In the European Athletics Championships at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, the Irish female 4x400m relay team shone with a stunning silver medal win on the final night. With Sharlene Mawdsley initiating the last leg of the race in the second ranking, it was clear another medal was in sight. The uncertainty was only about its colour. Mawdsley challenged the Dutch runner Femke Bol down the final length.
This silver medal bagged by the Irish women has seen Ireland set a new record with four overall medals during this particular tournament, outstripping the tally of three from the 1998 Championships in Budapest – a score that included two individual golds secured by Sonia O’Sullivan.
In a riveting finale, the gold medal was clinched by the star-studded Dutch team, who recorded the fastest European time of 3:22.39. Following breezing past their Irish record with a time of 3:22.71 was the recognised Irish quartet, leaving Belgium to snatch the bronze with a time of 3:22.95.
Natalia Kaczmarek, the individual 400m champion who is responsible for Adeleke’s defeat on Monday night, was called upon by Poland for their final leg, however they could only manage sixth place. The fleet-footed Irish team, who started in lane six, was led out by Sophie Becker, followed by Rhasidat Adeleke, Phil Healy and Sharlene Mawdsley, and they outdid their previous performance quite impressively.
Bol, who on Tuesday defended her 400m hurdles title with a record timing of 52.49 seconds (the speediest globally this year), was further motivated as she was part of the mixed relay team that landed third place, trailing Ireland.
21-year-old Adeleke has earned her third European medal this week, a remarkable addition to her shining gold achieved in the mixed 4x400m relay last Friday night with Mawdsley. This also complements her impressive individual 400m silver from Monday night, where she broke the national record with an exceptional time of 49.07 seconds. Stay tuned for more updates.