Interview: Oisin O'Callaghan on Competitive Junior Racing, His New YT Setup & More

Jan 29, 2022
by Ed Spratt  
Uncharacteristic result for Oisin O Callaghan coming into second place. The Junior Men s battle is alive and well.

Oisin O'Callaghan


For 2022, former Junior World Champion Oisin O'Callaghan is making the shift to Elite racing and he will be sticking with his tried and tested setup at YT. Before the racing kicks off this year we caught up with Oisin to talk about his offseason, time racing as a Junior and the new setup with YT.



How is your offseason going so far?


Yeah, so my offseason this year has been pretty busy for preparation for 2022. I have really looked into stuff that most athletes probably haven’t invested much time into like hand-eye coordination, reflexes and some Olympic lifts for more power. My dad as my coach have looked into it a lot more than I have and have done the research along with my trainer Fit4Racing, we are also onboard with a coach at Cycling Ireland that works with the track cycling Olympians for Ireland so it has been pretty busy between training and getting used to the new routine. Now I don’t have school it's like perfect just training twice a day doing stuff in-between, it’s been ideal.

So are you full time now just fully focused on racing?


Yep, for me it is what I have wanted to do for years. Just get up that bit earlier and train. Today I went for a 5k run at 7:30 and then into the gym. I will go for another gym session later on but it is not like hard work you enjoy getting up for that morning run. It sets the day off. Doing hand-eye coordination stuff can be fun, yeah it’s good.

What sort of exercises are you doing for the hand-eye coordination training?


There’s a mixture of stuff, we have some special balls that are uneven shape so when you throw them off the floor they can go in any direction. Similar ones like you see the Formula One drivers doing where your hands are on top of the others and they drop the ball for you to try to catch it before it hits the floor. There is also a virtual reality headset that has a game on it that helps open up your vision so you can track more and focus in and also speed up your reactions so I have been doing that quite a bit too.

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What are your thoughts on 2022 and the move up to Elite racing?


Yeah, it’s something I'm excited for as from a very young age you watch the Juniors but the Elites is where all of the big dogs are. I’m excited to start comparing with them and slowly build-up to their speed and positions. Yeah, it’s going to be a big learning curve and I’m excited for the next couple of years.

Is there any specific training you have added to race at the Elite level?


I’ve added in a lot more DH bike time as that is something I have realised that if you want to be the highest level of Elite you can’t really expect to still be there when you aren’t riding your DH bike as much as everybody else. So I have really spent time this winter spending a couple of days in my local woods on the downhill bike. Then between going to the UK twice already doing laps there and I have a test session soon which is going to be good.

What do you think the biggest difference will be compared to racing as a Junior?


The first year of Junior you were there in A practice with the Elites but last year it changed so you were just there with all of the other Juniors. So this year it is going to be being back there with all of the Elites, which did feel good. Probably the biggest thing is being later on in the day where there will be more fans and the track gets a lot more chewed up.

We will get onto your new setup soon but how have your sponsors dealt with the move to Elites?


No not that much has changed just a few small little bits in terms of drivetrain and brakes.

Do you feel more pressure than when you were racing as a Junior?


I think this year there is probably going to be less pressure than last year. Last year you could say I had a target on my back with the Rainbow Jersey, but this year being also on a transitional program and YT have told me that this program is for me to show my potential over the next couple of years and to grow. There is no pressure at the start. So that is cool that I know I can just focus on myself and try do my best.

Was it hard then being the World Champion last year and were you always thinking about your successful first year as a Junior?


I enjoyed and I didn’t think there was pressure with it but looking back I probably felt a small bit of pressure. Just learning with setbacks was the main thing last year that kind of threw it all off.

The YT sponsorship dream continues. Oisin O Callaghan is clearly a force to be reckoned with in the junior category. 1st place for the new World Champ.

What kind of setbacks did you have last year?


So there were a couple of main ones, I crashed in Leogang in practice before I think it was the Quail day and I hurt my wrist quite light, just a pretty bad sprain so I couldn’t really hold on. So that was like the first race just you kind of want to do a solid result at the first race. I still managed I think 8th in the first race so it was alright. Then what many people don’t know in Les Gets I was testing the MX bike, just a different link. At that time I was trying it for Les Gets and I had quite a big crash that led to a small concussion.

Was it difficult having 2020 as your first year racing World Cups in such a disrupted season?


It was and it wasn’t, being a first-year Junior as World Champion you don’t really get that opportunity much and it gives you the opportunity to possibly become a two-time world champion which I think there are only two or three people who have ever done that. So that is something that although I would have liked to have won again I know I had the speed and it just wasn’t meant to be and I made a small mistake where there was water on the track and I just lost the front wheel.

Do you think the Juniors moving up to Elite this year are going to have a harder time because you didn’t get a full two seasons of racing?


Possibly but I find I’m able to learn a track quite well in a short space of time, so I think it’s not really an issue for me. Like I will be able to adapt.

What can you tell us about the new team setup for this year?


