Ireland’s remarkable European Athletics Championships success on Thursday saw gold medal winner Mark English’s father celebrate ‘a lifetime’s work’, and superstar sprinter Rhasidat Adeleke’s mother in tears of joy.

There were emotional scenes at Alexander Stadium in Birmingham as both families saw countless years of training pay off in spectacular fashion.

Donegal native Mark English became the first Irish man in history to win a European Championships gold medal in the 800-metre final, to huge cheers from the many Irish fans present.

Then, just minutes later, Rhasidat Adeleke from Tallaght, Dublin, took home the 200m silver, also beating her own national record. The 23-year-old’s mother, Adewumi Ademola, cried tears of joy when she wrapped her daughter in a tricolour, later saying she was ‘delighted and proud of her’.

Mr English’s father Joe told RTÉ that athlete Mark’s 99-year‑old grandmother had watched the race on television and that ‘her longevity has stretched over to Mark’s longevity as an athlete’.

Joe said: ‘It’s a lifetime’s work for Mark and it’s just taken so long. It’s his early 30s, but he never lost the faith and he always knew he had the talent to do it. There were a lot of times he had lonely walks after being pushed out of heats from championships, but different people inspired him.

‘We’re delighted. We have so many people to thank. We’re so grateful for all the Irish people who turned out and never gave up on him over the years. When you’re coming in here, you can’t go for a bite to eat without people tapping him on the back and wishing him all the best for the night.’

After Mark’s win, he told RTÉ Sport that he ‘wouldn’t have been happy if I couldn’t finish my career without a title’.

The middle-distance runner has already won two bronze medals for Ireland in the 2014 and 2022 European Championships as well as breaking his own national indoor 800 metres record in January by almost half a second.

His win is made all the more remarkable as he achieved it at the age of 33, which is older than most athletes competing at such a high level.

Head coach at Mark’s club, Finn Valley Athletics, and former Irish Olympic athletics manager Patsy McGonagle told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland that the runner ‘wasn’t going to be satisfied with anything less’ than first place.

‘His form during the week indicated clearly that he was in the shape to have a go at the gold,’ he said. ‘I remember him clearly as a nine-year-old and realising he was a good young fella at that time, but then it became more serious and more pronounced later. It’s been a long journey,’ he said.

Thursday’s win brought the athlete’s tally of European medals to six, in addition to two gold and two silver European Team Championships wins.

He also balanced his illustrious athletics career with qualifying as a doctor and managed to complete his 12-month medical internship when the 2020 Olympics were postponed due to Covid-19.

Thursday night’s other Irish big winner, Rhasidat Adeleke, admitted the past year had been a difficult period for injuries and she had doubted herself at times, but the main driver of her success was that she ‘kept showing up’ despite the challenges.

Her mother told RTÉ’s News at One : ‘It’s been a tough year for her and she’s back and better. Being a mother and seeing her struggle with injuries was so much for me. I couldn’t even watch properly. I was shaking until they finished it and someone said “Congratulations”. I was so emotional.’

Tallaght Athletics Club PRO Cecil Johnson told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland that he was proud that Rhasidat had ‘overcome the trials and tribulations’ of hamstring, groin and knee issues.

‘It’s taken her a while, but with the support that she’s received, it’s brought her back to the point to which she’s almost 100 per cent,’ he said. ‘In the semi-final, she certainly blasted from the blocks and if she had repeated that start, there’s no doubt she would have had that top spot on the podium.’

He said she joined the athletic club at the relatively older age of 12 and tried several track and field sports before discovering her talent for running. ‘With the help of the coaches in the club, they identified the events she was best at and the rest is history.’

The athletes were congratulated on behalf of the Dáil by Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy for what she called ‘a truly historic night for Irish athletics’.

She said: ‘Mark’s gold medal is a landmark achievement – the first of its kind for an Irish man at these Championships – and a fitting reward for years of dedication and self-belief.

‘Rhasidat’s silver, secured with a new national record, further confirms her status as one of the finest athletes this country has ever produced.’

‘These performances will have lifted the spirits of people right across Ireland, and they stand as a source of enormous pride for their families, their communities, and the entire country.’