Sharlene Mawdsley withdraws from European Championships due to injury

Michael Bolton

Sharlene Mawdsley has been forced to withdraw from the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham due to injury.

The Tipperary native suffered a torn hamstring in the National Championships in July.

Despite being included in the initial squad, Mawdsley made the difficult decision to pull out of next week's championships.

Sharlene Mawdsley was due to compete in the individual 400m and the women's 4x400m relay at the championships.

She won two medals at the last edition in Rome in 2024, including gold with the mixed 4x400m relay team.

In a statement, she said:“I’m so sad to say that I won’t be making the start line at the European Championships next week.

“We made huge progress after I was diagnosed with a tear in my hamstring, but unfortunately the timing just wasn’t on my side.

“I can’t thank my team enough. They have worked around the clock to give me every possible chance, and we really pushed the limits together. To Martina McCarthy, Paul Carragher and Athletics Ireland, thank you for all your support and to Michael Breen for being my training partner these last two weeks.”

“We’ll keep working hard, and I’m looking forward to getting back on the track later this season.

“Down, not out.”

The Tipp woman pulled up while competing in the 200m at the nationals in Santry and at the time stated on her Instagram profile: "We're doing everything possible to get me back as soon as we can."

Mawdsley has been in the form of her life this year, running four personal bests over the 400m distance and getting ever closer to the 50-second barrier.

Sophie Becker will be Ireland's only representative in the individual 400m event.

The women's 4x400m relay squad are now without both Mawdsley and Rachel McCann, who withdrew with injury after winning the national 400m title ahead of Becker.