Named as one of the 50 women of influence in Irish Sport in 2022 by Sport for Business, Moira Aston is known for her commitment, drive and determination in the sporting community.
However, when she left school in 1980, there were very few jobs in sport, which resulted in her pivoting career pathways.
According to Moira, not many people were paid a salary in a job working in the sports industry at that time.
“I had a variety of different career changes, from Irish Life to managing restaurants,” she says. “When the kids came along, I stayed at home full-time for the early years.”
In 2007, she became a membership officer in Athletics Ireland and worked her way up within the organisation.
“I was looking after 40,000 members at the time,” recalls the Meath woman. “Then I branched out into safeguarding as Garda Vetting came in. I moved into competitions then, and it was like a baptism of fire, due to the number of regional and national competitions taking place.
"The Masters Indoor in Nenagh is as important to the masters [aged 35+] as the National Seniors is for the athletes who are trying to set a time to get to the Olympics.”
In 2016, Moira decided to complete a Master of Business Administration (MBA) through University College Dublin.
At the time, the now Chair of Sport Ireland, John Foley, moved from Waterford Crystal into the CEO of Athletics Ireland role and taught Moira about the business of sport. He became a mentor to Moira.
“I learned a lot from John, including having confidence in my ability to lead an organisation. It was through him supporting me that I went for CEO of Canoeing Ireland in 2018.”
The first three months were a nervous time for Moira – however, her confidence grew and she came into her own in the role.
Moira has since worked to make structural changes, update governance and apply a business model approach to the sporting organisation.
“Most people see sports from a volunteer aspect – they are on the ground supporting. The business of sport needs to have a sustainable, coherent plan in order to be successful,” says Moira.
Having an influence
After completing a diploma in governance through Sport Ireland, and with increased focus on governance within sporting organisations, Moira was appointed and elected onto several sporting boards.
She currently serves on The Olympic Federation of Ireland, Meath Local Sports Partnership, Comhairle na Tuaithe and was recently elected to the board of the Federation of Irish Sport.
The organisational structures and purpose of the various boards that Moira serves on are very different, but they also have a shared purpose – supporting sport at local, regional, national and international level.
“Canoeing Ireland is a growing organisation, with great connections across the entire sporting landscape,” says Moira.
“We do our best to raise the profile of paddle sports. One of the ways that we achieve this is through connecting and learning from other organisations. Having a seat at the board table is a very effective way to achieve this, and to learn from other organisations.”
Even though Canoeing Ireland is small in terms of the numbers in high-performance or membership, Moira emphasises there are a big number of people who are out in the water.
“It’s getting bigger in terms of recreational paddlers who are getting out there,” she says.
Developing initiatives
An area of focus for Moira was creating opportunities for people with different needs within a sport with high entry barriers.
“We are creating opportunities for people to experience paddling. We learn from them about how we can best support them,” says Moira.
We have four young people inspiring the nation, and shining a light on a great sport
They have developed a programme called ‘Paddle Able’, which gives a voice and visibility to ambassadors with different needs to lead the way in participation.
“When it comes down to it, sport is about people. If you focus only on performance sport, you’re going to miss a whole cohort of people who are bringing an absolute wealth to the sport through their participation and passion,” she says.
‘Bridging the Gap’ in 2016 was another initiative introduced as part of the wider Sport Ireland Women in Sport campaign, encouraging more women into the sport as there was a 72% male and 28% female gender difference at the time.
“Because it’s an adventure sport, women were either quietly doing it, or they were looking at it and thinking, ‘it’s not for me’. Part of it was increasing the visibility of females participating in paddle sports at entry level,” she says.
Making it more visible and encouraging more women to try the sport has resulted in a better split – now at 58% male and 42% female – which isn’t perfect but a big improvement, according to Moira.
Governing body of the year
The annual Irish Sports Industry Awards took place in June to recognise the important economic role sport plays in the Irish Economy.
The National Governing Body of the Year 2024 was awarded to Canoeing Ireland for their impact, growth and performance achieved in recent years.
