Mawdsley steps up to run in World final

By Shane Brophy

Sharlene Mawdsley endured tough luck by missing out on competing in the Olympic Games in 2021 but lady luck fell her way last weekend as she got to run in a World Championship final.

The Newport Athletic Club athlete helped the Ireland 4x400m Mixed Relay team qualify for the Olympic Games in Tokyo but by the time the team was selected for the Games, she was overlooked.

Ahead of the 2022 World Athletics Championships being held in Eugene, Oregon, USA, Mawdsley was selected on the Ireland 4x400m Mixed Relay squad, but she wasn’t expected to compete as she was a sub for their semi-final heat on Saturday evening where the team of Christopher O'Donnell, Sophie Becker, John Raftery and Rhasidat Adeleke finished second to qualify for the final, with Adeleke running a stunning last leg. However, she was unable to take part in the final later that evening having been ill following that heat and Mawdsley was brought in to take her place, running the fourth and final leg in the final where Ireland finished eighth.

The quartet finished in a time of 3:16.86 from lane five, with Dominican Republic, Netherlands and the United States' teams taking the top three places on the podium. The Dominicans won in a time of 3:09.82.