Producing the longest ever jump by an Irish junior athlete, Reece Ademola sealed his place in the final of the World Under-20 Athletics Championships in Cali, Columbia on Monday, his first-round best of 7.76 metres topping his qualifying group.
With that the Cork jumper from Leevale AC bettered the previous Irish under-20 long jump record of 7.73m, which had stood to Ciarán McDonagh since 1995.
Ademola’s 7.76m also moves him to fourth place on the Irish all-time list, behind McDonagh’s senior record of 8.07m jump set in 2005.
Hitting 7.76m in his opening round, it was to be the longest jump of his group, and the fourth longest jump overall. The final is set for Tuesday at 10.16pm Irish time.
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Ademola travelled to the event in fine form, winning the national Under-20 Championship title before finishing fifth in the national senior championships in recent weeks.
At 19 years old, his previous best was 7.68m. “I’m shocked, to be honest, but delighted,” he said. “It’s big adrenaline for tomorrow. I’ll get a rest now, come in replenished for tomorrow and just kick ass.”
