Sharlene Mawdsley rejoices as Olympics dream comes true

Team Ireland's 23-strong athletics team has officially been named, and Sharlene Mawdsley has a lot to celebrate.

The Tipperary native will compete - for the first time ever - in the 400m sprint and the 4x400m relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Rejoicing, Sharlene shared the exciting, life-changing news on social media on Thursday. She gushed: 'I’M GOING TO THE OLYMPICS. A dream come true.'

'Three years I've waited for this moment, three years of giving everything I had to this sport. I can finally say it - I’m going to be an Olympian,' Sharlene said in disbelief.

'The past three years have tested me more than I could ever imagine, the highs I’ve relished, the lows I’ve endured - The end goal was always the same - the Olympics and I DID IT!!!!!! This truly means everything to me.'

Sharlene continued: 'Missing out on Tokyo three years ago has shaped me into the athlete I am today - strong, resilient and realistic. Although I ran the Olympic standard in May, I never truly felt it was going to be enough, some might say a bit of PTSD was in there.'

'The stress of waiting for that confirmation, remembering exactly where I received the heartbreaking call three years ago, I thought I would never run again. But here I am, three years later - going to the Paris Olympic Games.'

The 2024 Paris Olympics kick off on July 26, and we can hardly wait. Team Ireland is looking incredibly strong- we've a feeling this could be our year!