THE MODEL OF CONSISTENCY

Banbridge hockey player Philip Doyle went from would-be clothes horse to Olympic and World medal winning rower

- Derek FOLEY

SPORTS stars, mainly former sports stars mind you, have become the new supermodels.

Meet Banbridge and Ireland's Philip Doyle; he was a budding supermodel before he ever touched an oar and began rowing.

The man who swapped his bronzed tan for Olympic bronze in Tokyo 2024 and at the World Championships last weekend in Shanghai.

Doyle's latest sporting heroics came alongside Fintan McCarthy last weekend in the double sculls final at the World Championships, taking third in only their fourth race together.

It could have been one place better too as while Poland had pulled clear along way out and won gold comfortably, Ireland were overhauled by Serbia with just 500m to go to the line.

It was a remarkable achievement for Doyle who would not have been anywhere next to near the water, an oar or a lightweight double scull if he had not set off on a modelling job at an upmarket store in Dublin — you couldn't make his journey up!

"The story," he shrugs, "starts on Dame Street in Dublin, actually, I was the fella standing at the front of the Abercrombie shop, there were two lads in Ireland who were chosen to do it, and I was one.

"We'd opened the shop with 30 lads from all over the world and myself and David Neale, who it turned out rowed for UCD boat club, were the Irish guys.

"At this stage, I was 18/19 years old and the brief was you had to be trim and have a six-pack chest.

"I didn't know anything about rowing, I played hockey and I just trained hard in the gym and I was, like, in my mind if I train harder, I'll look better.

"And then David was like I eat whatever I want but I can keep in shape because I row...

"And he was in good nick despite the fact I could see him eating burritos and all this and I was there eating chicken and pasta and broccoli and all this, like you see on the internet.