Professional Profile – Claire McLaughlin
We recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Claire McLaughlin, Doctor and Rugby Star of the Irish National Team and Ulster
Claire, what are some of your Inspirations for life?
“I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” Phil 4:13
“The only workout you’ll ever regret is the one you didn’t do“, this one always gets me out of bed on the mornings when my alarm goes off at 5.30am!
“In everything, give your all so that you can look back and have no regrets, even when things don’t go to plan.”
What’s Your Favourite Food?
That’s a difficult question as I really love a lot of food! It might be easier to ask what I don’t like: olives, raw red onion, coriander!
Christmas dinner is probably my favourite meal, and I can’t go a day without eating chocolate!
What’s Your Favourite Film?
Shawshank Redemption, Three Men and a Little Lady, Lion King
Tell us about your journey to get to where you are today…
I went to Coleraine High School, and during that time I played a few different sports including hockey, football and athletics. In my last year of school, my local rugby club, Ballymoney, set up a women’s team and I jumped at the chance to get involved and try out something new. This was the beginning of my new passion – I couldn’t wait to go to rugby training each week, and I chose rugby over hockey when I moved to Belfast for university.
I got my first cap for Ulster when I was 18, and thought this would be the pinnacle of my rugby career. But after a lot of hard consistent training; hours spent working on my strength and fitness in the gym, and skills on the pitch, I made it onto the Irish squad in 2015. I got my first cap for Ireland against Italy during the Six Nations of 2016, and have since played 10 times for my country. I graduated from Queen’s with a medical degree in 2016 and have been working as a Junior Doctor since, with the aim of eventually going into Sports Medicine.
I’ve always had an inner drive to challenge myself and learn more with the aim of becoming a better version of myself, and I never shy away from a bit of hard work. I believe this work ethic is something that has been essential in getting me to where I am today, and I’m hopeful that it will allow me to push on and achieve even greater things in the future.
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