Irish dancers regularly perform in pain: survey

Some three-out-of-four professional Irish dancers sustain injuries throughout their career and regularly perform while in pain, according to researchers from the University of Limerick (UL).

Research undertaken by Kieran O’Sullivan, lecturer in physiotherapy at UL, and Róisín Culalan, a former professional Irish dancer and PhD student, showed dancers who had more stress or anxiety in their lives were much more susceptible to injury, and years where they are touring are particularly stressful.

Irish dancing as a profession has become much more popular since Riverdance brought it to an international audience in 1994.