Sam O'Shea, 27, died after a crash last year
Sam O'Shea
Sam O'Shea(Image: Supplied)
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A mum and dad have paid tribute to their son after he died unexpectedly. Sam O’Shea, 27, was “having a great life” according to his Merseyside parents Paul and Angela. Due to Paul’s time in the navy, Sam ended up travelling the world from Portsmouth and Naples to Abu Dhabi and Thailand.
He maintained strong links to Merseyside too, attending as many Everton matches as he could in between his travels. Sam started competing in triathlons at age 14. He went to university in Leeds and his girlfriend, Lucy Byram, was a professional triathlete.
Sam changed his focus to cycling during the pandemic when he was unable to swim. He supported his girlfriend at events and training camps around the world as a bike mechanic and swim/run coach.
Sam competed in the 2022 Commonwealth Games, representing his birth country Gibraltar in cycling alongside his sister Holly, who competed as a weightlifter.
Sam was hit by a motorbike while cycling in France in September 2025 and later died from his injuries. Speaking to the ECHO, his dad Paul, who is from Kirkby, said: "He was amazing, he really was. He loved life. He was having a great life with his partner, Lucy, who's a professional triathlete.
"He looked after Lucy at every race and set everything up so she just had to do the race, and he worried about the other things beforehand. He never really classed himself as going to work.
Sam competed in the 2022 Commonwealth Games, representing his birth country Gibraltar in cycling
Sam competed in the 2022 Commonwealth Games, representing his birth country Gibraltar in cycling(Image: Supplied)
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"It was just what he loved doing and he did it every day. It's sad what's happened, but he loved cycling and it was a part of his everyday life."
Angela, who is from St Helens, said: "That’s all you want from your child. In every picture, in every circumstance, he’s smiling, he’s happy."
The couple realised just how popular Sam was at his funeral, which took place in Leeds. They estimate between 250 and 300 people turned up.
Paul said: "He filled both crematoriums. There were people outside as well. It was another amazingly sad day, but it was really nice to see so many people.
“"There were people there from Dubai, from Thailand, from everywhere. Everyone just said Sam was the first person to say, ‘come on, I'll go and have a beer,’ or the first person to say, ‘let's go and ride to Scotland for the weekend.' He loved his life and that's because it was really special - living in that world of elite athletes, he loved it."
Angela added: "He belonged as well, which was really nice."
Sam was a huge Everton fan
Sam was a huge Everton fan(Image: Supplied)
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Sam’s parents have since vowed to keep his memory alive by setting up a foundation in his name, and have raised almost £40,000 to do it. This money will support athletes who lack the resources for essential equipment or travel to competitions. It will also help those recovering from injury who can't afford physio or rehabilitation.
Paul said: "What we want to do with that is help people and for nothing in return. Young athletes who maybe can't afford a helmet or whatever can get in touch and go through the website and go through the application process.
"One of the comments we saw about Sam a while ago was that he just wanted to help people for nothing in return, and that really sums him up."
Sam's family and friends have come together for a fitting tribute at Hill Dickinson Stadium tomorrow (Sunday October 4.) Paul initially saw an advert for the Everton 10k, which starts and finishes at the ground, and suggested Angela should do it. However, Sam's family and friends were all keen to join in. Between 40 and 50 people set to run in his memory in the run.
This includes Sam's girlfriend Lucy Byram, one of his best friends James Scott-Farrington, and Jack Willis and Jess Fulliger, who are all professional triathletes. Olympian Gordon Benson, who represented Team GB in the 2016 games in Rio supporting the Brownlee brothers, will also take part.
When the stadium was first built, Paul and Angela bought Sam and Holly an engraved stone on Everton Way.
Paul said: "We used to go to a lot of the matches. That would be a time we meet up and all that as a family. We got him and Holly a stone at the new ground. It's a bit of a memorial now and it's really sad that he never got to see it.
Sam as a child with Wayne Rooney
Sam as a child with Wayne Rooney(Image: Supplied)
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"The Everton 10K on Sunday is a great way to get all of his family and friends together. Lots of his friends, because of the nature of being a professional athlete, they're away in Hawaii and Rome this weekend, so quite a few can't make it, but there will still be lots of people there."
The event has been publicised by Everton on the club’s website and social media channels, which Paul found incredibly moving.
He said: "It's things like this that keep us going. I just opened the page a minute ago because someone told me about it. It just makes me really happy, but makes me cry. It's so nice and brilliant because, like me, Sam's a mad Evertonian and he would be made up if he knew his face was on their webpage.
"It's going to be really emotional, but it's going to be really nice. People have made a big effort to come down just to be in Liverpool for the weekend or for the night, and we really appreciate that. We know it's not easy."
The Everton 10k will begin at 9.30am tomorrow.
More details about the Sam O'Shea Foundation can be found here and the JustGiving page can be found here.