Sprinter Sharlene Mawdsley was part of the women's 4x400m relay team that broke a national record at this Summer's European Championships, crossing the line with a time of 3:26.06.
"It was obviously unreal that we broke the national record. I think we all did go in trusting our abilities and we knew we could produce a really good time. I think we were disappointed not to have won a medal, but when you see the teams, what times they performed, you know we would have had to broke the national record again by like 3 or 4 seconds. So you have to take what we did and be really proud of it because I think it's just the start for the women's 4 x 400."
"I think what I learned about myself is that I'm resilient. I think that I can come back from a set back and I think that I need to take that forward with me over the next few years."
Building on the momentum from the 2022 European Championships, Mawdsley is back training after taking some well deserved time off.
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"I'm freshly back from my holidays, so I'm back into winter training now, so everything is back into routine.
I'm training Monday through Saturday. I'm in Dublin every Friday with my S&C coach for double session and then I run three days and then I'm gym and bike on the other day. So that's what it's kind of looking like at the moment. Do Hill session and then mostly aerobic sessions at this time of the year. So yeah, it's kind of it's all go"
The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris is a major goal for the 24-year-old and preparations for Paris are in full swing.
"It's just about getting mentally stronger for me particularly, and also like physically stronger in the gym, faster on the track. You know, I suppose all the basics, really, but making sure my body is in one piece like this year, I'll be working with the physio once every week, whereas I used to be the kind of girl who would go to the physio when there was something wrong, you know, not making sure something wouldn't happen. So I think it's small things like this that will help me to be a better athlete and these small improvements will help on the road to Paris."
It's still an incredible honour for the 24-year-old to represent Ireland. She says smiling "it's great and I see what it means to everyone around me like my friends and my family and the support group that I have, like the pride that is around. It makes me really proud that I'm the person who gets to make so many people happy by representing my country."
Performing at such an elite level comes with not only physical, but mental challenges also. Switching from running solo and carrying the pressure of a performance alone, to an event where you run as part of a team and your performance impacts others is an adjustmenta and is something that may need more attention.
"I think we're really blessed with the team that we have built in Ireland that you know, once the four of us come together, we know we have to get a job done. But I think definitely like even in the shorter Sprint relays there could be more emphasis put on sports psychology and how to work better as a team. So yeah, I definitely think there's room for improvement."
Running a PB last year significantly boosted the Tipperary sprinter's confidence in what she is capable of achieving.
"I think when I run my PB last year, that was a real highlight for me. You know, it kind of made me believe in myself and that I could keep going"
"Obviously breaking the national record with the girls this year was amazing [also], because it had been untouched for so many years that, you know, I think by breaking that national it really edges us to go to Paris as a women's 4 by 4 team. So I think that's really, really important."
On being a female athlete, Mawdsley acknowledges that she has observed the disparities between male and female athletes but she expressed gratitude that in athletics, the differences are not as stark.
"I think as a female athlete in general, like of course I see the differences when it comes to like, you know, camogie versus hurling like things like that. But I think I'm really blessed to be in the sport that I'm in"
"I think you hear of Usain Bolt and you hear Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce and like, no one is recognised more than the other, you know what I mean? So I'm definitely in a sport where I was kind of away from that. But like when I've seen videos like your campaign [#DoItForHer] and I'm looking at these girls, they notice a difference, and I'm like, wow, that's insane. So there is definitely huge room for improvement."
As a child Mawdsley trialled other sports, but athletics is where she found she thrived. "I tried soccer and I wasn't much of a team player" she laughed
"So then my mom took me to athletics and you know, I tried out a few things like long distance and I was like, no, like literally having a heart attack when I was running around! So I stayed away from that. And then I just started sprinting."
It can be a trial and error process to find your passion in sport and Mawdsley remarked on how important sticking with sport is and encourages girls to be open to trying different sports until you find what you enjoy most.
"I was running for fun, and then I got a small bit better as I got older. And I wouldn't have known that if I dropped out of the sport, you know?"
We spoke to Sharlene ahead of Zambrero Ireland's first-ever meal packing event at Hatch Street in Dublin on World Hunger Day, Sunday the 16th of October. With the help of 100 volunteers and some well-known sporting stars, including Irish sprinter Sharlene Mawdsley and Westmeath footballer Boidu Sayeh, Zambrero aim to pack 30,000 nutritious meals which will be donated to people in need in developing countries in Africa.
