Bernard Dunne - Irish Boxer

Bernard is a retired Professional Boxer. He is a former WBA Super Bantamweight World Champion and also a former European Super Bantamweight Champion. From Neilstown in Dublin, his love of boxing originated from his family, and he began participating in the sport at the age of five. Bernard never lost to an Irish fighter in his amateur career, but this wasn’t enough for him, and he decided to go professional, which meant moving to California. While his career flourished across the Atlantic, he missed home and his family. He aspired to win a World Title in his home country, and his journey, courage, and dignity made him an Irish national treasure.

Former world champion and notable sports personality

Since announcing his retirement in 2010, Bernard has completed a Master's Degree in Sports, Exercise and Performance Psychology at the University of Limerick. He has been a regular face on our TV screens as a popular panellist on RTÉ Sport, covering everything from Boxing, Soccer, and GAA to Current Affairs and the Olympics. He also worked with RTÉ on their show Ultimate Street Challenge, a six-part television series that saw ten 16-year-olds from all over Ireland compete in a number of physical challenges on the streets of Dublin to become the Ultimate Street Challenge Champion. In 2016, Bernard presented the IFTA-winning show Bernard Dunne's Mythical Heroes on RTÉ. Bernard took on the role of the storyteller, delivering the stories of Fionn Mac Cumhaill, Tir na nOg, the Children of Lir, the Tuatha de Danann, Balor, the Formorians, and Chu Culainn, which have been passed down through generations. Season two returned to our screens in December 2018, where Bernard brought us some of the great Irish Mythical Heroes that inspired him as a youth.

Experienced sports expert

Bernard is currently the High Performance Director for Irish Boxing with the Irish Athletic Boxing Association. Bernard works alongside the high performance coaching team led by Zaur Anita, aiming to ensure that Ireland ranks among the top three countries in terms of the number of boxers who will compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games and the ultimate goal of becoming the best boxing nation in the world. He also completed a Masters Degree in Sports, Exercise and Performance Psychology from the University of Limerick. Bernard has become an advocate for the Irish language and set up Bród Club in 2012, an ambitious nationwide campaign aimed at inspiring 100,000 people to re-engage with the Irish language. Bernard Dunne’s Bród Club series on RTÉ was a motivational, inspirational series that sought to talk to the “Gael” in each of us. It aimed to rekindle a sense of pride in the language and turn that pride into something tangible, inspiring people to use the Irish they have, however much or little that may be. Bernard was an Ambassador for Seachtain na Gaeilge in 2010.

Bernard wrote his autobiography, Bernard Dunne My Story, in 2010, published by Penguin Ireland.

Bernard joined the Dublin Senior Football Team as the Sports Performance and Lifestyle coach in 2013. As part of his role, Bernard worked with each squad member individually and in groups on a mixture of sports psychology and life coaching, focusing on the players’ attitudes, beliefs, and values in their sport. His performance coaching helped the players get into the correct state of mind to produce their optimum results in training and on match days. Under Bernard's guidance, the Dublin Senior Football Team won the All Ireland Senior Football Championships in 2013 and 2015.

Motivational speaker available internationally

Bernard also travels the country, talking to young people (10-13 years) about life, believing in themselves, and not being afraid to fail or take on challenges. He believes young people need encouragement to be the best they can be and should not be afraid to be different. A key part of his message is that being different is what makes them who they are. Young people, especially from certain parts of society, are often labelled as no good just because of where they were born or their background. Bernard tells these young individuals that if they want something and are willing to work hard enough at it and make the necessary choices, they can achieve whatever they desire. As a young man who grew up in Neilstown, he had a dream of being a World Champion, and he achieved it with hard work, dedication, and making the right choices. Bernard gives a significant amount of his free time and is involved with many charities including Pieta House, Make A Wish, and CASA, to name but a few.