We’re honoured to have joined BBC 5 Live’s “All About” podcast for an hour-long conversation on neurodiversity in elite sport. From Olympic rower Caragh McMurtry’s lived experience to Lucy Bronze’s powerful self-discovery, this episode spotlighted the strengths, challenges, and growing visibility of neurodivergent athletes. Here’s why this national moment matters—and how it fuels our mission at Neurodiverse Sport.

Neurodiverse Sport and the RFU have teamed up to launch a new suite of coaching resources, helping rugby coaches better support neurodivergent players. These practical tools are rooted in lived experience and designed to make every team environment more inclusive—from grassroots to elite.

Written by Maddy Nutt

Growing up without a formal diagnosis for autism, I very much learnt how to manage certain social situations and although on the outside I may appear to be thriving in these settings and an extrovert, inside my brain is a very different reality.

“If you create a safe space for people to share their different experience of the world you can be an enabler. You can help people step out of their comfort zone and achieve things beyond their limits.”

Written by Olivia Rae

In this powerful second blog, Paul Burrows shares how sport has been a lifeline for understanding and regulating his Autistic and Dyslexic mind. From the calming effects of rowing on water to the obsessive challenges that helped him make sense of his mental energy, Paul reflects on how movement, structure, and self-awareness can create stability and meaning in an overwhelming world. His story offers insight into neurodivergent motivation, mental health, and the quiet strength found in purposeful routine.

In this deeply personal blog, Paul Burrows explores the powerful link between neurodivergence, sport, and belonging. From early experiences of exclusion to discovering rowing as his "gang," Paul shares how sport helped him make sense of his Autistic and Dyslexic identity. This honest reflection offers insight into the quiet strength of purpose-driven connection, the value of shared goals over socialising, and the importance of creating spaces where everyone can find their place—on their own terms.

Written by Adam Hunt

Ieuan began his Judo journey just over two years ago, while he was undergoing diagnosis for ADHD and ASD. He is also hypersensitive to sound. Ieuan has a fundamental need for rules and expectations to be explicitly stated and thoroughly explained. When his needs are understood and met, he is his happy, caring self. But when they’re not, he can become dysregulated—sometimes inattentive, sometimes explosive. These outbursts are as difficult for him as they are for us.

“Former British No. 1 in tennis and current sports broadcaster Samantha Smith shared that the lights in the room were a real sensory challenge for her. It was validating and emotional to hear this said aloud. Sam, like me, found out about her Neurodivergence later in life. As a player, she had difficulty regulating her behaviour and struggled to find coaches who understood her. But now, she’s speaking out, saying if she doesn’t talk about Neurodiversity in tennis—who will?”

“I had the privilege of attending the first in-person Neurodiverse Sport event in London. Tower Bridge stood majestic in the background, while the sensory overwhelm of city lights set the scene for an evening I’ll never forget. When I arrived, it felt like any other networking event. That familiar feeling of being overwhelmed crept in: people I didn’t know, the disorientation of not knowing where to go or what to do to survive socially. My brother Seb came to support me, which helped hugely.”

“I found out I’m autistic at the age of 40. I’ve struggled with certain things all my life and wondered why they seem to come so naturally to everyone else—why I feel so different. Being diagnosed a year ago brought a mix of emotions: grief for the mental health struggles I’ve had, and how hard I’ve been on myself; but also liberation—finally understanding myself and beginning to show self-compassion. People often say things like, “Oh, but you don’t look autistic,” or “We’re all on the spectrum somewhere, aren’t we?” A few years ago, I might’ve said the same…”

“You can’t follow a map if you don’t know where you are to start with. You can try, but you’ll keep getting lost. The story I’m about to share isn’t a traditional success story—there are no gold medals or world records. But I’ve recently won something that took 35 years of commitment, perseverance, and strength. And to me, it’s the most important win of all. The real wins are life wins.”

"Hi, my name is Caz Nahman. I'm a child and adolescent psychiatrist with interests in Autism, eating disorders, compulsive exercise and athlete mental health. I have a small athlete clinic, but work mainly within a community adolescent eating disorders team, where up to 1/3 of my patients do competitive sport, and up to 1/2 of my patients present with Autism traits. I am the teaching lead for child and adolescent psychiatry, for undergraduate medical students at Oxford University.”

But, given my new-found inner strength and mental toughness, I knew that ‘normal’ running would not be something for me. Instead I turned to ultrarunning, beginning with ‘easy’ 50km races before eventually completing events such as the 268-mile Spine Race in January 2017, and more recently the North and South Wales 200 mile races, as well as many shorter events such as the Lakeland 100 and the West Highland Way Race in Scotland.

“As an undiagnosed and unrecognised young autistic who really struggled with social acceptance and spent most of his time avoiding bullies, I longed to be good at a sport—any sport. Unfortunately for me, and many other autistics, I had a degree of dyspraxia and physical awkwardness that meant I was generally far behind my peers in my ability to catch, throw and sprint…”