Former athlete with Abbey Striders, Clodagh Walsh from Mallow has been selected on the Ireland team for the European Team Championships which will be held in Maribor, Slovenia, on 28th – 29th of June.

Clodagh has been living in Manchester for the last two years, having moved to the UK after graduating from MTU with a Bachelor’s in Marketing, and she started working for a media agency contracted by the BBC. She then joined Sale Harriers in Manchester and began training under Matthew Cullen in 2023.
Says Clodagh, “In 2023, I had my best outdoor season since 2019 but, unfortunately, I suffered a lumbar spine stress fracture at the end of my season in 2023 during a competition which put me out of action for the best part of 12 months, writing off my 2024 season.
“I didn’t really think I’d ever get back to the heights I was jumping prior to this (3.70m), due to how bad the injury was, and how slow the healing process is. I had accepted the fact that athletics was going to become a general hobby and I wouldn’t be competitive at it anymore, and potentially not be able to vault anymore either.
“I began winter training last September, 2024, and things started to really look up with my injury. I was finally training pain-free for the first time in over 12 months and managed to complete my first full winter training block since 2022. I did a very short indoor season this year so I could concentrate more on the long outdoor season ahead and see if I can get back to PB territory (3.70m).
“I kicked off the outdoor season at the beginning of May, and at the end of May I cleared 3.60m in York, England, which put me top of the outdoor rankings list in Ireland, and only 10cm away from my PB. Shortly after, I was contacted by Athletics Ireland to say I’ve been selected for European Team Championships, my first ever senior Irish appearance.”
Best wishes to Clodagh on her senior Ireland debut, and here’s hoping that she reaches the heights she so richly deserves.