‘Sweetest victory of all’: Letterkenny man's inspirational recovery from triple bypass

The emotions ran high on Friday evening when Shauni Holian crossed the finish line of the Donegal Ultra 333 hand-in-hand with brother Kevin.

Just two years ago, on September 1 2021, Shauni underwent open heart surgery at the age of 44.

The recovery road was arduous at times but his is a story of inspiration and defiance all at once.

At the front of the Mount Errigal Hotel on Friday, 10 hours and 53 minutes after they set off, the Holian brothers returned to a rapturous welcome - as the winners of the two-man team category.

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“It was a special moment,” Shauni, from the Mountain Top in Letterkenny, says. “This time two years ago, I never thought I’d be on a bike.”

Kevin Holian has won the Sligo-Letterkenny cycle and is a former Donegal Cross Country champion as an athlete with Finn Valley AC. He has transitioned successfully to the bike and was instrumental in getting Shuani back on track again.

“After the surgery Shauni was in no shape for a long time, but he trained so hard after feeling that he was coming back into good form,” Kevin says. “It was unreal do to the 333 with him. I couldn’t believe it actually. Two years ago, we wouldn’t have even dreamed of it.”

Their father, John, now 78 was with them the whole way on Friday and has gone through the exact same procedure as Shauni. So ill was John in hospital in Galway, the family were called and he was anointed by a priest. Now, he too has a spring back in his step again. The ecstatic scenes at the Mount Errigal were about more than the cycle and the win.

“This was the sweetest victory of all,” Kevin says.

Kevin and Shauni Holian return to Letterkenny from the Donegal Ultra 333.

Shauni first became concerned in the summer of 2021. He was out with a group, the ’Mad Dogs, from the Errigal Cycling Club. Around Bloody Foreland one particularly day he ‘couldn’t even sit with them’. On the road to Buncrana another Sunday, he felt a pain in his heart near Manorcunningham - “I thought I was a goner that day and my heart rate dropped to 38”.

Shauni was reporting regular bouts of fatigue and when he passed out while in the shed at home. Initially, it was thought the insertion of a stent could remedy the issue, but 90 per cent of the main artery in his heart was blocked. “Two weeks after that, I had open heart surgery.” he says.

Slowly and surely, Shauni got himself back in the saddle again. Around three months ago, he ventured to Kevin that they might ‘have a go’ at the 333.

Their crew also comprised Oisin McBride from Downings and Micheal O’Donnell from Gweedore and a van kindly sponsored by Kelly’s Toyota.

The 333km took them through the Fanad peninsula, around the north and west coasts before trekking through some of the finest and fiercest of Donegal’s scenery.

“It was brutal at times,” Shauni says. “As soon as we turned at Dungloe, there was a headwind for ages . . . and then there was Glengesh!

“It was tough, but once I got my first couple of stints down it was grand. I was nervous and panicking early on, but I was able to look after myself better after those first couple of runs out.”

In the weeks leading up to his surgery two years ago, Shauni was in the throes of organising a Mizen-Malin charity cycle in aid of the Children’s Health Foundation in Crumlin, an endeavour that raised over €40,000.

In a hospital ward, Shauni was struck by the powers of modern medical procedure, but also by the age profile of those he was mixing with.

“Six of us were in the ward and three of us were under 50,” he says. “It’s so important for people to get looked about if you’re not feeling well.”

Training might have consisted of two runs a day at times, but the reward has been priceless.

“The Errigal men played a big part in it too,” Shauni says. “Boys were phoning away at me to get me back on the bike again. The first six months after the surgery were hard, I was tired and drained all the time; I could hardly walk. I lay down the stairs for the first couple of weeks, but I got stronger and stronger.

“It was a year or more before I started cycling properly again. I got stronger and stronger and kept at it. The last few months I’ve kept steady and was out most days. I was feeling grand so I just said to Kevin that we might have a go at the 333.”

The mad dogs for the hard road.