European indoor medallists Sarah Healy (3000m) and Kate O’Connor (Pentathlon) headline a six-strong Irish team which competes at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China this weekend (Friday March 21st – Sunday March 23rd).
Over 550 athletes from 127 countries are entered in the global event, with eleven defending champions and 20 medallists from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games set for action.
Healy (UCD AC) goes into this weekend’s championships buoyed by her recent gold medal winning performance over 3000m at the European Indoor Championships in Apeldoorn.
The 24-year-old has a season’s best of 8:30.79 which ranks her fourth in the field this year going into Saturday’s straight final at 11:15am Irish Time. Others in the field to watch out for include Freweyni Hailu (Ethiopia), who won gold over 1500m at these championships last year, and her compatriot Birke Haylom. Whittni Morgan of the USA will also hope to challenge for the podium places, as will Olympic 1500m silver medallist Jessica Hull of Australia.
Kate O’Connor (Dundalk St. Gerard’s AC) gets the action underway from an Irish perspective on Friday morning. Her pentathlon competition in China comes less than a fortnight after her brilliant bronze medal at the European Indoor Championships where she set a new national record of 4,781 points, achieving personal bests in four of her five events.
The 24-year-old is ranked second on season’s bests going into these championships behind only European indoor gold medallist Saga Vanninen (Finland). Hungary’s Xénia Krizsán, who was seventh in the Heptathlon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the USA’s Taliyah Brooks have both yet to compete this year but should be capable of mounting a challenge for podium places. Should O’Connor get close to her national record once again she’ll be firmly in the mix.
Sophie O’Sullivan (Ballymore Cobh AC) and Andrew Coscoran (Star of the Sea AC) are also both in action on the opening day of the championships in the heats of the Women’s and Men’s 1500m respectively.
O’Sullivan, who just missed out on a semi-final spot in the event at the Olympic Games in Paris last summer, has been training in Australia recently and clocked 4:06.74 outdoors to open her season at the Perth Track Classic earlier this month.
Coscoran has been in record-breaking form so far this year lowering Irish records over 1500m, one mile and 3000m. He finished sixth in the final of the 3000m at the European Indoor Championships and is also entered in that event for these championships. It is expected that the Balbriggan man will compete in both events.
His 3:33.40 season’s best and national record ranks him fourth of the entrants this year in the 1500m, while his 7:30.75 3000m season’s best and national record places him fifth of the entrants in that event.
The 1500m is two rounds (heat on Friday and final on Sunday) with the 3000m being a straight final on Saturday at 11:33am Irish Time.
Joining Coscoran in the 3000m final will be James Gormley (Carmen Runners). Gormley ran well in the heats of the event at the European Indoor Championships, just missing out on a final place in what was his senior international debut and will be hoping for another strong performance in Nanjing.
Sarah Lavin (Emerald AC) will be the last of the Irish team to enter competition at the championships, when she races in the heats of the Women’s 60m Hurdles on Sunday morning.
Lavin finished fifth in the final at these championships in Glasgow last year and will be hoping to improve her season’s best of 7.92 seconds which saw her place fourth at the European Indoor Championships two weeks ago. Should she advance from the heat, both the semi-final and final of Lavin’s event take place in the Sunday evening session to conclude the championships.
Mark English (illness) and Cian McPhillips (injury) have both withdrawn from the Men’s 800m.
Entries by event and season’s best can be found HERE.
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