Mr Deegan, from Newbridge, Co Kildare, was killed in action last Thursday while fighting with the Ukrainian army. After losing his eye in a bomb attack in Ukraine in 2022, he had returned to the country for a second stint.
He was a member of the Irish Army Ranger Wing and also served in the Engineers Unit of the Defence Forces Training Centre. In a statement Mr Deegan’s family said he “died like a warrior” protecting his comrades and he should be remembered “ like a hero”.
From 2016 to 2019, he was a member of the Arcane Cycling Team, an elite club based around Leinster.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, the club’s chairperson Sorcha Ní Fhaláoin, paid tribute to Mr Deegan and said he always put his teammates ahead of himself.
“A lovely lad, very unassuming, very modest. It was a bit of a shock to all of us. He was so young, so talented. It’s no surprise that he would have went to Ukraine but it’s still a massive shock to us all,” she said.
“We had a team of very young riders at the time, late teens to early 20s and they were the best riders in the country on the track at the time. They were all national winning medallists and he joined that team, it didn’t phase him at all, he fit right into the team, no problems getting on with everybody.
“He was very outgoing to an extend. He was popular, everyone seemed to like him. I certainly liked him, we all got on really well with him.
“It’s rare in an intense sporting environment when a person leaves the club that you still have very fond memories of them, because he never caused any issue or trouble, never pushed himself above anybody else. He was always very much a team player and very much thinking of other people.”
Ms Ní Fhaláoin said Mr Deegan “immediately” became a part of the club’s first-team in team sprint cycling and won a national medal at the highest level, and also won a silver medal at Leinster level.
“If he had stuck to cycling and stayed at cycling, I don’t know how far he would’ve went with it but his love always seemed to be with the military.”
