Define Your Success

Episode Summary: What does it take to transition from Olympic rowing tobuilding a disruptive start-up? In this episode of Define Your Success , host Abigail Irozuru speaks with Olympian and Daylilies co-founder Jennifer Casson about resilience, mental health, and innovation. Jennifer shares her unexpected Tokyo 2021 Olympic qualification story , the lessons learned from supportinga teammate throug...

A compelling conversation hosted by Olympian, Abigail Irozuru, with Team GB and British athletics trailblazer, Kelly Sotherton MBE, a triple Olympic medallist and CEO of the British Elite Athletes Association (BEAA). Key takeaways from the conversation include: Reshaping the Athlete Journey: Kelly's mission is to make the athlete's path smoother and more pleasant, ensuring they gain crucial life s...

Welcome to the loooong-awaited Season 4 premiere of Define Your Success ! We kick off this new season with an incredibly inspiring conversation with Lewis J. Richardson , an Olympian who medalled at the 2024 Paris Games and recently made his pro debut (June 2025). Lewis takes us on a raw, honest, and truly profound journey, offering a rare glimpse into the complex world of professional boxing and...

🚀 We delve into the world of sports law, anti-doping, selection policies, commercial contracts for athletes and the journey of athletes navigating these challenging arenas. 🎙️ In this episode, Olympian Abigail Irozuru has the pleasure of speaking with Imani, a dedicated athlete and aspiring sports lawyer. We cover: 🔹 How We Met : Training after an injury led to deep conversations and mutual resp...

Transgender women's inclusion in women's sport has been a contentious, divisive issue for several years. Listen to an expert's perspective on this episode hosted by Abigail Irozuru with Sharron Davies - a broadcaster, author, former ITV Gladiator and Olympic swimmer who is passionate about fair sport.  During Sharron’s swimming career, she and her colleagues personally experienced the...

A captivating conversation with Team Fiji Olympic athlete Danielle Alakija, as she shares her remarkable journey from childhood running superstar to becoming an Olympian at just 16 years old. Beyond the track, we delve into Danni’s passion for climate advocacy, particularly her efforts to amplify the voices of the Global South in discussions around climate change solutions. She's reimagining t...

Erika Seltenreich-Hodgson is a Canadian Olympian and a Performance Lifestyle Advisor with the UK Institute of Sport, working with British Athletics and British Shooting World Class Performance Program athletes.  The second key conversation of the 2024 season with Define Your Success is between host Abigail Irozuru and Erika, a member of the elite high performance team.  Key Discussion Points: Athl...

Second of the two-part conversation hosted by Olympian, Abigail Irozuru with Team England Commonwealth Games' rhythmic gymnast, coach and business-owner Mimi-Isabella Cesar. Key takeaways from the conversation include: 1. Aesthetic sports like gymnastics involve subjective judging based on the athletes' appearance and execution. 2. Collaboration with experts in various fields is crucial fo...

The first episode after a year-long hiatus (sorry - I went AWOL!) Conversation with 2 x Team England Commonwealth Games representative in rhythmic gymnastics, Mimi-Isabella Cesar.  In this first part, we speak about the highs and lows of Mimi’s competitive career and lead into her journey into entrepreneurship, inspired by righting the wrongs she experienced to be a better coach and leader to the...

A quick dose of inspiration and some practical challenges from Olympian, Abigail Irozuru for you to try to apply to have a great week and ‘achieve greatness’ in your own life! Share your thoughts on this episode on Instagram @definesuccessuk https://instagram.com/definesuccessuk or email info@defineyoursuccess.uk . You can even send in a short voice message with your thoughts! Https://anchor.fm/de...

In this episode with 4 x Olympian from Trinidad and Tobago, Mikel Thomas, we discuss: his Olympic experiences (the athlete’s perspective) from Beijing 2008 to London 2012 to Rio 2016.  his Masters program in Lausanne, Switzerland at the International Academy of Sport, Science and Technology and the doors of opportunity this opened, including being amongst FIFA, UEFA, and the global sporting ecosys...

In this episode with 4 x Olympian from Trinidad and Tobago, Mikel Thomas, we discuss: — his origin story - how did he get involved in athletics and bobsleigh? — the challenges he’s faced reaching 4 Olympic Games (3 Summer, 1 Winter) — his response to these challenges - choosing peace; trusting God even in the silence and his growing faith and how he hears God. The second part features: — his Olymp...

