Irish Olympian Ciara Mageean remembered at funeral as talented and inspirational
Ciara Mageean, an Irish middle-distance runner, European champion and two-time Olympian, has died after being diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer. Hundreds attended her funeral in Portaferry, County Down, Northern Ireland.
Hundreds of people gathered in Portaferry, County Down, Northern Ireland, on Tuesday to say goodbye to athletics runner Ciara Mageean. She was the European 1500m champion and had competed at two Olympic Games. She died on Sunday after being diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer. A tribute read at the funeral described her as a truly remarkable, immensely talented and inspirational human being.
Mageean's death came less than three weeks after she married her long-term partner, Thomas Moran.
The ceremony in Portaferry
Mourners began arriving around midday ahead of the requiem Mass at St Patrick's Church, which started at 2:00 GMT. Family, friends and others paying their respects followed the cortege along the short stretch of Ballyphilip Road from the Mageean family home to the church. A guard of honour was formed for the cortege by Portaferry GAC, the local Gaelic games club, and by her former school, Assumption Grammar in Ballynahinch.
Those present included Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill, Olympian Rhys McClenaghan and 1972 Olympic gold medallist Lady Mary Peters. Representatives of Irish President Catherine Connolly and the Irish Government attended, as did Social Democratic and Labour Party leader Claire Hanna, Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) President Jarlath Burns and former boxer Paddy Barnes.
The Mass booklet featured an image of her greatest achievement on the track: the moment she crossed the line at the 2024 European Championships. In his homily, Fr Martin Kelly, who had known Mageean since her childhood, spoke about her accomplishments, her love for her husband, and the joy and pride she had brought to her hometown.
Sporting career
Mageean represented Ireland at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics and won gold in the 1500m at the European Athletics Championships in Rome in 2024. Competing for Northern Ireland, she won silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
