In a morning of near-misses for Ireland, both Sharlene Mawdsley and Sophie Becker came up short of securing spots in the Women’s 400m semi-finals. Despite their impressive performances in the repechage heats in Paris, both athletes narrowly fell short of advancing but set a hopeful tone for the upcoming Women’s 4x400m relay.
Sophie Becker delivered a standout performance in her repechage heat, finishing second with a time of 51.28 seconds. This time is just shy of her personal best and is the second fastest of her career, signalling a peak in her form leading into Friday's relay. Becker’s strong showing bodes well for the Irish relay team, hinting at a potential breakthrough for Team Ireland in the Women’s 4x400m relay.
Sharlene Mawdsley, running from a challenging inside lane draw, finished third in her repechage with a time of 51.18 seconds. Despite this and running a personal best of 50.71 seconds in yesterday's heat, Mawdsley narrowly missed out on a semi-final spot. Her speed remains impressive however, and she will be a crucial part of the Irish team for the relay.
With both Becker and Mawdsley turning their focus to the Women’s 4x400m relay, Team Ireland is set to compete with high hopes within the camp and in the stands in the French capital. The relay heats are scheduled for 09:40 on Friday morning, and the team will be looking to leverage the momentum from their individual performances to secure a podium finish.
Ireland's Women's 4x400m relay team will be keen to build on the strong runs from Sharlene and Sophie this week and aim for a medal.
Featured Image: by Perri Williams Photography