So basically for 2022 it’s going to be a transitional program for me it was like a no brainer really being able to pick exactly what I wanted, I was able to pick people that I trusted, obviously I get on well with the people in YT and the bike has proven that its a winning bike and I’m able to win on the bike. I think it was important for me not to change much as a first-year Elite and stick to what I know. So apart from a couple of small little bits changing it’s pretty much the same regarding the bike which I think is perfect for a first-year elite as you don’t have to get used to everything in the offseason. So that was a big plus for me.

Then in regards to setup, I still have the same amount of support as before as I did in the Mob except now I have Irm who is basically going to be leading the team. He has proven he is able to lead a team with David Trummer before being on his team and making it high in the Elite ranks and then moving onto the Mob. So he has a pretty good success rate at running a team. With all his experience this past couple of years between testing and doing R&D for the likes of SRAM, RockShox and YT, he knows a lot of the tracks after racing for so long I think he is a good asset for lines and setup.

Oisin O Callaghan is showing the field he means business he s been the big story of the junior field so far this year.

Will you be doing any racing outside of DH World Cups?


At the moment all World Cups, the occasional iXS and possibly Tweedlove, I’m not too sure about that yet, about the dates, possibly it’s probably going to happen.

2022 is your first year racing in Elite what are your expectations?


This year I would just like to ease into my first year Elite and just push some good results that I’m happy with. Just get used to like going off at the end of the day with more fans which you might not realise but it’s something that puts more pressure on you but you don’t think it does but naturally it will. So that’s just stuff you have to get used to as a first-year elite between a couple of new tracks on the circuit which all the other elites know so I’m just going to take this year as a learning curve with the new transitional program and grow for the next following years with YT.

We have definitely seen Junior racing become a lot more competitive in recent years, do you think this helps with the move to Elite?


Yeah if you look at the times in the Juniors it's like just as tight as the Elites and it's not too far off the Elite times. A couple of years ago it wasn’t tight with the Elite but now it's not that far off even the top Elite riders. Even the Elites say it’s a really good watch.

Do you think Red Bull should be live-streaming the junior racing then?


Yeah, I would have liked to have seen that. Especially back home here with all my friends there are four or five Irish racers and I’m the first to come from the very bottom of Ireland in the south so everybody would have loved to have seen my racing on Red Bull tv and that’s probably the biggest thing that everybody here is looking forward to this year.

Oisin O Callaghan fought the early cold conditions into first for the Junior Men.

How’s is it going to be knowing you are racing on the live feed?


Yeah, I think it’s cool like just the people at home being able to watch exactly what you do. While before all they had was a timing system and they didn’t know what was going on between the splits, now they can watch it for real.

What level of support do you get from Cycling Ireland?


I get quite a lot of support. When it comes to funding I don’t need any because I am on a factory team but when it comes to Worlds it is no problem. They send the riders they need to and now I am working with Cycling Ireland’s track coach it’s a big help as obviously he knows his stuff about track cycling where you need to put out lots of power which is relevant to downhill.

What are your plans for the future?


My plans going forward are really just to stick with YT for the next couple of years. That’s the plan. Just to build on it really and a long term goal is to be a top 10 or top 5 rider.




Author Info:
edspratt avatar

Member since Mar 16, 2017
3,021 articles

16 Comments
  • 13 1
 Plan is “to stick with YT for the next couple of years.” I hope YT does him right. The kid is super talented.
  • 11 3
 I’ve got a spot ready for Oisin on my fantasy DH opening roster. Bright future for this guy.
  • 5 0
 Sounds like a humble lad, grateful for the opportunity and I reckon YT will do well by him. Fingers crossed for a good season. (Albeit, I’d say that to any rider, just hope they all have a good season of fast, tight and safe racing).
  • 3 0
 Best of luck in Elites!


Can't wait for Lourdes. Only TV worth watching

26-27 March: Lourdes, France.
21-22 May: Fort William, Scotland.
10-12 June: Leogang, Austria.
8-10 July: TBC.
15-17 July: Vallnord, Andorra.
29-31 July: Snowshoe, U.S.A.
5-7 August: Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada.
2-4 September: Val di Sole, Italy.
  • 6 1
 Impossible to not read that in a cork accent. Good luck this year boi!!
  • 7 0
 He's a Limerick man!
  • 4 1
 @AnnavernaGoat: There once was a young lad named Oisin
Who dominated the junior scene
Won world champs one time
On Young Talent's dime
Probably the happiest he's been

//you're welcome
  • 2 0
 Hes from Limerick.
  • 5 1
 Great interview., can't wait to see Oisin race this season, such a professional and such a talent.
  • 5 1
 Best of luck for 2022 season OO
  • 5 0
 Best of luck OO!
  • 5 1
 ON OISIN BOI
  • 3 0
 Best of luck bro
  • 1 0
 Best of luck this year Oisin. Just a reminder to some people, its pronounced Uh-sheen not ocean Smile
  • 2 0
 Best of luck
  • 1 0
 Good luck.







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