Nicola Olyslagers | Set to Soar in Paris

For Australian high jumper Nicola Olyslagers, friendship is more powerful than rivalry. The gentle giant operates on a different wavelength to the killer instinct that many associate with the world’s best athletes, but rest assured she is both determined and daring in her quest for Paris gold.

What Olyslagers has is hard to describe. The high-flying Australian is so genuine in her self-belief and timing that she is not afraid to celebrate her rivals, including Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh who set a new world record of 2.10m earlier this month – cementing her as the favourite for Paris.

“She’s opened the door for us really. That world record stood for so long but it shows that it’s possible. It’s like the four-minute mile, that’s how I see it anyway. Once that barrier was broken, so many people did it,” Olyslagers said.

“Yaroslava’s success is not a delay to my plans, it’s only enhancing them. It’s possible for me to jump that high and it was so exciting to see.”

Despite her status as an Olympic silver medallist and the Australian record holder at 2.03m, Olyslagers is arguably best known for the notebook in which she scores each jump, but gold in Paris would see her shift from sporting icon to immortal.

“That’s the plan and the prayer – to do something really big. I want to do a personal best at the Olympics again, and I want to be a 2.10m jumper. I would love for that to happen at the Olympics,” Olyslagers said.

“If I look at my history, the Olympics has brought out the best in me and I’ve got the confidence that I can do something again.”

The 2024 World Indoor champion “could not be happier” with her training having recovered from a foot injury in June, basing in Sollentuna with access to gymnastics facilities and doing recovery swims in the lake, before converging with her Australian teammates in Paris.

“I never realized how much I trained. I suppose it made me realise that I put in 110% when it comes to training, but there is also more to me than just being a jumper and an athlete. When everything goes perfectly, you can lose that edge,” Olyslagers said.

Returning to competition with a 2.01m clearance for second place at the Paris Diamond League, the 27-year-old confirmed that she is all but ready for takeoff at Stade de France:

“There were no expectations to perform but I wanted to see how I could go after a month off. It felt really great, the foot works and everyone is excited.”

And while it seems like a stretch for Olyslagers to overcome the seven centimetre gap to Mahuchikh on paper, the Australian has seen first-hand how quickly progress can be made – whether that comes in Paris or beyond.

“Yaroslava jumped a four-centimetre PB to set the world record, that’s what can happen. Anything is possible and she did the same jump for 2.07 that she did for 2.10. To see the way she jumped 2.07, I knew she was going to get 2.10 before she did it,” Olyslagers said. 

“To know it’s possible – it’s inspired me to keep training. It could be one of those days and there always has to be a measure of faith. High jump is one of the exciting events where you can get a massive PB. I’m in great shape right now, anything is possible.”

The Track and Field events will be held from 2 - 10 August in the Stade de France.

By Lachlan Moorhouse for Athletics Australia and the Australian Olympic Committee
Posted 2/08/2024