Teen Leah shows Hough it’s done on the world stage
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On top of the world. Leah Hough stands on the podium after claiming first place in the freestyle kayaking category at the ICF Canoe Freestyle World Cup in Germany.Image 2 of 3
Golden girl. Leah Hough with her hard-earned prize won in Germany.Image 3 of 3
Up and over. Leah Hough bravely embarks on loop as she battles her way through the course.“Open water is a highway to adventure, best travelled by canoe or kayak” - author unknown.
Like so many young people in Ireland Leah Hough started out in her Leaving Cert exams last week. Unlike most of her contemporaries, however, she went into the exams as a World Cup medal winner.
Since discovering the wonders of freestyle kayaking in 2020 Leah has established herself as one of the top young practitioners of the sport - not only in Europe but in the world.
That reality was forcefully brought home the other week when the teenager from Johnstown, Navan won gold at the 2024 ICF Canoe Freestyle World Cup in Plattling, Germany. It was Ireland's first women's gold ICF medal in freestyle kayaking.
The gold claimed by Hough (added to two bronze medals won by another young Irish teenager Eoghan Kelly) ensured Ireland had a very successful ICF Canoe Freestyle World Cup - and that wasn’t all.
“World Cup two finished just after prelims one day ahead of schedule due to a flood warning. This meant I won a silver medal and this also crowned me the overall 2024 Junior Women’s World Cup champion for my positioning in both World Cups,” Leah explained.
A member of Trim Canoe Club, Hough first came to learn about kayaking while out and about on the Boyne with her three older brothers Killian, Kevin and Sean. She took to the sport, well, like a fish to water. She loved it and helped by coach Tom Dunphy, a member of Irish Freestyle Kayaking team, she quickly established herself.
A student at St Michael's, Loreto in Navan, Leah has got on so well in canoeing she has literally surged through the world ranking. Over the last year or so she has qualified for her first World Championships in Columbus, Georgia where she finished fourth in her category and picked up some invaluable experience. She also bagged silver at the European Championships in France, achievements that earned her a nomination in the Meath Chronicle Sports Awards for 2023 in the 'Young Sportstar of the Year' category.
A lot of skill is required to guide a canoe through a course. You have to grapple with the unforgiving, rushing water, the precarious twists and turns.
Another big factor that has helped to carry Leah along in her chosen sport is the backing of her family and supporters. Her story underlines how for a young sportsman/woman to excel, particularly on the international stage, so much backing and support is required - both emotionally and materially.
"The support from back home was just incredible with friends and family cheering me on especially my local club, Trim Canoe Club and also the Irish freestyle team," she said in reference to those few days in Germany recently when she stuck gold.
"My sponsors have also been a huge help to me, NRS, Pradosportswear and surfers who helped insure I had the correct equipment to compete in. My coach Tom Dunphy also offered a huge amount of support at the competition. I will represent Ireland again competing in the 2024 European championships in Graz, Austria at the end of August."
No matter what Leah chooses to do after school no doubt she will show the same gritty characteristics that have seen her go far in the world of canoeing.