get to the training sessions and social events – I promise you won’t regret it!!

I am looking forward to my second year as Chair of Piranha and leading our club through another successful year in 2024 together with the brilliant team that we have on our Committee!!

Don’t be afraid to reach out to anyone on the Committee in advance with any questions – we are here to help!!

CLUB SECRETARY
The Secretary maintains the minutes in a club record book, which serves as the official record of the club’s activities. Member att

endance records of both regularly scheduled and special meetings are maintained by the Secretary.

The Secretary also acts as an additional contact point for the Club and attends to relevant administrative tasks, communications on behalf of the Club and liaison with Triathlon Ireland.

Lisa Stout [email: clubsecretary@piranhatri.com]

I come from a cycling background having gotten involved through an informal group of friends with a love for climbing hill

s and clocking miles. One of the gang is a multi-Ironman finisher and convinced a group of us to complete the 70.3 in Youghal pre-Covid as a relay. Fast forward to 2022 and I completed the cycle leg of the relay…..however as I watched other athletes switch their cycling shoes for

runners and head off, I got the mad urge to sign up to do the 70.3 in Youghal the following year as a solo entrant. Knowing I needed the push to train in the other aspects I looked around for a club to join and found Piranha. I could not have picked a better club – the wealth of knowledge, encouragement and training is endless.

There is nothing to help you break through that wall when you hear someone shout “Come on Piranha”, or “You’ve got this Piranha” – from people you may have never met before but have club connections or are current or even previous members.

I am delighted to join the committee for the upcoming year and continue on my triathlon journey with this amazing club and committee.

SOCIAL COMMITTEE
The main roles of the Social Committee are –

Organise variety of social events during the year (Xmas party, JD post run, Club Champs afters, T.I. Awards night and any other random social activity that may arise.)
AGM – organise nominations & prizes/trophies for all awards, locate and collate presentations.
Organise any other random ideas that arise during the year!

Enda Traynor [email: events@piranhatri.com]

I decided to run before I could walk in triathlon terms by signing up for an Ironman before I joined Piranha! After realising that it was going to be a lonely old slog doing 6 hour bike training rides on my own, I decided to join the club in late 2017 and I couldn’t have made a better decision. From the moment I joined the club I realised it was made up of really special people.

Like many of us I was most nervous about the swim sessions and that was where my focus lay at the start! The swim sessions progressed my level so much in those first months that I was soon progressing from the Improvers lane to the Intermediate lane… four years later and I still haven’t made it to the Advanced lane! We can but dream! 🙂

The long Sunday cycles were not only great training for the impending long distance racing but are also the best way to get to know your fellow club mates! The three C’s of the club Sunday cycles (coffee, cake and craic) make the early morning Sunday starts worthwhile.

Initially, I neglected the club run sessions as I thought to myself “sure who needs run training, everyone can run, right?!”! I waited over a year after joining the club to attend my first run session as I thought it was where I’d get least bang for my training buck but how wrong I was. Again, our exceptional coaches in the club made a huge difference and I’ve steadily improved year on year since I started regularly attending these sessions.

But that’s all the sport stuff! We all know the joy of being part of a club is the people you meet and the craic you have along the way! As our Social coordinator my job is to make sure you get lots of opportunities to connect with your fellow clubmates wearing something a bit more refined than sports or swimwear! My predecessors in this role (big up Sinead and Maura) have done an amazing job at getting us together and helping us laugh at the funny stuff that happens throughout the year and I’m looking forward to taking that on over the next year!

Michael Lynch

Having played football and GAA since an early age, Covid impacted my training significantly and like many others I started running and cycling to keep fit while we were in lockdown. I always loved the idea of completing a triathlon but having little swimming experience always held me back.

I decided to dive in at the deep end and sign up for Ironman Cork 70.3 and soon after realised training alone wasn’t for me. I joined the club in late 2021 and it was the best decision I’ve ever made! The advice from both coaches and club members really brought on my ability in all 3 disciplines. In the past year, I have completed Sprint, Olympic and 70.3 distance triathlons along with completing my first marathon. I could not have done all of this without the support of the coaches and people within the club.

TREASURER
The Finance committee works to ensure that the finances of Piranha Triathlon Club are organised and managed effectively. This includes:

Oversee the financial affairs of the Club and plan for its ongoing financial viability
Manage the Club financial accounts, and report on financial status to committee and members
Operate the Club’s financial process, managing bank accounts and all related invoicing and payment matters for the Club

Brian Stanley: [email: finance@piranhatri.com]

I always thought the idea of doing a triathlon was mad. I joined Piranha in October 2016 after finishing College. I was in the triathlon club there in my final year to get away from the books by doing some swimming, cycling and running – but I never put them all together.

The coaches in Piranha taught me to actually swim properly (it took a few years but I’m still getting there!) and I vastly improved my bike and run training by varying the intensity throughout the week.

My first triathlon was in Carlow 2017 and while I was apprehensive getting into the river, I enjoyed every minute of it. I completed an Ironman in 2022 and now I know – that running a marathon after a 180km bike, is indeed mad.

