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Niall Horan

Niall James Horan, born 13 September 1993 (age 22),[1] in Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland.[2] The younger son of Bobby Horan and Maura Horan, now Maura Gallagher,[3] he has an older brother named Greg.[4] Their parents divorced when Niall was five.[3] He and his brother lived between the homes of their two parents for a few years before eventually deciding to live with their father in Mullingar.[3] Horan was a pupil at Coláiste Mhuire, a boys' Christian Brothers school.[5][6] Though no one else in his family performed musically, he attended concerts with his family, seeing acts including McFly and the The Eagles with his father.[7] Horan sought out opportunities to perform, both in his school's choir, performing seasonally around Christmas, and in local musical productions like Oliver!.[7][8][9] At age 16, Horan auditioned for The X Factor, leaving school behind, and has since admitted that he regrets quitting school to focus on his musical career.[10]

Prior to participating in The X Factor,[11] he performed around his homeland. He admits to singing The Script's song, "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" in talent shows around Ireland,[7] and notably once performed as a support act for Lloyd Daniels in Dublin.[12] Horan has been playing guitar since his childhood.[13] Horan has also stated that he is a "big swing" fan, citing favourite artists Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Michael Bublé.[14] Horan liked rock music and is a fan of The Eagles, Bon Jovi and The Script.[14][15] He supports Football League Championship side Derby County.[16]

Horan enjoyed playing a number of sports while growing up, including golf, football, and Gaelic football.[7] In the summer of 2010, while playing football with friends, Horan injured his knee and was diagnosed with a floating kneecap.[7] The problem recurred several times over the next couple of years, including a 2013 incident where he dislocated his knee onstage during a concert in Antwerp, Belgium.[7][17] Horan came to the United States for major reconstructive surgery in January 2014, after the tour ended.[7][18] After the surgery, Horan was invited to do physical therapy with the Chelsea Football Club by their manager, José Mourinho. Horan went through more than seven weeks of physical therapy with the members of the team and their physical therapist at their training ground in Surrey.[7]

On 26 May 2014, Horan organized a charity football match to raise money for the Foxes Foundation, Irish Autism Action, and the UK Heart and Minds Challenge, all UK-based autism charities.[19] For the event, he organized his own "Team Niall" of celebrities (including bandmate Louis Tomlinson) opposite Piers Morgan's "Team Piers". Over 15,000 tickets were sold for the event, which took place at the King Power Stadium in Leicester, and the event raised over £300,000.[20]

Horan has involved himself in the sports world a number of times on social media, and on 8 April 2015, he caddied for professional golfer Rory McIlroy for the Par 3 contest prior to the 2015 Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia.[21] A video of Horan losing his balance during a televised interview with McIlroy circulated around the internet for several days following the tournament, causing Horan himself to tweet about the fall.[22][23]

Horan has helped co-write a number of One Direction songs, beginning with three songs from the band's debut album, Up All Night,[24] and most recently, four songs for their newest album, Made in the A.M.[25]