Louise Shanahan  represented Ireland in the 800 metres at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, finishing 7th in her heat with a time of 2:03.57.

Shanahan grew up in Cork and joined Leevale AC at nine years old after her father Ray – himself an Irish national 1,500m champion – suggested she try athletics when she failed to make her primary school running team. She won the European Youth Championship in the 800 metres in 2013 but suffered a bone fracture in her foot in 2015 that stalled her progress for several years. She holds a BSc in physics from University College Cork and completed a PhD in quantum biophysics at Trinity College, Cambridge.

Her qualification for Tokyo 2020 was achieved in characteristic fashion: using a spreadsheet to track the world rankings, she travelled across Europe in the final weeks of the qualification window to secure the necessary results. She broke the Irish 800m record in 2022 with a time of 1:59.42, and reached the final of the European Championships in Munich that year. She and her father Ray are the first father and daughter to each win an Irish national 1,500m title.