Bernard Dunne Sits Leaving Cert Exam at 46

Bernard Dunne has gone 12 rounds with the Leaving Cert – and this time, he’s walked away satisfied.

The former world champion boxer revealed on RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland that he recently sat the Irish exam at the age of 46, returning to the classroom to right what he sees as unfinished business from his school days.

Irish was the only subject he failed in his original Leaving Cert. That always bothered him.

“It was nearly as bad as doing the world title fight, to be honest,” he said, admitting the pressure of the exam hall brought back the nerves of his biggest nights in the ring.

The decision came late. Dunne explained that he chose to sit the exam just a week before it took place, a whirlwind return to study for a man long removed from schoolbooks and revision timetables.

“I needed to put that right and at the age of 46 I decided, a week before the exam, that I was going to do it,” he said.

He spoke on Morning Ireland primarily about Katie Taylor’s proposed Croke Park fight, hailing her as a trailblazing figure and a role model for generations of athletes to come. At the end of the interview, the tables turned and he was the one receiving congratulations – this time not for a belt, but for a result sheet.

Dunne, ever the boxer, couldn’t resist framing it in the language of the ring.

“Thankfully, we were able to survive a couple of low blows and get through it,” he joked.

A world title on his record, and now a long-standing academic regret finally answered. Different stage, same fighter’s instinct.