August 9, 2024: Rhasidat Adeleke after finishing fourth in the Women's 400m event.Team Ireland, Instagram

Irish sprinter Rhasidat Adeleke narrowly missed winning an Olympic medal in the Women’s 400m event on Friday night, August 9.

Adeleke, from Tallaght in Dublin, finished with a time of 49.28 in the event, ultimately landing her in fourth place, just .30 seconds from third.

The first time Olympian just missed a place on the podium after Poland's Natalia Kaczmarek passed her in the last 50m of the race to finish with a time of 48.98 and win Bronze.

While Adeleke might not have won an Olympic medal in the final, the 21-year-old had already made Irish history by becoming the first Irish female sprinter ever to qualify for an Olympic final when she came in second in her semi-final on Wednesday.

Adeleke gave an emotional interview with RTÉ Sport after her event, admitting that she felt "a bit disappointed."

"The race went by so quickly," she said, "I just don't even know what happened.

"But that was all I had today. Hopefully, moving forward, I'll be able to get on that podium."

She continued: "It just comes down to experience, and further down the line, I'll be able to gain that repetition and confidence going forward and I’ll know how to put it together for the perfect race.” 

Adeleke added: "I've been working for it for today, but it didn't happen today.

"It's just life, it's just sport. Things aren't always going to go your way, but it's about how you bounce back, how you take this and make your future better.

"So I'm just going take this experience, take this hurt, and hope the best for the future and keep working.

"I’m as hungry as ever and hopefully in the future there’ll be more podiums.”

Sadly, the Dublin sprinter was subject to racist abuse after her record-setting performance at the European Athletic Championships in June, but, thankfully, her growing fanbase far outnumbers the bullies.

"You have made us all proud," Taoiseach Simon Harris said on Friday after Adeleke's Olympic performance. 

"The country is so proud of you," Tanaiste Micheál Martin said.

Perhaps the most proud was Adeleke's hometown of Tallaght in Dublin. Crowds gathered at the Tallaght Athletic Club on Friday night to roar for their clubmate as she ran in the final.

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However, Adeleke could still win an Olympic medal yet - though she missed the relay heats for the Women's 4x400m due to her individual 400m race on Friday, she confirmed that she'll be on the team when it runs in the final on Saturday.

Sophie Becker, Phil Healy, Kelly McGrory, and Sharlene Mawdsley finished in third in their heat on Friday night, guaranteeing them a spot in the final on Saturday. 

The Journal reports that the start list for the Women's 4x400m final won't be named until Saturday, but it's expected that Adeleke will replace McGrory.