In this episode with sports scientist (specifically as a biomechanist), Dr Philip Graham-Smith, Head of Biomechanics and Innovation at Aspire Academy, we discuss: his beginnings in sports working at Salford University and Liverpool John Moores with horizontal jumpers the basics of biomechanical science that we can employ in training - e.g. video support the in-depth additional analysis provided by...

In this episode, I sit down with 2 x Winter Olympian, Lloyd Wallace. I was initially intrigued about his family legacy (he is the 5th Olympian and 3rd generation of Olympian in his family, beginning with Grandad Peter Curry in 1948). We discuss this and the other legacy he hopes will ‘last for years’ beyond sport. In this final part, we discuss: - A semi-retirement and the importance of taking bre...

In this episode, I sit down with 2 x Winter Olympian, Lloyd Wallace. I was initially intrigued about his family legacy (he is the 5th Olympian and 3rd generation of Olympian in his family, beginning with Grandad Peter Curry in 1948), but you’ll have to wait to Part Two to hear all about that and the other legacy he hopes will ‘last for years’ beyond sport.  In this first part we discuss: Aerial sk...

In this episode with Olympic history-maker and 2x Olympian, Montell Douglas, we discuss: Her Olympic experiences - Summer and Winter Olympic Games Being one of only TWO people in the WORLD to attend both the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympic Games and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic games Being a history-maker in her family - first university graduate Her ‘whirlwind’ first Olympic experience 2018 Pyeong...

In this episode with Olympic history-maker (listen to find out why) and 2x Olympian, Montell Douglas, we discuss: Her definition of success (one of the most intriguing responses yet) Her sporting origin story Her multi-faceted career in schools’ mentoring, professional services, athletics’ coaching, charitable work and her own great sporting achievements! Olympic cycles vs ‘Real world’ seemingly u...

A conversation where host, Abigail guested on Sporting for His Glory ( a podcast hosted by previous DYS podcast guest, Karé Adenigan) We discuss: Connecting at the Commonwealth Games and through the Womens’ Sports Trust Unlocked Programme We started the podcast with a prayer, which is such a beautiful and powerful way to start off any project, but particularly one with the title - Sporting For His...

In this episode, hear various short clips of how Britain's best athletes and coaches define success.  Long form definitions of success and the more challenging narrowing it down to three words.  How do you define success?  Before listening to their responses, why not define success for yourself first and share it with our listeners!  Send in a voicenote with your definition to...

In this episode of #DYSPodcast, hear the wisdom and joy Tiffany Porter (ex-Team GB 100m Hurdler) shares around athletics, retirement from sport, motherhood, including training and competing whilst breastfeeding and (all in 2021, post-baby) winning European Indoor Bronze, becoming British Champion and representing Team GB at the Tokyo Olympic Games - all whilst being a mother to her Rainbow Baby, C...

Vertigo - what is is (symptoms) and its causes Storytime - how it happened “Health issues seem to be quite common in athletes and not as understanding as injuries, it seems.” - a quote from a friend that prompted me sharing this episode Baseline - balance and proprioception work whilst brushing your teeth Baseline for your holistic health Achilles Tendon Rupture Recovery - Knee-to-wall Baseline -...

In this second part of the conversation with USA Track and Field Paralympian, Lacey J Henderson, we discuss: the instability of the contracting life, self-employed status that we all take on as athletes; the unfairness of the broad range of disability categories for Paralympians and what Lacey is doing to challenge and change that for the better. Lacey’s Sports Psychology Masters’ degree: how we m...

Originally published 15th November 2022. British Athletics' Strength & Conditioning Coach   A conversation with S&C Coach, Rob Miller Rob is co-owner of Informed Performance, alongside Michael Johnston (MJ).  https://www.informedperformance.co.uk/  Both work at British Athletics as part of the Strength & Conditioning Performance Team. https://www.britishathletics.or...

Part One of a 2-Part Conversation with Lacey Henderson, Team USA Paralympic Athlete & Performance Psychology Consultant  Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/laceyisyourfriend Performance Psychology Consultant @parallelperformanceconsulting LinkTree - https://linktr.ee/laceyisyourfriend This episode is for you if you’re grieving the loss of a job, a role, a life; if you’re looking for some practi...

Kare Adenegan has so many medals to her name, I don’t even know where to begin- She has won medals at every major championships: British, European, Commonwealth, World and Paralympic Games - and she achieved these great feats alongside her studies, most recently having graduated from the University of Warwick. Congratulations! As we warm up into this conversation, things get a little deep. Equalit...