Mark English (athlete)
Irish middle-distance runner (born 1993)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mark English (born 18 March 1993) is an Irish middle-distance runner. He is the Irish national record holder over 800 metres indoors[1] and the 2026 European Champion in 800 metres.He is also the first Irish athlete to win gold medal in the European Athletics Championship.
Mark English, 2022 in Munich | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Irish |
| Born | 18 March 1993 |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Track and field |
Event | 800 m |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal bests |
|
Medal record | |
Early life
English's home town is Letterkenny in County Donegal. He attended secondary school at St Eunan's College.[2] He only made the switch to athletics during his Transition Year, having previously played Gaelic football for Letterkenny Gaels at under-age level.[3] While a member of Letterkenny Athletic Club in his teens, he tested himself against the Gaelic footballer Caolan Ward.[4]
English studied medicine at University College Dublin (UCD), where his classmates included Dublin's multiple All-Ireland winning Gaelic footballer Jack McCaffrey—considered that sport's quickest player. English has issued a challenge to McCaffrey to take him on over 100 metres.[5] After qualifying as a doctor in 2019, he initially intended to step aside from medical practice in order to focus on athletics full-time, but when the 2020 Olympics were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he took the opportunity to complete his 12-month medical internship.[6]
Career
At the 2014 European Athletics Championships, English won a bronze medal in the 800 metres event.[7][8] On 8 March at the 2015 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Prague, English won a silver medal.[9][10]
In 2014, English finished 2nd at the Adidas Grand Prix as part of the 2014 IAAF Diamond League.[11] English finished 4th at the 2014 IAAF Continental Cup, representing Team Europe.[12]
In 2015, he finished 9th at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, China.[13]
He represented Ireland at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[14] Later that year, English ran the 2nd quickest of all-time for 500m at the Great CityGames, finishing 2nd to 2016 Olympic 800m winner David Rudisha.[15]
On 3 March 2019, English won a bronze medal in the 800 metres at the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships.[16] Following this, the RTÉ analyst Jerry Kiernan (himself a former athlete) described English as historically the country's "greatest talent" in middle-distance running.[17] Several years earlier, Kiernan had claimed that English was better than Michael Murphy — the All-Ireland winning football team captain long held to be his county's greatest ever athlete. Kiernan justified this remark with the comment: "[Murphy] is playing against lads from Monaghan. Mark English is running against Kenyans".[18]
In August 2019, English won the 800 m at the Birmingham 2019 Diamond League.[19]
In August 2022, he won a bronze medal in the 800 m at the 2022 European Athletics Championships in Munich.[20]
In March 2025, he won a bronze medal over 800 metres at the 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships.[21][22] In May 2025, he ran a new 800 metres national record of 1:44.34 at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Bydgoszcz.[23]
In May 2026, he ran a meeting record of 1:43.85 to win on the Diamond League, moving from fifth to first in the final ten metres to catch Botswana's Kethobogile Haingura on the line at the 2026 Shanghai Diamond League.[24][25]
On 13 August 2026, English won the 800 metres at the European Championships in Birmingham, England, becoming the first Irish man to win an individual gold medal[26] in the history of the championships.[27][28]
Records achieved
800 m Outdoor
On the 29th of June 2021, Mark ran 1:44.71 to break David Matthews Irish record of 1:44.82, which had stood since 1995.[29]
On the 9th of June 2025, Mark was the first Irishman to ever break 1:44 in the 800 m running 1:43.92, which he followed up with two more sub 1.44s and another national record of 1:43.37 on the 12th of August 2025.[30]
800 m Indoor
On the 2nd of February 2014 Mark ran 1:46.82 to break Daniel Caulfield's Irish record of 1:47.21 which had stood since 2001.[31]
Mark is still the current Irish Indoor record holder with his time of 1:44.23 set the 3rd of February 2026.[32] Holding the record for over 12 years now. This also placed him as the 11th fastest athlete in history, and 6th fastest ever in Europe.
600 m Indoor
Mark broke his own 600 m Indoor Irish record with a time of 1:15:80 on the 15th of January 2026, the first Irish man to break 1:16 in the event.[33]
Other work
English has been active in encouraging people to read more books.[34]
