Irish Olympian smokes shirtless street racer while dressed for brunch

When you’re an Olympic sprinter, you probably get used to people asking you to race—even if it’s 7:00 a.m. and you’re on your way to an event.

Irish 400m sprinter Sharlene Mawdsley didn’t shy away when a Tipperary GAA fan challenged her to a short footrace ahead of Sunday’s All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final in Dublin. Dressed in a tailored suit vest and shorts, Mawdsley not only accepted the challenge—she cooked the shirtless man, even after giving him a significant head start.

Sharlene Mawdsley at quarter to seven this morning 🤣🤣🤣 #tipp #gaa pic.twitter.com/VFKLMPLWAO

— Ewan MacKenna (@EwanMacKenna) July 22, 2025

We can’t confirm the sobriety of the fearless, shirtless challenger, but if you’re going to call out an Olympian, it’s probably wise to be more confident of your own abilities.

To make things more iconic, Mawdsley was later seen celebrating in the same outfit during the trophy presentation, as Tipperary GAA cruised past Cork GAA in Ireland’s hurling final.

The internet had plenty of fun with the viral clip. “Irish athletics is creating authentic role models,” one X user wrote. “This has restored my faith in the human race,” said another.

Tipperary’s Michael Breen celebrates winning the All-Ireland with his partner and Olympic athlete Sharlene Mawdsley in Semple Stadium this evening!
(📸 @MorganTreacy ) pic.twitter.com/U9nqzgPYGs

— Inpho Photography (@Inphosports) July 21, 2025

Mawdsley is a two-time European Championships medallist in the 4x400m relay for Ireland and represented the green, white, and orange at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The 26-year-old is now training for the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, where she’s already met the qualifying standard in her signature 400m event.

As the Irish would say—it was all in good craic.