In this episode of The Modern Warrior Podcast, Gavin sits down with Colin Judge for a powerful conversation about growing up with one arm and no legs, learning independence, facing fear, and finding confidence through sport, self-belief and personal responsibility.

Colin shares how his parents helped shape his mindset from an early age, especially through the simple but life-changing act of leaving his school uniform out every morning until he learned to dress himself. He speaks openly about feeling excluded during his teenage years, the courage it took to ask difficult questions, and how finding table tennis gave him a sport, a community and a path to becoming number one in Ireland, European champion and a Paralympian.

The conversation also explores Colin’s journey through education, actuarial studies, leaving a high-paid career to pursue table tennis, the pain of reclassification, and how he learned to focus less on outcomes and more on becoming his best.

Colin also talks about relationships, social media, speaking, vulnerability and why he now believes that sharing your story can help people through their darkest moments.

This is a conversation about disability, confidence, fear, independence, resilience, self-worth and the importance of showing up as the real version of yourself.

This episode has been sponsored by https://beearthkind.ie/

Shownotes

Growing up with one arm and no legs
Colin reflects on his childhood, being the first person born in Ireland with his condition, and how his parents supported him without wrapping him in cotton wool.

The school uniform story
Colin explains how his parents left his uniform out every morning from the age of four, even though he could not dress himself until the age of nine. He describes this as an early lesson in having a positive relationship with failure.

Feeling excluded but not bullied
Colin talks about his teenage years, going to an able-bodied school, feeling left out of social circles, and how exclusion can sometimes feel even harder than bullying.

Asking the question that changed everything
Colin shares how he eventually asked his friends why he was not being invited out, and discovered that much of it came from innocent assumptions around his disability.

Finding table tennis
After trying several sports with his younger brother, Colin found table tennis — the one sport where he could beat him. That discovery eventually led him to UCD Table Tennis Club.

Sending the email that changed his life
Colin explains how difficult it was to build up the courage to email a coach, and how that one action helped him find a sport, a community and a new level of confidence.

Building confidence through keeping promises
Colin discusses how confidence grew by making small promises to himself and following through, whether in sport, school, social life or training.

Independence and proving people wrong
Colin speaks about doctors telling his parents he would never be independent, earn money or dress himself, and how his life became a process of proving those assumptions wrong.

Education, Leaving Cert and actuarial studies
Colin shares how he set his sights on actuarial and financial studies, earned 580 points in the Leaving Cert, and entered one of the highest points courses in the country.

Leaving a high-paid career for table tennis
Colin talks about leaving actuarial work to pursue table tennis more seriously, the difficulty of that decision, and why he felt he owed it to himself to give the sport everything.

Rio, Tokyo and the Paralympic journey
Colin reflects on missing the Rio Paralympics, qualifying for Tokyo, moving to Slovakia during COVID to train, and continuing to push himself toward his highest level.

Reclassification and rebuilding himself as an athlete
Colin explains how being reclassified changed his ranking, funding and competition level, and how it forced him to reinvent his style of play.

Focusing on what he can control
Colin talks about moving away from measuring himself only by results or rankings, and instead focusing on preparation, performance and being his best.

Life beyond sport
Colin explains why having more in his life than table tennis has made him stronger, including speaking, social media, health, relationships and personal growth.

Relationships and being seen
Colin speaks openly about dating, disability, putting himself out there and the lesson that “you have to be seen to be chosen.”

Sharing your story to help others
Colin shares the impact of receiving a message from someone who said his content made her rethink suicide, and how that changed his understanding of why sharing your story matters.

Where to find Colin
Colin shares his handle: @colinjudge100

Memorable Quotes

“From the beginning, my mom really had a great insight that the world wasn’t set up for me and that I was going to need to find my own way.”

“They didn’t wrap me in cotton wool. They were always there as a support.”

“I think it meant having a positive relationship with failure.”

“I was never bullied in school, but I always say that being excluded is nearly worse.”

“People are often a lot nicer than they seem.”

“Growing up with a disability in Ireland, I needed to take the initiative a lot.”

“Sometimes we just need to face our fears and take the initiative, no matter how uncomfortable it is.”

“If you don’t try, you’ll never know.”

“The answer is not to treat someone with a disability any differently.”

“You need to be prepared to go through that uncomfortable time where nothing’s working and everything feels awkward.”

“I said I was going to do something and then I did it.”

“All those little promises that we make to ourselves, when we keep them, improve the relationship we have with ourselves.”

“That relationship that I had with myself was the most important.”

“When everyone, including the doctors from the day I was born, told me I’d never be independent, it’s difficult then to say, no, I can be independent.”

“The doctors said that I’d never be able to dress myself, but then I knew from age nine that I could dress myself.”

“You’re never going to match your friends on the rugby pitch, but you can more than match them in the classroom.”

“I wanted to prove to people that I could earn money.”

“I felt that I owed it to myself.”

“I wanted to leave no stone unturned and just be my best.”

“We’re all more than just one thing.”

“If you’re defining your happiness on a result or a ranking, you’re going to be very unhappy a lot of the time.”

“Sport is just so unpredictable.”

“I had to reinvent myself as a table tennis player.”

“I had to become a better table tennis player.”

“I needed to sail away from the safe harbour.”

“It’s about me and it’s about what we bring.”

“I really just try and focus on what I can control.”

“I have a good balance in my life now.”

“Sometimes we don’t get what we deserve in the moment, we just have to keep it going.”

“You have to be seen to be chosen.”

“If people don’t know you exist, you literally have no chance.”

“I didn’t put the real me forward. It ...