The weather changed dramatically in the Slaski Stadium on Wednesday (21), as did the leadership of the 3rd Division in the Silesia 2023 European Athletics Team Championships, with Ireland taking over from Austria ahead of tomorrow morning’s concluding session.
- Full results here.
Austria’s three-points overnight lead swiftly vanished as Ireland won the opening sprint hurdles events thanks to James Ezeonu and Sarah Lavin, enough to put their team level on points and ahead on a superior placing record.
But there were more changes to come on a day when bright sunshine and high humidity gave way to wind and rain as two critical failures tipped the event first one way, then the other.
The failure of 20-year-old Reece Ademola to record a valid mark in the men’s long jump enabled Austria to return to the top with an 11-points lead; but the Austrians in turn proved fallible in the concluding track event - the men’s 4x100m - from which they were disqualified.
And victory for Sean Mockler in the rain-delayed men’s hammer throw ended the session in ideal circumstances for Ireland who will start tomorrow on 327 points, seven ahead of Austria.
Israel appear secure in the third promotion place on 290, 42.5 clear of Malta.
Ezeonu, a 19-year-old student at Iowa State University, got Ireland off to a maximal start as he finished well clear in the 110m hurdles in 14.31, although third place by Austria’s Jan Mitsche meant that the overnight leaders by three points remained top by the narrowest of margins.
“Honestly, our task is to get promoted to higher division,” said Ezeonu. “The win is on second place.”
Darko Pesic earned big points for Montenegro as he clocked 14.75 to finish second. Pesic, 30, and his 29-year-old brother Dragan are performing heroics for their country.
Both decathletes, they are also signed up for the 4x100m and the mixed 4x400m squads. Dragan, who finished seventh in the later 400m hurdles, is also entered for the 400m and the high jump.
Irish get off to a flying start on the track
The following track event - the 100m hurdles - offered Ezeonu’s teammate Lavin, fifth in last year’s European final, the opportunity to add another win total to lift Ireland to the top position.
She did so in fine style, drawing clear of Austria’s Karin Strametz, who was second in 13.25, to win in a season’s best of 12.82, her second best time ever, just 0.03 off the personal best she recorded in Munich last year.
Her performance was all the more laudable for the fact that she is still coming to terms with the death of her boyfriend Craig Breen, a rising force in world motor rallying, in a freak accident while testing in Croatia.
“The first goal for the team here is to advance to the higher division, the second is to win,” Lavin said, echoing the earlier comments of Ezeonu.
At this point, with the first two results of the day in, Ireland and Austria both had 186 points but the Irish were top through a better record of third places.
But the Irish momentum was lost in the men’s long jump as 20-year-old Reece Ademola, failed to register a scoring mark.
The event was won by Andreas Trajkovski from North Macedonia on 7.73m with Israel’s Ishay Ifraimov second on 7.70m to strengthen his country’s tenure in the third promotion place.
Austria’s Olympic bronze medallist Lukas Weisshaidinger hardly needed to extend himself to win the with a best of 62.12m, and shortly afterwards there was another victory for the leaders as Raphael Pallitsch held off the challenge of Ireland’s Cathal Doyle to win in 3:42.52.
That flurry saw Austria’s total rise to 225, with Ireland on 212 and Israel moving clear of the pack in third place on 190.
Ireland’s Ellie McCartney won the women’s pole vault with 4.20m, narrowly failing to set a personal best of 4.30m, but the alteration in points was minimal as Austria’s Shanna Tureczek was second on 3.60m.
For Ireland’s Louise Shanahan, currently studying for a PhD in Quantum Physics at Trinity College, Cambridge, victory in the 800m was something of an academic exercise.
The 26-year-old, a European finalist in Munich last year, waited until the final 100 metres before moving irresistibly clear to clock 2:03.39 and trim Austria’s lead to nine points.
Behind her Malta’s Gina McNamara and Austria’s Caroline Bredlinger set respective personal bests of 2:04.41 and 2:04.78.
“Athletics is an individual sport, but being here as part of the team is great,” said Shanahan. “I'm learning so much about other events.”
Spoken like a true student.
The points balance at the top tipped straight back in the women’s 400m hurdles, where Lena Pressler won for Austria in 57.02 ahead of Ireland’s Kelly McGrory, second in 58.08.
“I started fast and the finish was a bit hard. But my training has been going very well and I'm looking forward to the European U23 Championships,” said Pressler, referring to the upcoming championships in Espoo, Finland from 13-16 July.
Another strong Irish favourite, Thomas Barr, came up with the goods in the men’s 400m hurdles as the previously sweltering conditions in the stadium gave way to a freshening wind and the rain.
Barr looked more than satisfied to win in 49.41 from Austria’s Leo Kohldorfer, who recorded 50.70.
“This is a great competition and the only time we get to compete as part of a team,” Barr said. “As the captain, I told the team to try to enjoy the atmosphere. We have a lot of new athletes, for whom this is about getting the experience.
“We had many fantastic performances on the team and some disappointments, but that's something you gain experience from. Austria is giving us a good battle, but never say never. We still have a chance of winning.”
All change after an Austrian DQ in the 4x100m
By the time athletes returned to the track for the women’s 4x100m the blue of the surface had turned significantly darker and more slippery – a circumstance that was also having an impact on the women’s triple jump alongside the back straight, which was temporarily suspended.
Ireland looked set for victory in the relay until a stutter in the final changeover between Joan Healy and Ademeyi Talabi dropped them to second place as the Austrians came through to win in a national record of 44.18, with Ireland runners-up in 44.80.
The Irish men’s 4x100m team avoided any slip-ups, literally and metaphorically, as they earned victory in 39.57 ahead of Israel on 39.66. Austria, however, finished eighth and last in 47.45 after coming to grief on the second changeover – subsequently being disqualified.
That meant, with two events remaining in the morning’s programme, that Ireland nudged one point ahead of the overnight leaders, 299 to 298.
Saragh Buggy helped to increase their lead to a margin of four points with third place in a women’s triple jump in which Azerbaijan’s Yekaterina Sariyeva won on 13.38m ahead of Armenia’s Yana Sargsyan with 13.06m.
Then came Mockler’s final flourish thanks to a best effort of 63.38m.
Mike Rowbottom for European Athletics