Cork's Phil Healy helps Ireland into relay final at European Championships
The women's 4x400m relay team, from left, Lauren Cadden, Phil Healy, Sophie Becker and Sharlene Mawdsley after competing in the women's 4x400m relay heats. Picture: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
THE Irish 4x400m relay team of Sophie Becker, Cork's Phil Healy, Lauren Cadden, and Sharlene Mawdsley have secured a place in Wednesday’s 4x400m final with a superb winning display in the second of this morning’s heats.
The Irish quartet posted a time of 3:24.81Q which was the fastest of the eight teams qualifying for the final which is set for 8.05pm tomorrow evening.
Sophie Becker led the team away to a great start, before handing over to Ballineen native Healy who used her 200m speed to work Ireland into a leading position at the break. Sligo’s Lauren Cadden took the baton from Healy and used her World Relay experience to run a smooth leg on in her first major championships appearance.
Sharlene Mawdsley was a late call up to the anchor leg, with the race coming just 13 hours after running in her first major championship final as an individual last night. Those exertions seemed to have little effect on the Tipperary athlete with Mawdsley running a simply outstanding final leg to move Ireland from fourth to first place over the final 200m, posting the fastest leg of any athlete in 49.76.
The men’s 4x400m team secured another top 10 placing for Ireland in this morning’s heats, but unfortunately the performance was just short of seeing them advance. Experienced relay athletes Jack Raftery and Chris O’Donnell ran superb legs, before handing over to 17-year-old Sean Doggett who became Ireland’s youngest ever track athlete to compete at a major track and field championships.
Doggett would hand over to Callum Baird who produced a storming final leg of 45.14, but after a nervous wait in the fast qualifier hot-seat, it was confirmed that Ireland would not advance to tomorrow’s medal decider.
The men’s 4x100m team of Bori Akinola, Mark Smyth, Colin Doyle, and Israel Olatunde finished 7th in their heat in a season’s best time of 39.34 which was not enough to progress. It did mark another step forward for the sprint relay team as they edge ever closer to making their first major final.
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