Mark English is a three-time Olympian who reached the semi-finals of the 800 metres at Rio 2016, competed at Tokyo 2020, and reached the semi-finals again at Paris 2024. He is the European 800 metres champion, taking gold at the 2026 European Athletics Championships in Birmingham in 1:45.26 – his sixth European medal over the distance.

He had signalled it in the semi-final, winning in 1:43.49 to break a championship record that had stood since 1978. His five previous European medals were outdoor bronze in 2014 and 2022, indoor silver in 2015, and indoor bronze in 2019 and 2025. He holds the Irish outdoor record at 1:43.37 and the Irish indoor record at 1:44.23.

English finished fifth at the World Junior Championships in 2012. He combined athletics with medical studies at University College Dublin, putting his medical career on hold to prepare for Paris 2024, and in June 2024 broke his own Irish 800 metres record twice in one week to secure Olympic qualification.

He is from Letterkenny, County Donegal, and is a member of University College Dublin AC and Finn Valley AC.