Joanne Cuddihy represented Ireland in the women’s 400 metres at two Olympic Games – competing in the heats at Beijing 2008 and reaching the semi-finals at London 2012.

At Beijing she was hampered by a knee injury that prevented her from qualifying for the semi-finals, despite having gone into the Games as one of Ireland’s most exciting sprint prospects. At London she qualified for the semi-finals as a fastest loser with a time of 52.09 seconds before finishing 5th and narrowly missing the final. From Kilkenny, Cuddihy is a member of Kilkenny City Harriers and was coached by Paddy Fay.

Her father Bill is a doctor closely associated with Kilkenny hurling and her younger sister Catriona is also a 400 metres runner. She set the Irish women’s 400 metres record of 50.73 seconds at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka – becoming the first Irish woman to run under 51 seconds – a mark that stood for many years. She first announced herself on the world stage aged 19 at the 2003 World Championships in Paris, where she qualified for the final, and won silver at the 2003 European Junior Championships. She reached the final of the European Championships in 2006, finishing 8th. She studied medicine at University College Dublin while competing at the highest level and, after retiring from athletics following London 2012, qualified as a doctor and subsequently worked at Temple Street Children’s Hospital in Dublin.