Three-time Olympian Ciara Mageean honoured at 2024 UCD Alumni Awards
Posted 21 October, 2024
Ciara Mageean celebrating after winning gold in the 1500m at the 2024 European Athletics Championships in Rome Credit Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
Former UCD Ad Astra Elite scholar and three-time Olympian Ciara Mageean has had her sporting achievements honoured at this year’s (opens in a new window)UCD Alumni Awards.
A physiotherapist and international middle-distance track athlete, the County Down track star has represented Ireland in the 1500m at the Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020, and Paris 2024 Olympics.
Recognised as one of Ireland’s finest athletes, Ciara won a historic gold medal in the 1500m final at the European Athletics Championships in June, having previously won silver in 2022 and bronze in 2016.
"Words can't even come close" was her initial reaction after the race. “Everybody back home knows how long I have been doing this, how hard I have been trying… I went out on that track super nervous but I had a plan and a mission, that was to hear Amhrán na bhFiann.”
So delighted that (opens in a new window)@ciaramageean was honoured at the (opens in a new window)#UCDAlumniAwards tonight. Congratulations Ciara (opens in a new window)pic.twitter.com/Br6XyAg59n
— UCD Sport (@ucdsportsclubs) (opens in a new window)October 19, 2024
The track star was one of nine high achieving UCD alumni whose outstanding accomplishments were honoured at the annual awards.
The worthy recipients of the (opens in a new window)2024 Alumni Awards were:
- UCD Alumni Award in Arts and Humanities: Dr Emma Donoghue, BA English & French 1990
- UCD Alumni Award in Business: Aengus Kelly, BComm 1994, MAcc 1995
- UCD Alumni Award in Engineering and Architecture: Dr Clíodhna Lyons, BE Mechanical Engineering 2001, PhD (Mechanical Engineering) 2005
- UCD Alumni Award in Health and Agricultural Sciences: Dr Patrick Boland MB BCh BAO 1967
- UCD Alumni Award in Law: John O’Donnell SC, BCL 1988
- UCD Alumni Award in Research, Innovation and Impact: Dr Patricia Scanlon, PhD (Electronic & Electrical Engineering) 2005
- UCD Alumni Award in Science: Paul Gillen, MSc Computer Science 2005
- UCD Alumni Award in Social Sciences: Dr Martín Von Hildebrand BSocSc 1968
- UCD Alumni Award in Sport: Ciara Mageean BSc Public Health Physio & Sport Science 2017
Heartfelt congratulations to all of our (opens in a new window)#UCDAlumniAwards winners this evening, your accomplishments and successes inspire the entire global (opens in a new window)@ucddublin community! (opens in a new window)pic.twitter.com/w8ZBtC3v22
— UCD ALUMNI (@UCDALUMNI) (opens in a new window)October 18, 2024
Alongside her success at the European Athletics Championships, Ciara also holds a bronze medal from the 2019 European Indoor Championships and achieved a fourth-place finish at the World Championships in 2023, setting a new Irish 1,500m record.
She currently holds all Irish middle-distance records, including 800m (1.58.51), 1,000m (2.31.06), 1,500m (3.55.87) and the Mile (4.14.58).
The UCD Alumni Awards were introduced in 2014 to acknowledge the achievements of notable graduates from among the over 300,000 UCD alumni across 189 countries around the world.
Previous awardees include; former Irish Ambassador to the US, Anne Anderson, medal winning Olympian Eimear Lambe, the first female President of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, Professor Mary Horgan, journalist Fintan O’Toole, costume designer Consolata Boyle, Oscar winning director and screenwriter Neil Jordan, and Irish flanker Josh van der Flier, one of only three Irish players ever to be awarded the World Rugby Men's 15s Player of the Year.
By: David Kearns, Digital Journalist / Media Officer, UCD University Relations
To contact the UCD News & Content Team, email: newsdesk@ucd.ie
