Saoirse (12) fought her way to world top rankings in Muay Thai

By Marie Boran A young Carlow athlete has defied expectations to become second in the world at Muay Thai, proving that determination knows no limits.

When Saoirse Hogan Balfe watched Carlow Muay Thai champion Chloe Black competing on television, she turned to her mother with a simple declaration: “I’d love to do that and give it a go”.

For most 12 year olds, it would just be an ambitious dream. For Saoirse, a part-time wheelchair user with autism, it seemed almost impossible.

Yet today, this remarkable young woman from Carlow stands as the second-best Muay Thai fighter in the world for her age and weight category, having recently won silver at the International Federation of Muay Thai (IFMA) World Championships in Abu Dhabi.

When Saoirse first approached Carlow Muaythai Gym, her parents were supportive but uncertain how their daughter would manage the physical demands of the sport, which is a traditional martial art from Thailand that uses punches, kicks, elbows and knees in a powerful, full-contact fighting style.

Having hypermobility syndrome means Saoirse’s joints are extra flexible due to looser ligaments, causing pain and making injury more likely, and giving her very low muscle tone.

“She started anyway and the lads (in the gym) all knew that she was a part-time wheelchair user and that she was autistic but they said ‘we’ll work with her and we’ll do what we can’,” her mother Sinead Hogan recalls.

What happened next was nothing short of extraordinary.

Saoirse threw herself into training with such dedication that she built up the strength in her muscles session by session, push by push.

“The wheelchair is just left there now,” says Sinead with evident pride in her voice.

The journey hasn’t been easy. Sinead explains that Saoirse is often in pain during and after training, but “she pushes through it all the time”.

The changes in Saoirse have extended far beyond the physical. Her mother explains that her daughter's autism affects her socially and sensorily, but Muay Thai has helped her blossom.

She continued: “She’s gained so much more confidence in herself. At one stage Saoirse wouldn’t even raise her head. She wouldn’t make eye contact with you. She was a completely different child.” The transformation was put to the ultimate test at the World Championships in Abu Dhabi, where Saoirse competed with 1,200 athletes in what Sinead describes as “a monstrosity of an arena” filled with crowds and noise.

For someone with sensory sensitivities, it could have been overwhelming. But Saoirse had prepared herself with characteristic determination.

“She always wore her ear defenders everywhere but she knew that being in the arena in Abu Dhabi would be like going to a concert,” Sinead explains. “So she’d get me to bring her down to Tramore and she would go in around amusements where it’d be really noisy and gradually take her ear defenders off more and more until she was able to go without them.” “I don’t know where she came from! I would love a quarter of her strength,” Sinead adds.

Saoirse’s hard work paid off with a silver medal, making her second in the world. She might well have claimed gold, but fate intervened when she contracted covid during the competition.

Remarkably, she turned up for the final before her coaches realised something was wrong. The medical team discovered she was running a fever but she still managed to secure a silver medal.

Saoirse isn’t resting on her achievements. She currently trains with Carlow Muaythai Gym four times a week and takes private classes with her inspiration, Chloe Black.

She’s already preparing for the IFMA International Antalya Muaythai Open Cup in Turkey this coming March and hopes to be selected for the next World Championship in September 2026.

For Sinead, watching her daughter’s journey has been a lesson in never underestimating what’s possible.

“When kids have extra needs, they’re almost put into a box. So when I saw Saoirse was capable of going this far, obviously I pushed her without pushing her too far,” she reflects.

She remembers when Saoirse could only participate in all-inclusive sports and activities, playing all-inclusive tag rugby at age five. “I was every bit as proud of her doing that, because at the time, that was her best,” Sinead says.

The contrast with today is striking. “Now Saoirse is able to do what everyone else is doing. No special category, just pure resilience and strength. Mentally, if you have that strength, it goes to show you, it can come physically.” Sometimes Sinead has to step back to fully appreciate how far her daughter has come.

“People would say to me: Do you not understand? She was in a wheelchair and she is autistic, she’s in a special school and she has gone in with the best of the best. She’s number two in the world. In the world. Not in Ireland, in the world.” 

For young Saoirse Hogan Balfe from Carlow, the sky is no longer the limit. She’s already proven that with determination, support and sheer grit, any obstacle can be overcome.