Maeve O’Neill heads to the World Indoor Championships in Toruń after one of the biggest breakthrough performances of the Irish indoor season.
The Doheny AC athlete from Cork has developed rapidly over the past few years, combining her racing in Ireland with the American collegiate system at Providence College. Competing regularly on the NCAA circuit has helped the young middle distance runner make significant progress over the 800 metres.
O’Neill first began attracting attention as a teenager when she broke the long standing Irish senior girls’ schools record over 800 metres in 2021, a mark that had been held by Sonia O’Sullivan since 1987.
Her improvement has continued steadily since then, with consistent performances over the two lap distance both indoors and outdoors. She also helped Providence College finish third in the distance medley relay at the 2025 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships, gaining valuable experience at the highest collegiate level.
The 2026 indoor season has seen O’Neill take a major leap forward. Racing at the Saucony Battle for Boston meet on Saturday February 22nd, the 21 year old produced a superb run of 2:00.33, breaking the Irish indoor 800 metres record previously held by Síofra Cléirigh Büttner.
