YUAL REATH

BIOGRAPHY

From South Sudan, Ballarat’s Yual Reath has made consistent progression in the high jump over the last few years. In 2022 he jumped well in the key competitions, winning the National title and placing second in the Oceania Championships, earning a place in the Australian team for the World Championships. After battling injury in 2023, he compiled a brilliant 2024 season and is on track to return to the National team.

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Born in South Sudan, Yual Reath and his family lived in Egypt for 18 months before they emigrated to Australia when he was 6 or 7 years old. Yual’s options in South Sudan were to either to work on a farm or go into the Army, which prompted his family to move to Australia for better opportunities for the children. The family came directly to Ballarat upon arrival to live with cousins. As the oldest son Yual, from the age of 13 had become the ‘man of the house’ and supports his three younger sibling’s brothers aged 19 and 13 and a sister aged 15. Yual’s mother works day and night with two jobs to support the family.

Paul Cleary noticed Yual at an athletics carnival in Ballarat and encouraged him to join his squad. “He had an amazing set of springs,” commented Paul. He could scissor jump over his own height.

Yual trained occasionally and was clearly the best around town. One day a 15-year-old defeated him and that was enough to spur him on the train regularly – four days per week.

During his late teens and early twenties Yual would achieve many significant results. At 18 he would clear 2.08m and place fifth in the National Junior High Jump Championship, by 19 he would clear 2.15m and in 2021 then 20, he would rise over 2.20m and claim bronze in the open National Championships.

He had a great start to his 2021/22 summer campaign, clearing 2.25m in December, now into the top-15 Australian all-time performers. Although he would not improve that new PB, his consistency progressed, with eight jumps over 2.20m. Whilst he remained short of qualifying for the World Championships, he was accumulating good World Athletics ranking points by; achieving second in both the Brisbane Track Classic (2.22m) and Oceania Championships (2.21m) and winning the national title (2.20m). This would earn Yual sufficient points to qualify for his Australian debut at the 2022 World Championships. When the news arrived of his selection Yual he described it as ‘mind blowing’. In Eugene he cleared just 2.17m in the qualifying rounds.

Yual’s 2023 season was hampered by an ankle injury, and he opted to sit out the Nationals.

To support his family, Yual was working as a landscape gardener. The days were tough for Yual working during the day, then joining coach-Paul Cleary for high jump training in the evenings.

After completing his landscaping apprenticeship, with MDB Landscaping, who had been supportive to his athletics career, in August 2023 he quit work to chase his Olympic dream.

The dividends of the decision were clear in his outstanding 2024 summer campaign equalling or raising his PB on five occasions and winning the National title. He reached a best of 2.30m, moving him to equal sixth Australian all-time. In May in Tokyo, he won the Seiko Golden Grand Prix meet with an equal PB leap of 2.30m, including a clear defeat of Korean Woo Sang-Hyeok, the 2022 World Indoor champion and fourth place getter at the last Olympics. Indeed it was rare company Yual was now keeping.

@ 21 May 2024 david.tarbotton@athletics.org.au