Cormac Comerford is Ireland’s #1 homegrown alpine ski racer. With 10x World Championship starts, and as a nine-time Irish National Champion, he is the country’s strongest prospect for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.
But Cormac’s journey to this point has not been straightforward. How does an athlete from Dublin’s south coast reach the highest level in a sport dominated by alpine nations?
With no gondolas or black runs at his doorstep, Cormac was introduced to skiing at Ireland’s artificial slope in Kilternan, Dublin, only by chance at the clubs Octoberfest. Cormac began skiing at eight years old—relatively late by the standards of alpine nations, where most athletes are on skis before they can walk.
Lacking structured support or guidance in his early career, Cormac forged his own path from the Ski Club of Ireland to the Alps. Cormac’s love of the sport and appetite for adventure drove him to pursue this passion with blind obsession. At just twelve years old, he travelled alone to begin training in France. He progressed rapidly, and by fifteen, he was balancing school while competing internationally after joining Impulse Racing, a British ski team based in Pila, Italy. By eighteen, he was studying Engineering, racing full-time with a private international team Kronplatz Racing Center, and represented Ireland at his first Alpine Ski World Championships in St. Moritz in 2017.
335 (and counting…) international starts later, Cormac has represented Ireland at the University Games, Youth Olympics, Junior World Championships, and five World Championships. His journey reflects the long-term commitment, resilience, and grit required to perform at the highest level of international sport.
Cormac’s story is still being written as he travels across the globe to train and compete. He is currently based in Zell am See, Austria where he trains with a private international team. He is now working towards representing Ireland on the World Cup circuit, targeting a place among the world’s top 150 racers, and on the Olympic stage, where he currently meets qualification standards in all four alpine disciplines.