The funeral of Ciara Mageean who passed away following a long battle with cancer will take place in her native home town of Portaferry today.
The 34 year old is best known for her gold medal at the 2024 European Championships in Rome and representing Ireland at the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Thousands of mourners are expected to attend her funeral mass in St Patrick’s Church at 2pm today where mourners will be led by her husband Thomas Moran whom she married just weeks before her tragic death.
She is also survived by her hearbroken parents Christopher and Catherine, her siblings Maire, Brendan and Nuala.
Mageean’s official Instagram account announced the tragic death in a post captioned: “At 6.30am this morning, Ciara lost her battle with cancer surrounded by her loved ones.”
“A beloved daughter, sister, wife, friend and inspiration to so many, she will be deeply missed. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam.”
David Gillick, who represented Ireland in the 400m in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games has expressed his sympathy.
Per his Instagram page, he said, “We’ve lost a good one… Very hard to put into words the devastating news. Ciara was an incredible talent on the track, but it was her personality, warmth and infectious smile that made her so special.”
“A champion in every sense of the word, she inspired so many through her achievements, her determination and the way she carried herself.”
Following her historic victory in Rome in 2024, she spoke to Gillick about the hard-fought nature of her win. She said that she went on the track “with a mission, and it was to hear Amhrán Na bhFiann”.
She spoke about the intense final push of the race. “I didn’t grow up playing camogie to get boxed in”, Mageean said.
Earlier this year, she appeared on Uncharted with Ray Goggins, on which she took on a challenge navigating the Costa Rican Jungle.
Having completed the journey, she said, “ Every challenge was tough, but I knew that I could keep going because I’m not going to stop in the middle of a tough climb and say, “That’s it, I give up”. Not going to do that; that’s not the person I am. I won’t give up; I’m not going to give up.”
Mageean’s Team Ireland teammate Sarah Lavin has praised the “stellar person” and hailed her as “one of our most prolific athletes” in the past.
Back in 2025, the Limerick native spoke about the “shock” of her teammate’s diagnosis and claimed, “She doesn’t leave my mind.”