Tipperary athlete Mawdsley revealed u-turn in plans to retire after the 2024 Paris Olympics

Tipperary athlete and Olympian Sharlene Mawdsley is flying high career-wise right now with success at the European Championships and competing in the Olympics. However, the Newport native already has one eye on retirement.

Mawdsley sprinted her way into becoming a household name during the Olympics alongside her teammates, but at just 26 years of age, she already thinks of her exit from the sport.

Chatting to the Irish Independent, Sharlene explained that her demanding training schedule means that everything in her personal life needs to be planned out including attending family weddings.

That, along with starting the next chapter of her life, has prompted her plan to retire from the sport after the 2028 Olympic games, and she revealed that when the time comes to hang up her running shoes, one of her top goals will be to start a family.

"I have missed out on a few during the past year. I definitely want to be a mother, so my plan is to run until 2028 and then retire," she said.

Doubling down on her plan Sharlene said that she initially had planned to walk away from the sport after the 2024 Olympics but had a change of heart when she and the team performed so well.

Sharlene said, "I always said I would retire in 2024, but because things are going well and I’ll be 30 in 2028, that will be enough.

"I definitely want to do something other than athletics, but I will be really happy if I make it to the LA Olympics and finish there. If I don’t have to sit at a desk for the next four years, I’ll be pretty happy."