Street party for Olyslagers with 2.02m high jump world lead in Lausanne

Australia’s Nicola Olyslagers (Matt Horsnell) equalled her Australian and Oceanian record with a 2.02m world lead to win a high-quality women's high jump competition at the Lausanne Diamond League.

The Olympic silver medallist added a centimetre to the world lead she had shared with Ukraine’s world indoor champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh to win the street event, taking place as part of the Athletissima meeting on the eve of the main Wanda Diamond League programme. Ukraine’s world and Olympic fourth-place finisher Iryna Gerashchenko matched her PB, soaring over two metres to finish second, while Mahuchikh finished third with a best of 1.97m.

On a sunny and humid evening in Lausanne's city centre, Olyslagers got her competition started at 1.87m and cleared that height, 1.91m, 1.94m and 1.97m on her first attempts. Olyslagers, Gerashchenko and Mahuchikh were tied at the top with Britain’s Morgan Lake as the bar moved up to 1.94m, with the quartet each reaching that height with first-time clearances, but 1.97m made the difference.

Olyslagers made it on her first attempt while Mahuchikh, who started her series at 1.91m, needed two tries at 1.97m and Gerashchenko needed all three goes to stay in the competition.

The bar then moved to 2.00m and Olyslagers again cleared it on the first time of asking. That was a feat also achieved by Gerashchenko, who matched the lifetime best she set when finishing fourth at last year’s World Championships in Oregon.

Mahuchikh knocked the bar on her first try and decided to skip straight to 2.02m for her remaining two attempts, but she was unable to go any higher. Nor was Gerashchenko, who had all three attempts at the height.

Olyslagers also knocked the bar on her first try at 2.02m, but with the support of a close and passionate crowd she soared clear on her second attempt before shouting out with delight at a performance that equalled the area record she set to secure her Olympic silver in Tokyo. She ended her competition in Lausanne with three attempts at 2.05m.

"To jump 2.02m was awesome. The 2.05m second attempt – I reckon I’m going to look at that again and again and learn from it," said Olyslagers.

The result maintains her unbeaten streak this year, which also includes wins at the Diamond League meeting in Paris and Continental Tour Gold event in Turku, both also with two metre-plus clearances.

"Whether I win or lose, for me the greatest measure of a competition is how high I jump," she added. "If I just focus on one day doing 2.10m or one day doing something that seems crazy, the wins will come. I’m trying to do it step by step, but to equal my personal best – and I know I’m in PB shape – today I can go back and go ‘I’ve got faith for 2.05m, but maybe even higher this year’."

Lake finished fourth on countback thanks to her flawless series up to 1.94m, a height managed by seven athletes, while nine of the 11 entries cleared 1.91m, including Belgium's Olympic and world heptathlon champion Nafi Thiam.

By World Athletics
Posted: 30/6/2023