What I enjoy most about the club is the mix of abilities from ironmen and ironwomen to complete beginners (we were all there!). No matter what level you’re at, there will be a Piranha at a similar level to you. So, I’d encourage everyone to get stuck into the training sessions and sign up to the National Series races, the training camps and the race weekends away!

MARKETING
The marketing committee works on the promotion of Piranha Tri Club. The main roles of the Marketing, Web and PR officer are to:

Update the website, activate and manage all accounts.
Post stories and source race reports.
Keep Instagram, Facebook and Twitter up to date
All website admin.
Deal with queries re piranha from members thinking of joining.
Manage any additions to the website – e.g. bike boxes, gear shop. Paypal account, etc.
Write & distribute press releases and handle press queries.
Helping out with the marketing of club events – e.g. new to tri night.

Owen Ingarfield [email: Marketing@piranhatri.com]

Growing up in Cape Town, South Africa, I was always in the sea surfing. Later in life I got into cycling, then running, and as I surfed less my yearn for the sea developed into open water swimming until I realised it was most fun doing all three at the same time! The tri bug had bitten in 2017 when I did my first sprint, followed by an Olympic, before entering my first 70.3 in Durban in 2017.

Shortly after my wife and I, dog and two cats left the shores of Cape Town for the Emerald Isle to live permanently in Dublin to work and love life exploring Europe and it’s surrounds. Covid happened, races chugged along but group training suffered for me until fast forward to the start of 2023 when I joined Piranha and never looked back! The comradery, friendliness and warmth of Piranha as a club is really quite something, especially if you are still relatively new to the city or country you will have instant friends. There is a deep understanding of the sport and constant sharing of knowledge.

With a professional background in marketing, branding and design I’m delighted to have had the opportunity to help with some major moments in 2023, such as support for social media, design and social for DCT and helping setup a new Marketplace platform for our WhatsApp community. I’m chuffed to now be one of the newest committee members going into 2024 where I can offer further ideas, initiatives and energy into the marketing remit.

Kim Zitzmann [email: Marketing@piranhatri.com]

MEMBERSHIP
The Membership Officer is in charge of administrating membership applications and dealing with all queries relating to membership. The main roles of the membership officer(s) are –

Keep membership list up to date.
Supply Westwood with regular updates of membership list
Process any new membership requests
Make sure all members have TI membership and are insured to train.

Marlon Major [email: memberships@piranhatri.com]

I still can’t believe that I’ve completed a triathlon. Though, I may not have been first across the finish line, I did finish. And all the credit goes to all the wonderful people, programmes and coaching of the Piranha Triathlon Club.

Before Piranha I had been a religious weight lifter. I had little challenge, wanted to feel more accomplishment and wanted to lose a little weight. But I didn’t know how to get there or get it. It wasn’t until I met a senior committee member of the Piranha Triathlon Club and an accomplished triathlete that I considered given this endurance sport a chance.

Now I can say that I am a triathlete… I may not have made it to the podium yet… But, with the wonderful support of the Piranha Club… I feel that I can do it.

As Membership Officer, I would like to share many of my mistakes, experiences and accomplishments with all of the new members of the club.

TRAINING
The Training committee strives to provide a successful training programme for all levels of athlete. This includes:

Weekly training sessions in swimming, cycling and running
Experienced and qualified coaching
Seminars and workshops
Warm weather training week abroad

Emma Jordan [email: new.to.triathlon@piranhatri.com]

In 2020 I was persuaded to sign up for a triathlon and a friend recommended joining Piranha to help with the training. I was immediately impressed with the quality and quantity of the training sessions available. I had a base level of fitness from running and Crossfit but I quickly realised how much I could improve my swimming and cycling by training with the club and how much more enjoyable it is to train with club members.

In addition to the regular weekly training schedule, I’ve had some fantastic experiences with my fellow Piranhas at training camps both in Ireland and Lanzarote where hard training sessions were combined with good craic and lots of laughs. Entering races as a Piranha means I know I’ll have lots of support before, during and after the race from my club mates and supporters.

I only ever intended to do one triathlon but three years on and I’m still here training and racing. I have learnt so much about triathlon from my fellow club members and been inspired to keep trying new events in the sport and keep pushing myself. As part of the New-To-Tri team with Ber, I hope we can help others get started in the sport and avail of all this fantastic club has to offer.

Eric Clonan [email: training@piranhatri.com]

NEW TO TRIATHLON PROGRAMME
A rewarding position to coordinate members who are New to Triathlon. Things on your to-do list will include:

Create a calendar of events for the New to Tri programme
Organise events such as: Club Open Night, Transition Training, Coffee Morning, Mini Triathlon in the West Wood
Encourage new members to sign up for races!
Choose a race for the New to Triathlon Club Championship.

Niall Gallagher [email: new.to.triathlon@piranhatri.com]

Rafa Bernardes [email: new.to.triathlon@piranhatri.com]

Club Captains

Swim Captain: Debbie Lester

Run Captain: Luke Stephens Kehoe

Bike Captains: Megan Roberts, Caroline Mehigan and Ciaran Ward

Subcommittee

Woman’s officer: Joanne Kennedy & Amelie Roland

UPCOMING EVENTS