Nicola Olyslagers Completes Global Medal Set with High Jump Gold
Nicola Olyslagers of Australia capped off a stellar indoor season by claiming the women’s high jump gold medal at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow. The 25-year-old had previously secured silver at the Tokyo Olympics and bronze at the World Championships in Budapest, and now adds the indoor world title to her growing collection.
Olyslagers and Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh, the defending champion and outdoor world gold medallist, went head-to-head in an enthralling competition. Both athletes cleared each height up to 1.95m on their first attempts, but it was the 1.97m bar that proved decisive. While Mahuchikh soared clear on her first try, Olyslagers needed two attempts, putting the Ukrainian ahead on countback.
The drama continued at 1.99m, as they both failed on their first two attempts. With the bar still standing after Olyslagers’ final try, the Australian could barely contain her delight. When Mahuchikh subsequently knocked the bar off on her last attempt, Olyslagers had secured the gold medal.
“I felt today was going to be a big challenge because I hadn’t competed indoors since 2017,” said Olyslagers. “I came here today because I knew I had to get outside my comfort zone, outside of Australia. With that mindset, and the track being so fast, I had to fight for every jump.”
Slovenia’s Lia Apostolovski equaled her personal best of 1.95m to claim the bronze medal, while Germany’s Christina Honsel finished fourth. Serbia’s Angelina Topic and Britain’s Morgan Lake rounded out the top six.
Mahuchikh, who had set the world lead of 2.04m earlier this year, was pleased to add another medal to her collection, despite missing out on gold.
“I do not know what was missing today to jump higher, because I need to check it on the video with my coach,” she said. “But I appreciate the silver medal a lot, every medal is now very important.”
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