From Tuam to Kenya, 2022 was a sporting odyssey for Leitrim Ladies captain Clare Owens

We're back to that time of the year where we look back and look forward at the same time and in the Observer sports department, we're no different! Or maybe we know what works as we return with our popular sports review of 2022 over the next few weeks.

Like last year, we've asked some of the county's brightest sports stars to look back over the last 12 months along with some of those journalists on the sports beat around the county.

Leitrim Ladies captain Clare Owens looks back on 2022 and picks out her personal highlights and lows as well in a year that spanned some quite unusual venues for the St Joseph’s player.

Highlight of the Year

Going to keep this local - Leitrim Ladies winning back to back Connacht titles! We had some very close and exciting matches against Roscommon last season. It was a very enjoyable and satisfying victory in sunny St. Jarlath's Park last May with so many Leitrim supporters there to cheer us on and share in those moments with the team and management.

Lowlight of the Year

I'm going to stay with Leitrim Ladies for this one. Winning that Connacht title meant we were safe from relegation and secure in the Intermediate Championship for 2023, a generous gift from the LGFA for winning your Provincial decider. Preparations went well for the All Ireland series but our Championship campaign just never really took off and was over before it ever properly began. A one point loss against Wicklow on home ground in Drumshanbo was probably the one we let get away. It was a reminder that the absolute finest of margins really can make a huge difference in sport, and in life too I suppose.

With the controversy over the staging of the World Cup in Qatar, what’s your view on the role of sport and politics/social issues - should they mix? Should they be kept separate?

It would certainly be less of a moral dilemma if they could be kept separate, but is that possible? I really don't think it is. There will always be an asterisk beside the '22 World Cup in my mind when it comes to the ethics and morality of several aspects of its staging. Which is a shame because an absolute feast of football was served to all willing spectators, at a time of year that is relatively quiet on the live sport front.

Clare Owens pictured with 2012 Olympic 800m champion David Rudisha and former Leitrim player and Aughnasheelin native Tony Dolan during her visit to Kenya in November

Personality of the Year

A difficult question with so many to choose from, even if we were to just consider Irish sport stars. My pick though is a man who played plenty of football here over the years. I think he might even have a medal or two for hurling and I'm sure he's excelled at lots of other sports too. I had the pleasure and privilege of meeting and getting to spend some time with Brother Tony Dolan (originally from Aughnasheelin) on his farm at Baraka Agricultural College in Kenya earlier this month. A very interesting person to chat with on a wide range of topics. Someone who'd make you beam with pride for having even that one small thing in common of both being from Leitrim! The life he has led, the work he has done (and continues to do) in Africa, what he has achieved there, as well as being a real breath of fresh air to be around and an absolute gentleman, means he was an easy choice for me for this title. Brother Colm O'Connell deserves a mention here too for the astounding success he has helped so many Kenyan athletes achieve over the years.

Team of the Year

Irish women's soccer team and their qualifying for the World Cup. Made all the more significant and special by Donegal native Amber Barrett being the goal scorer on that night in Glasgow after the Creeslough tragedy the previous week. 

What are the big challenges facing Leitrim sport in 2023

There is great work being done already by so many around the county. This is more of an opportunity than a challenge but I think other counties and sports around the country have demonstrated that investing in a long term, solid and progressive underage structure can result in an improvement of prospects for all involved. 

Person or event that made me go wow in 2022

Argentina winning the World Cup and Messi lighting it up on the International stage. Even with the many advancements in education and technology when it comes to coaching and sport nowadays, it's so thrilling and refreshing to witness a player like Messi. He has that magic sprinkle of something extra that can't quite fully be explained.

One thing I’d do to make sport better in 2023

Maybe more children to have more opportunities to try out a wider range of sports around the country. There's an argument for a clear focus on one chosen sport in order to excel, and many international sport stars have shown how effective that can be. But for the majority, participation in sport is about far more than what accolades or competitions they might ever win. For that reason, I think it would be great for children to have easily accessible opportunities to try out as many sports as they can, to see what might be the best fit for them.

One to watch in 2023

David Rudisha! Announces a potential transition from competing into coaching in Athletics on the same day he togs out and takes part in a Gaelic football match, followed by a hurling match? Watch this space! Seriously though, Rhasidat Adeleke has a very exciting future and could be a serious competitor at the 2024 Olympics in France if things go according to plan for her.

Check out next week's Observer for more in the sporting review of the year from Aine Tighe, Shane Mallon, Darren Mulvey, PJ Leddy & John Connolly