When we launched the Sportswoman of the Year awards back in 2004, it’s arguable that just two of the people on the list of monthly winners, Sonia O’Sullivan and Cora Staunton, were household names.
Fast forward to 2024 and our list of contenders for the overall award doesn’t just feature names well known to us, it’s sprinkled with some of the biggest stars in Irish sport – among them Kellie Harrington, Rachael Blackmore, Rhasidat Adeleke, Ciara Mageean, Katie-George Dunlevy and Katie Taylor.
That is, of course, a measure of the depth of their achievements, all of them once again treating us to unforgettable moments through the year, but it is also a sign that they are finally receiving the recognition they deserve.
And that was our chief hope back in 2004 when the awards got under way, that they would help shine a light on the largely underreported feats of our sportswomen.
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A lot done, more to do, as they say, but there has, undeniably, been progress – and how could there not be when these women have produced some of the most memorable moments in Irish sport over the last two decades?
It’s been a thrill and a pleasure for us to report on their feats, a scroll through our list of overall winners a reminder of just how many magical days they have given us – from Katie Taylor’s gold in London, to Rachael Blackmore’s Grand National triumph, to Fiona Coghlan captaining Ireland to a Grand Slam, to Kellie Harrington retaining her Olympic title. Days we’ll never forget.
In all, 147 sportswomen have won monthly awards through the years, and at least a dozen more deserved one in 2024, but such was the quality of the list of contenders, our judges were spoilt for choice.
Here’s to another 20 years of such excellence, and many more magical moments. We won’t be short of them, we can be sure. – Noel O’Reilly, Sports Editor
Monthly Winners
December – Fionnuala McCormack
Athletics
It was in December of last year that McCormack became the first Irish woman to qualify for a fifth successive Olympic Games when she ran inside the required mark at the Valencia marathon. Before making history in Paris, McCormack finished just 18 seconds away from a medal at the European Cross Country Championships and ended her year by running the fastest marathon of her career.
January – Lucy Mulhall
Rugby
It was a memorable year for our Sevens side who made their Olympic debut in Paris where they reached the quarter-finals. But it was back in January that captain Lucy Mulhall led them to their first World Series gold medal when, after seeing off Britain in the semi-finals, they beat Australia in the final with the help of Mulhall’s player-of-the-match display.
February – Mona McSharry
Swimming
Even before Mona McSharry became the second Irish swimmer to win an Olympic medal, her name was on our monthly list of winners. On returning from her strong performance at the World Aquatics Championships in February, she became the second woman in history to break the 56-seconds mark in a 100m breaststroke medley relay. Then came that magical moment in Paris when she took bronze in the 100m breaststroke.
March – Rachael Blackmore
Horse Racing
Cheltenham was already a special place for Blackmore, but in March she had yet another day to remember there when she won the Champion Chase on Henry De Bromhead’s Captain Guinness. Having already won the Gold Cup and two Champion Hurdles, that completed the Festival’s Triple Crown for the brilliant Tipperary jockey.
April – Róisín Ní Riain
Swimming
Another of our monthly winners who excelled before Paris came around, Ní Riain returned from the European Para Swimming Championships in Portugal in April laden with five medals, among them two golds. And the Limerick teenager completed an outstanding year by winning silver and bronze at the Paralympics, in the 100m backstroke and 200m individual medley.
May – Rhasidat Adeleke
Athletics
Adeleke’s year began with a spate of record-smashing, and among the highlights thereafter were three medals at the European Championships: gold with the mixed 4x400m and silver with the women’s 4x400m relay teams and silver in the individual 400m. And agonising as they were, those fourth-place individual and relay finishes at the Olympics only served to underline the 22-year-old’s promise.
June – Ciara Mageean
Athletics
She was left heartbroken when injury forced her to withdraw from the Olympic Games, but by then Mageean had produced the performance of a lifetime at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico, a brilliant finish down the homestretch seeing her win gold in the 1,500m. It was just the third gold medal for Ireland in the 90-year history of the European Championships.
July – Kellie Harrington
Boxing
Harrington was already a history maker before she took to the ring for her Olympic final in August – when she won her quarter-final she became the first Irish woman to win medals in two Olympic Games. And come that unforgettable night at Roland Garros, in front of a (mainly Irish) crowd of 15,000, she retained her Olympic crown with a 4-1 win over China’s Wenlu Yang.
August – Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh
Gaelic games
To her immense relief, Ní Mhuircheartaigh will never again be asked how it feels to be one of the greatest footballers of all time never to have won an All-Ireland. That question became obsolete when Kerry ended a drought that stretched back to 1993 by beating Galway in the final. So, she’s now one of the greatest footballers of all time with an All Ireland winner’s medal.
September – Katie-George Dunlevy & Linda Kelly
Paracycling
September 2024 is a month Dunlevy and Kelly won’t forget in a hurry. In the space of 25 days they won Paralympic gold and silver in Paris and two World Championship golds in Zurich. And, for good measure, Dunlevy also won Paralympic silver with her long-time pilot Eve McCrystal. Considering the number of injuries and illnesses Dunlevy and Kelly suffered through the year, their achievements were remarkable.
October – Lara Gillespie
Cycling
Another of our sportswomen of the year who has had to battle through illness and injury, Gillespie put it all behind her in a year that culminated in a bronze medal at the Track World Championships. By then she was part of the first Irish team pursuit squad to qualify for the Olympic Games, she won the Giro Mediterraneo Rosa and the Antwerp Port Epic, and was awarded a contract that saw her step up to World Tour level.
November – Katie Taylor
Boxing
Our five-time Sportswoman of the Year was involved in yet another fight for the ages with Amanda Serrano, four years after they first met at Madison Square Garden. Nobody ever thought that contest would be topped, but somehow the pair achieved the feat in front of a crowd of over 60,000 in Arlington, Texas. Taylor got the nod from all three judges who each scored it 95-94.
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