Sarah Gillespie Author & Irish Fitness Coach
RINKA, with its now nationwide presence, and currently has a staff of 24 instructors and 4 franchisees. Between them they teach over 1,000 children per week across Ireland how to fall in love with fitness and movement.
The journey that inspired Sarah to begin RINKA was an interesting one! As a competitive Irish dancer in her early 20’s, Sarah was on a path to compete at the World Championships and attain her Irish Dance teacher qualifications, as well as training to be a physical therapist. In 2010 a life-changing car accident put her on a whole new path. Sarah went through numerous surgeries on her road to recovery and was told by her surgeons that her high level of health and fitness at the time of the crash had undoubtedly saved her. Sarah knew she had only been healthy because she loved to dance but what about the 1000’s of children who do not love dance or football or other mainstream sports? How are they meant to find their feet with exercise? And so, RINKA was born, and the mission was simple – help ALL children, and not just the sporty ones, to love exercise.
Sarah spent time working as a personal trainer in a busy Dublin gym and met many adults who were struggling with fitness and health and many of them had the same story to tell – they never found a sport they were confident in when they were young! With RINKA, Sarah aims to tackle this issue head-on and give children the confidence and skills they need to find a love for fitness and movement in a way that suits them, without the pressures of competition.
As well as her degree and post graduate diploma, continual professional development is important to Sarah who regularly adds to her qualifications. To date, she has a QQI level 6 in teaching and training, a fitness theory certificate and a nutrition and weight management certificate to support her knowledge and experience.
Sarah has appeared on TV3’s Ireland AM and RTE’s Nationwide and has been interviewed on both national and local radio, discussing the RINKA journey and the plight of the sedentary childhoods that children live today. She is available as a speaker on topics to do with children’s health and inspiring people to move forward and build careers with meaning.