Claire McLaughlin
| Place of birth | Bushmills, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| University | Queen's University Belfast | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | Physician | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Claire McLaughlin is a women's rugby union player from Bushmills, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, and a qualified physician. She plays for Ulster Rugby and the Ireland women's national rugby union team as a centre.[1]
Early life and education
McLaughlin is the daughter of John McLaughlin, a beef farmer, and his wife Pamela, a teacher. She has two brothers.[2] She grew up on a farm.[2] She was educated at Coleraine High School in Coleraine, County Londonderry.[2] After this she studied medicine at Queen's University, Belfast.[2]
Following graduation, she spent her foundation year as a junior doctor at Mater Infirmorum Hospital, Belfast.[2] At the hospital, her work colleagues gave her the nickname of "McSwaplin", since she often swapped shifts at the hospital to accommodate her rugby schedule.[3]
Rugby career
McLaughlin's introduction to rugby was through playing tag rugby at school, and she later joined Ballymoney RFC. After moving to Belfast, McLaughlin started playing for Cooke WRFC before changing to Queen's University RFC.[4] She made her debut for Ulster aged 18 while still at university.[2] She made her debut for the Ireland women's national rugby union team in 2015.[2] She was selected for Ireland's 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup squad as one of only two Ulster players selected.[3] McLaughlin was named as a substitute for Ireland's opening match against the Australia women's national rugby union team at the UCD Bowl in Dublin, Republic of Ireland.[5] She was dropped for Ireland's final game in the seventh-place playoff against Wales held at Ulster's Kingspan Stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland.[6]
Personal life
McLaughlin is a Christian.[7] While playing rugby, she wears wrist tape with "AO1" on it to give thanks to God for her career.[7] McLaughlin is also a trained pianist,[8] having played keyboard in church.[2]
References
- ↑ O'Reilly, Peter (2017-01-29). "Hard work pays off for McLaughlin". The Times. Retrieved 2017-11-09. (subscription required)
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Meet Belfast doctor Claire McLaughlin lining out for Irish rugby". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- 1 2 "McLaughlin Has Remedy At The Ready For World Cup Fever y". IRFU. 2017-08-01. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- ↑ "Claire McLaughlin Q&A". Queen's University. 2017-08-09. Archived from the original on 2017-11-10. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- ↑ McKenna, Micheal (2017-08-09). "Ireland kick-off Women's Rugby World Cup in Dublin tonight". Armagh I. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- ↑ "Ireland victory is a must to avoid World Cup humiliation". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- 1 2 "Belfast doctor ready for Women's Rugby World Cup challenge". The Irish News. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- ↑ Kiely, Ben (2017-02-13). "WATCH: Irish rugby star keeps airport goers entertained with one of her many talents". SportsJOE.ie. Retrieved 2017-11-09.