by Stuart Weir
Women’s Shot Put
Sarah Mitton had the distinction of winning the first gold medal at the 2024 World Indoor Championships in Glasgow in the Women’s Shot. The results were
1 Sarah Mitton (Canada) 20.22
2 Yemisi Ogunleye (Germany) 20.19 PB
3 Chase Jackson 19.67
The ecstatic winner said: “To be the world champion – that sounds amazing. I was not able to say that before, and now, I am probably never going to stop saying it. This is the moment that cannot be taken away from you. Everything is a progression, and every year, I have become a little bit better. It is also about learning to win and handle yourself in different environments. Now that I am confident and comfortable, I think I am able to give great performances. Obviously, it is an Olympic year, and everything is gearing up. This is really a big stepping stone in this way, and I am just excited to see how we can translate this into Paris this summer. I have two heroes in my life – my mum and my former coach, who had a very positive influence on my life. I cannot thank them enough for helping me rise to the level where I am today. So those are my heroes off the track”.
Ogunleye achieved her medal-winning throw in the first round and then had 4 fouls out of five throws, but it was enough for her medal. It was also a spiritual experience for her, as she explained: “It’s unbelievable what happened today. To get that 20m throw in right on the spot with my first attempt is surreal. I am so happy for the team that has backed me, and going home with a silver medal is amazing and a great gift for my whole team. I woke up this morning and opened my bible and read a verse that said, ‘Be bold, be strong for the Lord your God is with you’ and I went into this world championship with that verse, saying ‘You are gonna be bold and strong and confident. You deserve to be here and can do more than you can even ask’. I had a lot of faith and confidence today”. It certainly worked.
In third place was Chase Jackson, who explained that third was the best she could achieve on the day: “I am really happy because I hurt myself yesterday. So to be able to come out today and still pick up a medal I am really happy about it. It is not what I wanted but I had change my throw at the last minute and I did and I got a medal out of it. It showed me I am in a better position to do stuff like that going into the Olympics”.
Like the winner, Chase also made a very personal comment on her successes, acknowledging her mother: “I don’t want to be cheesy but I would probably say my mom is my hero, she raised me as a single mom and I wouldn’t be where I am today without her. I couldn’t say anybody else but her. She is great, and she is doing some crazy things. She is an athlete, and she gave me some of this. She has come all the way here, so I need to go find her”.
Question of the day – why has there been an outbreak of marriages among shot putters? Chase Ealey has become Mrs Jackson, and Amelia Stickler (who finished 13th) is now Mrs Campbell.
Stuart Weir is recovering from surgery and is covering the event remotely.
