Eilish Flanagan (born 2 May 1997) is an Irish long distance runner. She competed in the

3000 metres steeplechase The 3000 metres steeplechase or 3000-meter steeplechase (usually abbreviated as ) is the most common distance for the steeplechase in track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, a ...

at the

2020 Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...

Early life and education

From Gortin in County Tyrone, Flanagan attended

Sacred Heart College, Omagh The Sacred Heart College is a secondary school based in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Principals Notable former pupils * Neamh Woods Neamh Woods is a Northern Ireland netball international and a Tyrone Ladies' Gaelic footballer ...

before she and her twin sister,

Roisin Flanagan Roisin Flanagan (born 2 May 1997) is an Irish long distance runner. Early life and education From Gortin in County Tyrone, Flanagan attended Sacred Heart College, Omagh before she and her twin sister, Eilish Flanagan, also a distance runner, ...

, also a distance runner, earned scholarships at Adams State University in Colorado.

Athletic career

Whilst at Adams State she set a new NCAA Division II record in the

1500 metres The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run (typically pronounced 'fifteen-hundred metres') is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletic ...

, and won the 2021 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championship in the

, as well as finishing runner up in the

5,000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stand ...

in 2021 and the 6,000 metres

cross country race A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a s ...

in 2019. She has run for the Omagh Harriers, and the Carmern Runners Athletics Club. She and her sister ran on the Irish team, which won a women's under-23 team silver medal at the

2019 European Cross Country Championships The 2019 European Cross Country Championships is the 26th edition of the European Cross Country Championships. It was held 8 December 2019, hosted by Lisbon, Portugal. It was the third occasion that Portugal has hosted the championships. Medal s ...

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

. In May 2021, Flanagan beat her personal best by 12 seconds to set a new Northern Ireland 3000 metres steeplechase record of 9 mins 40.68 secs at a meeting in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

. In July 2021, she was confirmed as selected on the Ireland team for the delayed

2020 Summer Games The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...

in Tokyo to compete in the 3000 metres steeplechase. She ran a personal best time at the Olympics. In August 2022 she finished sixth in the women’s 3000m steeplechase final at the Commonwealth Games. Later that month Flanagan competed in the 3000 metres steeplechase at the European Athletics Championships in Munich. In December 2022 Flanagan and her sister participated in the European Cross County Championships in Turin, where they helped secure a bronze team medal for Ireland.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Flanagan, Eilish 1997 births Living people Adams State Grizzlies women's cross country runners Adams State Grizzlies women's track and field athletes Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics Female middle-distance runners from Northern Ireland British female middle-distance runners Irish female middle-distance runners Irish female steeplechase runners Olympic athletes for Ireland Athletes from County Tyrone Steeplechase runners from Northern Ireland British female steeplechase runners Athletes (track and field) at the 2022 Commonwealth Games