SHARLENE MAWDSLEY AND Isreal Olatunde were the star performers for Team Ireland on the opening day of athletics action at the European Games in Poland.
Mawdsley ran the second fastest 400m time of her life to win her heat and secure maximum points as Ireland moved up to second in the Division 3 Team Standings of the multi-sport meet.
The main objective for Team Ireland is to achieve promotion to Division 2. They currently have 156 points, and sit three behind leaders Austria but well clear of third-placed Isreal.
In the second race of the day, Tipperary native Mawdsley clocked a time of 51.55 and bagged 15 valuable points across 400m at the Silesian Stadium.
“I’m delighted that I was able to kick the team off and start it this way, it’s amazing,” she said. “It’s my second fastest time ever. I crossed the line and I’m a little disappointed with that — it shows where I’m at this season. But look, I am really happy.”
Olatunde was second in his 100m in 10.37. “I just wanted to get as many points as I could for Ireland,” the Dundalk star reflected. “I was so close to first, I was a bit disappointed not to pick up the full points.
“Second place isn’t too bad, so hopefully… we’ll see where we finish over the next couple of days. Everyone on the team is so proud to represent Ireland here and represent the team as one.”
Elsewhere on the track, Finley Daley was second in his 3000m Steeplechase race with a time of 8:51:14, while Aoibhe Richardson, Rocco Zaman Browne and Lauren Roy all finished third in their respective events. Richardson clocked 16:45.02, but was well back in her 5000m, while Zaman Browne and Roy recorded times of 1:50.16 and 11.82 in their 800m and 100m respectively. Jack Rafferty was third in his 400m heat too (46.76) but was pinged for a lane infringement.
Meanwhile, Nicola Tuthill set a new National U23 record in the Women’s Hammer Throw. She was second at her first major games, throwing an impressive 67.85m.
In the other field events, Irish results were as follows: Michaela Walsh (second in Shot Put — 15.26m); Niamh Fogarty (fourth in Discus — 51.24m); Jai Benson (seventh in triple jump — 14.84m); and Michael Bowler (fourth in Pole Vault — 4.30m). Fogarty and Benson both registered season’s bests.
- Full results are available here>