When it comes to the key to success, Moira finds it is important to focus on people and create a space where they’re happy working and able to make decisions with a high level of autonomy.
“That’s how everyone learns and grows and that’s why the team is a strong performing unit at the moment,” she says.
Now for the first time, Canoeing Ireland has had four people representing Ireland at this year’s Olympics in the Canoe Slalom.
An important part for Moira was there were two females (Madison and Michaela Corcoran) and two males (Liam Jegou and Noel Hendricks) on the team.
Michaela Corcoran of Team Ireland in action during the heats of the women’s C1 canoe slalom during the Olympic Games in Paris. \ Stephen McCarthy Sportsfile
Liam Jegou finished 7th in Paris at his second Olympics competing in the Men’s C1 Singles. First-time Olympian Noel Hendrick competed in the K1. Madison Corcoran competed in the K1, while her twin sister Michaela was in the C1.
“The Olympics is the pinnacle of sporting achievement, with all of the world’s media focused on Paris,” says Moira. “This is a great opportunity for three first time Olympians and one team member (Liam) who competed in Tokyo to have a second chance.”
Moira was in Paris and is proud of the achievements of the team. “The passion and inspiration that comes from sport is unrivalled. We have four young people inspiring the nation, and shining a light on a great sport.
“Supporting that, there is a huge body of really happy people, not only staff, but volunteers who are proud of the sport, who can hold their head up and say that this is a great sport to be a part of.”
- Canoeing Ireland is the National Governing Body for paddle sports in Ireland, including canoeing, kayaking, sea kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding (SUP), dragon boating and white-water rafting.
- €3.6bn was spent by people in Ireland on sport-related goods and services in 2018.
- €3.7bn is the total value of sport to the Irish economy.
- 64,000 people are employed in the sports sector and sport-related jobs account for 2.8% of all Irish employment.
- €1.5bn is the estimated economic value of volunteering in sport and physical activity.
Read more
Giving children the confidence to cook
IFJ Junior: Young farmers enjoy a day out on Tullamore Farm
Named as one of the 50 women of influence in Irish Sport in 2022 by Sport for Business, Moira Aston is known for her commitment, drive and determination in the sporting community.
However, when she left school in 1980, there were very few jobs in sport, which resulted in her pivoting career pathways.
According to Moira, not many people were paid a salary in a job working in the sports industry at that time.
“I had a variety of different career changes, from Irish Life to managing restaurants,” she says. “When the kids came along, I stayed at home full-time for the early years.”
In 2007, she became a membership officer in Athletics Ireland and worked her way up within the organisation.
“I was looking after 40,000 members at the time,” recalls the Meath woman. “Then I branched out into safeguarding as Garda Vetting came in. I moved into competitions then, and it was like a baptism of fire, due to the number of regional and national competitions taking place.
"The Masters Indoor in Nenagh is as important to the masters [aged 35+] as the National Seniors is for the athletes who are trying to set a time to get to the Olympics.”
In 2016, Moira decided to complete a Master of Business Administration (MBA) through University College Dublin.
At the time, the now Chair of Sport Ireland, John Foley, moved from Waterford Crystal into the CEO of Athletics Ireland role and taught Moira about the business of sport. He became a mentor to Moira.
“I learned a lot from John, including having confidence in my ability to lead an organisation. It was through him supporting me that I went for CEO of Canoeing Ireland in 2018.”
The first three months were a nervous time for Moira – however, her confidence grew and she came into her own in the role.
Moira has since worked to make structural changes, update governance and apply a business model approach to the sporting organisation.
“Most people see sports from a volunteer aspect – they are on the ground supporting. The business of sport needs to have a sustainable, coherent plan in order to be successful,” says Moira.
Having an influence
After completing a diploma in governance through Sport Ireland, and with increased focus on governance within sporting organisations, Moira was appointed and elected onto several sporting boards.
She currently serves on The Olympic Federation of Ireland, Meath Local Sports Partnership, Comhairle na Tuaithe and was recently elected to the board of the Federation of Irish Sport.
