Ireland's leading 400m athlete over recent years David Gillick has announced his retirement from competitive athletics.

Gillick, who is the Irish record holder at the distance, won two successive European Indoor titles in 2005 and 2007 but has suffered from a series of injuries over the last two years which have impeded his ambition leading him to call time on a career which has spanned the last decade.

Gillick (31) said that the announcement was being made with ‘sadness but a huge amount of excitement.’

“It has been a very tough decision but I feel the time is right to draw a line in the sand in order to move forward into a new chapter of my life,” he said. He described his life to date as “charmed” and said he recognised how fortunate he was to have ”a great career in something that I am so passionate about”.

He acknowledged some of the setbacks he has had to contend with but said "the highs certainly out weighted the lows and made it all worthwhile. As a kid all I wanted to be was a professional athlete and to represent Ireland at the Olympic Games. "

He said he would now focus on promoting a healthy lifestyle among young people. “I am also mentoring young talented athletes and can hopefully assist in bringing them to senior international level”.