Niall Kennedy is a former amateur and professional boxer from County Wexford. He had a very successful amateur career winning countless Leinster titles as well as the Irish Intermediate title. He was also an Irish elite finalist in 2013 and boxed in a great era of super-heavyweights in Ireland. Niall has worked as a police officer in the Garda for many years and won gold medals in tournaments around the world including the World Police and Fire Games. Niall turned professional at 31 years of age with his coach, Pascal Collins in 2015 and enjoyed early success on the east coast of America. He would claim US State titles in Massachusetts and New England against good opposition and would at one stage remain undefeated in 14 contests. Niall opens up about how he had to overcome prefight nerves and bipolar disorder during his career and how two defeats at the end of his career were hard to overcome. A devastating failed brain scan would signal the end of Niall's career in 2020 and his mental health would suffer for a time. Niall is now a mental health activist and has recently launched the program "NBK Survival Training". This program uses group training and open speech presentations to facilitate people with the tools and knowledge which can have a positive impact on their overall well-being. Listen to Niall's journey to date on this weeks podcast.
