Weightlifter Harrison McGrogan preparing for busy summer after making Team NI for Commonwealth Games

The Bangor Grammar School pupil is awaiting his A-Level results and joked that he is “dreading” his exam outcome more.

“I think I'm probably dreading my A-Level results a bit more, but yeah, get the Commonwealth Games, that's the main focus right now,” McGrogan said.

“I did my A Levels in PE, Nutrition and Food Science and Maths, so Maths is the tough one. PE and Food Nutrition it was useful; a lot of the course, thankfully, I would have already known from doing weightlifting training, so it overlapped quite well.

“I think a lot of the stuff in nutrition and food can really help me with weightlifting.”

McGrogan started his sporting career as a gymnast before dabbling in rugby.

“I did gymnastics, and then I quit when I was nine,” he said. “All my mates were playing rugby, so I just joined them playing rugby.

“I was always the smallest kid on the pitch, and I would always try and tackle the biggest kids on the pitch, so I kept getting smashed. I started weightlifting, just to get stronger for rugby and then it kind of took over eventually.

“I was a scrum-half. I played minis at Bangor RFC then I just played all the way through school until I got to the first year of senior rugby, and then I quit the year after that.”

McGrogan came under the tutelage of former Ulster centre Rhys Botha at Bangor Grammar.

He added: “He always asked me through the qualifying for the Commonwealth Games, ‘have you qualified, have you qualified, have you qualified!’ He loves it, thankfully. Whenever I quit the rugby to go full-time weightlifting, he understood. Thankfully, he was quite supportive with it.”

McGrogan was delighted to be crowned British Champion and seal his spot in Glasgow.

“It was nice, especially because the guys I was competing against were also from home nations and were competing for spots for the Commonwealth Games, so I kind of went out against them there,” he said.

“It has been tough balancing the academics with training.

“Thankfully I finished my A Levels last week, so I'm kind of just full-time weightlifting now. It was tough at times, especially I had to really manage my time with studying and with training, because I was away to Europeans and British midway through my A-levels. It was tough, but I just had to manage it.”

McGrogan is hoping for a podium finish in Glasgow and admits it would be a dream come true.

“The dream would be the medal, but if I come away just having enjoyed the whole experience, having met loads of new people and stuff, I'll be happy,” he said.

“I don't really feel the pressure. I think kind of my parents would feel the pressure, but thankfully for me, I don't really feel the pressure. I'm kind of fifth on the rankings now, so if I have a good day and things go my way, then yeah, a medal could happen.”