The organisational structures and purpose of the various boards that Moira serves on are very different, but they also have a shared purpose – supporting sport at local, regional, national and international level.
“Canoeing Ireland is a growing organisation, with great connections across the entire sporting landscape,” says Moira.
“We do our best to raise the profile of paddle sports. One of the ways that we achieve this is through connecting and learning from other organisations. Having a seat at the board table is a very effective way to achieve this, and to learn from other organisations.”
Even though Canoeing Ireland is small in terms of the numbers in high-performance or membership, Moira emphasises there are a big number of people who are out in the water.
“It’s getting bigger in terms of recreational paddlers who are getting out there,” she says.
Developing initiatives
An area of focus for Moira was creating opportunities for people with different needs within a sport with high entry barriers.
“We are creating opportunities for people to experience paddling. We learn from them about how we can best support them,” says Moira.
We have four young people inspiring the nation, and shining a light on a great sport
They have developed a programme called ‘Paddle Able’, which gives a voice and visibility to ambassadors with different needs to lead the way in participation.
“When it comes down to it, sport is about people. If you focus only on performance sport, you’re going to miss a whole cohort of people who are bringing an absolute wealth to the sport through their participation and passion,” she says.
‘Bridging the Gap’ in 2016 was another initiative introduced as part of the wider Sport Ireland Women in Sport campaign, encouraging more women into the sport as there was a 72% male and 28% female gender difference at the time.
“Because it’s an adventure sport, women were either quietly doing it, or they were looking at it and thinking, ‘it’s not for me’. Part of it was increasing the visibility of females participating in paddle sports at entry level,” she says.
Making it more visible and encouraging more women to try the sport has resulted in a better split – now at 58% male and 42% female – which isn’t perfect but a big improvement, according to Moira.
Governing body of the year
The annual Irish Sports Industry Awards took place in June to recognise the important economic role sport plays in the Irish Economy.
The National Governing Body of the Year 2024 was awarded to Canoeing Ireland for their impact, growth and performance achieved in recent years.
When it comes to the key to success, Moira finds it is important to focus on people and create a space where they’re happy working and able to make decisions with a high level of autonomy.
“That’s how everyone learns and grows and that’s why the team is a strong performing unit at the moment,” she says.
Now for the first time, Canoeing Ireland has had four people representing Ireland at this year’s Olympics in the Canoe Slalom.
An important part for Moira was there were two females (Madison and Michaela Corcoran) and two males (Liam Jegou and Noel Hendricks) on the team.
Michaela Corcoran of Team Ireland in action during the heats of the women’s C1 canoe slalom during the Olympic Games in Paris. \ Stephen McCarthy Sportsfile
Liam Jegou finished 7th in Paris at his second Olympics competing in the Men’s C1 Singles. First-time Olympian Noel Hendrick competed in the K1. Madison Corcoran competed in the K1, while her twin sister Michaela was in the C1.
“The Olympics is the pinnacle of sporting achievement, with all of the world’s media focused on Paris,” says Moira. “This is a great opportunity for three first time Olympians and one team member (Liam) who competed in Tokyo to have a second chance.”
Moira was in Paris and is proud of the achievements of the team. “The passion and inspiration that comes from sport is unrivalled. We have four young people inspiring the nation, and shining a light on a great sport.
“Supporting that, there is a huge body of really happy people, not only staff, but volunteers who are proud of the sport, who can hold their head up and say that this is a great sport to be a part of.”
- Canoeing Ireland is the National Governing Body for paddle sports in Ireland, including canoeing, kayaking, sea kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding (SUP), dragon boating and white-water rafting.
- €3.6bn was spent by people in Ireland on sport-related goods and services in 2018.
- €3.7bn is the total value of sport to the Irish economy.
- 64,000 people are employed in the sports sector and sport-related jobs account for 2.8% of all Irish employment.
- €1.5bn is the estimated economic value of volunteering in sport and physical activity.
Read more
Giving children the confidence to cook
IFJ Junior: Young farmers enjoy a day out on Tullamore Farm
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: