Sarah Lavin stormed to a superb women's 60m hurdles heat victory at the European Indoor Championships to seal her place in Friday's semi-finals.
The 30-year-old Limerick native looked razor sharp in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, beating current European No 1 Laeticia Bapte to first with a season's best time of 7.93.
A brilliant run from Sarah Lavin! She wins her women's 60m hurdles heat to make tomorrow's semi-final, beating European No 1 Laeticia Bapte #RTEsport pic.twitter.com/ItQg0cRCLj
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) March 6, 2025
"It was a good run," Lavin told RTÉ Sport afterwards. "Huge credit to everyone behind me because I haven't had the easiest few weeks to be honest. It's testament to the people around you. When you're not feeling your strongest it's up to the people who you love to make you feel strong.
"I will have to go quicker in the next round... but three-hundreths off my PB tonight, where you literally have to back yourself on little to no evidence in the last three weeks... I know I opened well but I had a bit of a tricky time after that. I'm happy. I love championships, I live for it. I love how immersive they are. There's only a few of them a year, I love to maximise them."
Ireland finished fifth in the mixed 4x400m relay final. Gutsy runs from exciting 17-year-old Conor Kelly, Phil Healy and Marcus Lawler left Sharlene Mawdsley with a lot to in the final leg. She gave it a good go, reeling in the leading pack of four but ultimately running out of track as the Netherlands took gold ahead of Belgium and Great Britain.
"That first lap, I wanted to try and close the gap," said Mawdsley. "I gave it my best shot. I'm proud of this team."
There was frustration and disappointment for Cathal Doyle in his 1500m heat.
A stumble cost him dearly in what was, overall, a messy race, with Doyle eventually finishing in ninth place (3:52.33), which was not enough to make the final. The race was won by Norwegian superstar Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who had been jostling for position with Doyle at one point.
Disappointment for Ireland's Cathal Doyle in his 1500m heat at the European Indoor Championships as a stumble costs him dear. Doyle finished in 9th place and does not progress to the final.
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) March 6, 2025
Watch live now on @RTE2 and @RTEplayer #RTEsport pic.twitter.com/kHXo49GgXp
"I just got clipped a little bit, and shoved around a bit," he reflected. "By the time I was getting my feet back together, it took me about five, six steps... by the time I got myself up, sure everyone had gone by me nearly.
"Once that happened it was game over. I'm raging."
Watch the 2025 European Indoor Championships from Thursday to Sunday with coverage across RTÉ2, RTÉ Player and the RTÉ News Channel
