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'The idea you would put environmental beliefs ahead of sporting goals is a very alien concept'

In the first of a three-part series Brendan O'Brien discusses the too-often tenuous relationship between sport and the changing climate.

Tue, 24 Jun, 2025 - 06:04

Brendan O'Brien

Miriam Gormally lets out a deep laugh a good half-hour into the chat. Her mirth, not for the first time, cuts through the seriousness of a discussion on climate change and what it is that individual athletes like her can possibly do in the face of a tide that threatens to wash over sport and so much more.

“There was a joke one time about how, ‘the planet is in trouble and we really need to do something for our children’. Someone says, ‘oh, that’s terrible’, and they’re told that if they stop flying then that could be a massive contribution. The guy says, ‘hold on, I didn’t mean like a real thing, I meant more like a bumper sticker’.” She has seen lots of bumper stickers in environmentalism, whether that’s putting plastic in the green bin, or recycling a worn tennis ball – one of 330 million made every year - that takes 400 years to decompose. And she’s okay with that. Really. Deeper change is expensive and difficult, and you just can’t preach to people about this stuff.

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