WATCHING his sons conquer the world, Bernard Brady believes he is the luckiest dad alive.
‘It’s a fabulous thing to feel that your kids want you to be involved with them,’ says Bernard, who has guided three of his sons to WAKO Youth World Kickboxing Championship titles.
Sean kickstarted the gold rush in 2016. Oisín followed in 2022. Last year, Óran won two world crowns. The Brady brothers from Bantry pack a punch – and a kick – on the biggest stage.
This is an incredible success story: how a father helped steer his sons to the very top. Bernard has had a front-row seat, from their first tentative kicks to their greatest sporting triumphs.
‘When Sean won his world title, I was in his corner. When Oisín won his, I was there. When Óran won his, I was there,’ Bernard beams, before emotion takes over and his voice cracks. Even recalling it brings him close to tears.
‘It’s only when you come home from the world championships and the madness settles down that you realise how remarkable this is,’ he adds.
‘When they win, in those moments I am still their coach; the emotions are high but I need to fulfil that role to the best of my ability.’
Bernard Brady with Óisin and Óran who have both won world kickboxing titles.
Add in his daughter Ciara, who also competed in kickboxing, and youngest son Bernard Jnr, keen to follow in his brothers’ footsteps, and this Brady bunch is a unique sporting family. For Bernard and his wife Doreen, these are memories that will endure – and strengthen the bond between two proud parents and their five children.
‘If they never achieve anything else in kickboxing, what they have achieved in their young lives is amazing,’ Bernard says.
‘As a dad, I’m in awe of them. They’ve put in the work, not me. It’s 100 percent theirs. I provide guidance, as a coach and a father. What’s priceless is that I get to spend all this time with them.’
He recalls a family holiday in March when all seven travelled together – from Sean (24) to Ciara (21) to Oisín (20) to Óran (18) to Bernard Jnr (13).
‘Even though we’ve spent so much time together already, they still want to be with us. That’s something I’ll always treasure,’ he says.
The dynamic is intriguing: Bernard, who runs ION Health and Fitness Gym in Castletownbere, is both coach and dad to his sons, with Oisín and Óran currently active.
Getting the balance right is key. It’s knowing when to be dad and when to be coach. He admits he had to learn along the way. In his early coaching days with Sean and Ciara, Bernard focused heavily on the physical side before his own philosophy evolved.
‘Sean and Ciara probably had tougher sessions than the lads do now; our motto back then was hard work delivers results. We worked hard and the results came,’ Bernard recalls.
But his approach has shifted.
‘The dynamic now is different – it’s about discussion, about understanding where the boys want to be and where they want to go,’ he explains.
‘They also need to be able to judge me as a coach, to say “Dad, that’s not working”. It’s not about switching off coach when I’m dad, it’s about switching off dad when I’m coach. I need to train them as athletes, and they need to accept me in that role.
‘Sean once said to me, “You think it’s hard being a coach to your son, but imagine being a son to your coach,” and it hit me. I had never thought of it that way.
‘Imagine how tough it is when your dad is also your coach. I can come back home after training, watch a movie with the lads and be dad, but when we go training I’m coach – and they still have to live under the same roof with their coach, even when they’re annoyed with him!
‘The dynamic we have now is perfect. I have a great relationship with Oisín and Óran, and little Bernard as well, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have five children who’ve shared this sport with me.’
Before he became a coach, Bernard first had to master kickboxing himself. Growing up in Dublin, GAA – and especially hurling – was his passion. He was a late starter in kickboxing, 26 when he first stepped into the sport, but he was hooked instantly.
That passion became an obsession. When the Bradys later moved to West Cork, it was the perfect chance to push on.
World junior kickboxing champion Óran Brady with his dad Bernard, who also coaches him.
After years with West Cork Kickboxing Club, Bernard set up his own: ION Health and Fitness Gym.
At one stage he ran clubs in Castletownbere, Bantry, Schull and Kenmare, but has since streamlined everything to the HQ in Castletownbere.
‘We have the gym, one-on-one personal training, fitness classes, and kickboxing of course – it’s a big operation and anyone interested can contact me through our social media,’ he explains.
He has evolved as a coach, too. In his early days with Combat Kickboxing in Kildare, Bernard focused on full contact before switching to light contact at West Cork Kickboxing Club. Now he believes he has found the right balance.
‘Our style at ION is an infusion of two different combat styles,’ he says.
‘The teaching method I developed is all about praise and encouragement. It’s the development of self-belief, self-worth, self-discipline and, most importantly, ownership – not blaming others.’
The skills, he stresses, go beyond sport.
‘Kickboxing is not just about kicking or punching – that’s only a percentage of what we do. It’s about self-development, self-love, and building belief in yourself that you can go further, whatever that is: study, life, marriage,’ he adds.
Bernard has won medals nationally and internationally as a kickboxer. Now he has coached his sons to multiple national, European and world titles – and they’re not finished yet.
