After eight weeks of gruelling challenges, inspirational moments and plenty of shouting from the coaches, the winner of Ireland's Fittest Family 2025 has been revealed following a punishing finale on RTÉ One tonight.
This season began with a number of shake ups, not least the addition of three new coaches - Andrew Trimble, Ellen Keane and Michael Darragh MacCaulay - and in a jaw-dropping finale, it was newcomer Trimble's family who walked away with the crown.
The McKenna family from Corraghbrack in Monaghan snatched the crown in a tense and exhilarating stand off against three other families: the Carrs from Westmeath, the Linehans from Cork and the McDonaghs from Mayo.
Two of the new coaches fought hard with their families to reach the final, but it wasn't to be. Ellen Keane's Stuarts crashed out in the quarter final and Michael Darragh MacCaulay and the Walsh family were knocked out in the semi-final.
Having gotten through to the final, Trimble had to face a different kind of challenge: facing off against seasoned competitors Anna Geary, Donncha O'Callaghan and last year's champ Davy Fitzgerald.
The final showdown took place in a new location this year, the towering summit of the Tower and Treetop Walk of Avondale in Wicklow, which brought the competition to new heights.
The challenges tonight tested the finalists' nerve, strength, endurance and teamwork after the coaches and families smashed their way through the all the events to date.
The final kicked off with all the families competing against each other in the terrifying PLANKING IT – where the finalists had to hold a plank on a see-through platform suspended 20m above the forest floor.
From there, they faced off in another brand-new event - TOWER POWER - racing with increasingly heavy weights to the summit of the 38m Avondale Tower.
The bottom two families, the Linehans from Cork and the McDonaghs from Mayo, went head-to-head in BUZZ KILL - a shuttle-run contest from hell - with the McDonaghs leaving the competition.
The scores were then wiped clean as the three remaining families competed in Fittest Family favourite BACKS AGAINST THE WALL - with only the Carrs from Westmeath and the McKennas from Monaghan staying in the race to win the crown.
The top two battled it out in the GRAND FINAL RACE, and the McKennas were the family at the top of the ramp first, winning a €15,000 prize and the title of Ireland's Fittest Family 2025.
It was a hard-won and emotional win for the McKennas, who are all fiercely active and love sport. Mum Sharon is extremely active and an inspiration to her children; Cormac, Caolan and Cailin. She competes in adventure racing, Hyrox and cycling.
Speaking after the final, Cailin said: "Winning the title of Ireland's Fittest Family 2025 feels amazing, and we had an amazing experience throughout the journey of filming the show. From the very start, meeting our coach, Andrew Trimble, at Gormanston, it all went great. We couldn't have picked a better coach. Like ourselves, he had a laidback approach, and we shared laughs and life experiences throughout the series.
"We are the only family ever to have taken part and won every single event and avoided all eliminators. We are so proud to have accomplished such a special win as a family. It was a pity that Daddy and my sister Cadhla were unable to be on the team as well."
Speaking after a victorious first time on Ireland's Fittest Family, coach Trimble praised the McKennas as a team of "amazing athletes and high performers", adding that it was a "huge relief" to have gotten to be their coach.
"I was delighted to see them getting what they deserve because I think they were the best team in it. They were amazing from minute one. They were brilliant all-rounders and they really pushed each other, and they were excited and always fired up to win. It was an absolute pleasure to spend the summer with them.
"The whole show has been a fantastic experience. The other coaches and the other families were great as well, and my first year on the show was made even more special by having a special group of people around me."
Viewers can catch up on all the thrilling moments from this season of Ireland's Fittest Family on RTÉ Player.
