Scintillating silver for Mawdsley and Ireland in Women's Euro Relay final
Sharlene Mawdsley added a superb silver medal to the glittering gold already won to complete a superb 2024 European Athletics Championships in Rome last night.
By Shane Brophy
The Newport AC athlete again ran another superb anchor leg to lead Ireland home in second place in the women’s 4x400m relay final along with teammates Sophie Becker, Rhasidat Adeleke and Phil Healy in a new national record time of 3:22.71, eclipsing the previous record of 3:24.38 achieved at the World Relay Championships in the Bahamas last month.
In the final, Sophie Becker was fast out of the blocks and recorded a split of 52.00, but Lieke Klaver ensured the Netherlands led at the first changeover. Adeleke (49.36) received the baton for Ireland's second leg, making inroads into the Dutch advantage almost immediately and assuming the lead before her changeover to Healy (51.51) for the penultimate leg.
Lisanne de Witte whittled away at the Irish lead and the Netherlands were at the head of affairs as Sharlene Mawdsley took off for the anchor leg. It briefly looked as if the 25-year-old had a chance of overhauling Femke Bol on the home straight, but the 400m hurdles gold medallist and the Dutch were not to be denied, with Mawdsley running another blistering final leg of 49.84.
"It's amazing, I’m absolutely beyond exhausted at this point," Mawdsley admitted after running her fifth race in six days after winning gold in the mixed relay last Friday before winning her semi-final the individual 400m on Sunday to finish eighth in the final on Monday night. She took to the track again on Tuesday morning in the semi-final of the women’s relay where she helped Ireland from fourth to first off, the final bend to qualify for the final.
"I was telling myself the whole warm-up that it was just one more lap, but the girls got me through that run,” she said of finding the extra energy.
"I could hear the girls cheering and I thought maybe I had Femke (Bol) down the home straight, but the legs were a little bit dead today."
Lead-off woman Sophie Becker said: “I'm speechless! This is everything we've dreamed of.
"The crowd, the Irish cheer when they called us coming in, it's just everything I've dreamed of. "
Rhasidat Adeleke, who picked up her third medal in Rome, to add to the mixed relay gold and individual silver said: "It was so exciting. Just to be out there with the girls, I love running the relays because it's such fun. We were in the tunnel cracking jokes and just having the best time ever.
"To be able to be out here, regardless of how we did, and then on top of that to make the final and win a medal, it just couldn't be better."
Injury and illness have curtailed the recent career of Phil Healy, who revealed: "I'm not going to lie, I definitely contemplated retiring last summer many, many times.
"I stuck with it, and it makes it all worth it for special moments like this.”
Mawdsley and the Ireland team will won’t have much time to switch off as they build-up to the Olympic Games in Paris later this summer. Ahead of that, the National Track & Field Championships take place in Santry on 29th & 30th June which should draw huge crowds to Morton Stadium in Santry.
The athletics portion of the Olympic Games will take place at the Stade de France in Paris with the semi-finals of the mixed relay taking place on the evening of Friday, 2nd August with the final on the following evening should Ireland qualify.
Sharlene has also booked her slot in the individual 400m which begins on Tuesday 6th August with a repechage round which she may or may not be involved in. The semi-finals take place the following evening with the final on the evening of Friday, 8th August.
However, the semi-finals of the women’s relay take place earlier that morning which could impact Sharlene and particularly Rhasidat Adeleke, the latter set to be in medal contention. The final of the women’s mixed relay is scheduled for Saturday, 10th August.