SHARLENE MAWDSLEY dedicated her return to racing to her late dad.
The Tipperary athlete, 26, clocked a season’s best time to finish third in the Women‘s 400m at the European Team Championships in Slovenia.
She dedicated her performance to her late dad[/caption]
It was her first taste of competitive racing since the untimely death of her dad Thomas at the age of 67.
And speaking afterwards, Mawdsley dedicated her performance to ‘Tucker’.
She said: “I think the thing was I going to have to race eventually or he would probably haunt me.
“Initially, I wasn’t doing Team Championships. The lane then became available and I thought maybe that’s a sign.
“To run a season’s best is a nice boost, I guess, for the rest of the season and now I know he is looking down on me.
“He got me through that race so I’m sure it is going to be an upward trajectory for the rest of the season.”
Mawdsley had not raced since achieving a season’s best in Michael Johnson‘s Grand Slam Track event in Philadelphia at the start of June.
In addition to that showing on the Sunday at the big-money Grand Slam Track event, she also came sixth in the long sprints category 24 hours previous.
For that performance, she banked $15,000 with Olympic 400m gold medallist Marileidy Paulino coming out on top.
Mawdsley wound up in fifth place.
Once again, she clocked a season’s-best time in that race at 51.12.
And the Paris Olympian hopes that she can carry her performance from Maribor into a successful remainder of the season.
She told Athletics Ireland: “Honestly, I don’t even know how I made it around. Season’s best is great.
“It is a shame I didn’t come first. I would have loved the top points but it probably would have taken a PB to do that today.
“I am looking forward to cheering on the rest of the team now.
“It is going to be an exciting couple of days.
“I don’t know what my plans are for the next few days.
“Today was just about getting out there and doing my family proud.”
