Tadhg Henderson
7. 5k, 10, 1/2 marathon, marathon, triathlon and iron man 70.3 competitor Tadhg Henderson.
Name : Tadhg Henderson
Age : 42
Work/School/College : Profitsflow
Married/single/kids : Married to Louise, 2 kids - Sadhbh Age 11 and Rory Age 8
How long have you been a member of Menapians AC : Since I moved to Wexford in 2012 so 7 years!
Interests & achievements outside athletics : Myself and Louise have our own company, we were National Enterprise Awards finalists in 2019 so that is an acheivement. Along with work and travel, having 2 kids at home more than fills up all available time! I enjoy family time, getting out in the air for a cycle with the kids and visiting local beaches.
Events you have competed at : Cork Marathon 2012 & 2013, Edinburgh Marathon 2017 and Galway Bay Marathon 2019. Loads of Half Marathons all over Ireland & a couple in the UK. Various county road races - have done Novice, Intermediate, Senior and Masters, and a number of cross countries. And some Triathlons!
Favourite event : That's a hard one. I love them all usually! Killarney Half Marathon this year was a good one.
Least favourite event : That's even harder, for the same reason! My first county road race, the Masters in 2013, was in Rathangan. It was a miserable, wet, freezing cold day. I'd never done one of the county races, had no idea what to expect. I did not enjoy that race!
Biggest athletics achievement : Does triathlon count? Finishing the Ironman 70.3 event in Dun Laoghaire in 2018. A 1.9km sea swim followed by a 90km bike over the Wicklow mountains and finishing with a half marathon. The race was so tough it has been cancelled after two years!
Other athletics achievements : I generally enjoy them all but each race is an acheivement in itself.
Do you hold any records : Lots of personal records but no "real" records. Favourite moment of your athletic career : Finishing Cork Marathon in 2012.
Favourite track you have competed on : Have never run an actual race on a track
Least favourite track : I don't like tracks generally, so all of them I guess!
Who has been your inspiration both in athletics & outside athletics : I'd find it hard to look past Paul Sinton-Hewitt, founder of the now massive international movement behind parkrun. In Ireland alone an average of just over 100 people drag themselves out of bed each Saturday morning to walk, jog or run at each of our 93 parkrun locations. That's almost 10,000 people, most of them would never do it without parkrun and the majority are not runners! What a vision, and all done voluntarily! Outside of athletics, no particular individual but I have a lot of admiration for people who give up their time to help others. Whether that's an athletics coach, someone who does charity work or a mentor in business. Time is so much more valuable than money!
Favourite food/drink : Now there's a question. I think it's fair to say I eat everything. The great thing about being active is that you can eat a lot! I really like cheese, the stronger and smellier the better. And nothing beats ordering something different when out. Like kangaroo one time, or (much to Sadhbh's disgust) snails when we were in France.
Post training snack : Is beer allowed? Ha ha seriously, pint of milk with peanut butter sandwich.
Some unusual facts about yourself : People think it's unusual when I tell them I don't like watching TV, not sure if that counts, but I do find most TV shows boring and can normally find something better to do. Also I love rollercoasters, and if anyone wants to know, Cuchulainn in Tayto Park is way better than any of the roller coasters in Disneyland Paris!