The Northern Irish middle-distance runner Ciara Mageean, European 1500 metres champion in Rome, has died this Sunday at the age of 34 after a battle with cancer, her family announced. The Portaferry-born athlete had revealed in July of last year that she was fighting cancer that she could not overcome.
“At 6:30 this morning, Ciara lost her battle against cancer surrounded by her loved ones. Daughter, sister, wife, friend and a deeply cherished inspiration to many. We will miss her greatly,” the family posted.
An Olympian in 2016 and 2020 who could not compete in 2024 due to an Achilles tendon injury, she won the gold in the premier middle-distance event in the Italian capital, and also took silver in the same distance at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Young Talent
She was the world silver medalist in the 1,500 metres at the 2010 World Championships and silver at the 2011 European Junior Championships. A serious ankle injury prevented her from competing in the London 2012 Games, but after undergoing surgery she returned to the forefront with a bronze at the Amsterdam 2016 European Championships and the same medal at the 2019 European Indoor Championships.
In that same 2019 she lowered Ireland’s 1,000-metre record from a mark held by a legend like Sonia O’Sullivan, which had stood for 27 years, and, years later, the 1,500-metre record as well. In 2023 she finished fourth in the Budapest World Championships final.
Ver esta publicación en Instagram
