John McAvoy (athlete)

John McAvoy is an Iron Man Triathlete and former convicted armed robber.

Biography

Growing up in a marginalised community, his impoverished family groomed him to lead a life of crime from the time he was a young teenager. He was arrested in 2006 for armed robbery, and sentenced to ten years in prison, two of which were spent at HM Prison Belmarsh.[1][2] While imprisoned McAvoy began an intense fitness regimen breaking British and World records in the process, and eventually leading him to become a professional athlete. He is currently the only Nike sponsored Ironman Triathlete.,[3] he is also supported by Volvo & Cervelo. [4]

Book and other projects

McAvoy has also written a book titled Redemption, it was co-written by Mark Turley and published in 2016. He has stated in interviews that he gave copies to the police officers who arrested him and also many prison officers, he did this so he could prove that “people can turn their lives around”. He has also featured on Podcasts with Russell Brand & Dr. Rangan Chatterjee and The High Performance Podcast.

References
  1. White, Jim (18 October 2016). "Meet John McAvoy, the former criminal who is aiming to become the world's best long-distance triathlete". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  2. Majendie, Matt (1 October 2016). "From iron bars to Ironman for John McAvoy". CNN. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  3. "How a prison rowing machine turned a career criminal into a world record-breaking triathlete". The Independent. 10 November 2018. Archived from the original on 13 June 2022. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  4. "The Real Mcavoy". Retrieved 9 August 2021.


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