Women’s long jump
This was one of the most exciting women’s long jump competitions that I’ve ever seen. How can Malaika Mihambo jump 6.94 and come 5th? Jazmin Sawyers, who had won the Commonwealth title two weeks ago, was at it again, opening with 6.95, followed by 6.96 and then 6.99. Larissa Iapichino won with 7 meters. Come on, what’s a centimeter between friends? While Larissa is Italian, she is the daughter of Fiona May, a former British long jumper, so we have a certain claim to the gold. Two athletes, Mihambo (7.14) and Agatede Sousa (7.00), had recorded spectacular jumps in the qualifying round, but to no avail.
At the Commonwealth Games, Jazmin’s mother was interviewed in a public address about what it’s like to watch your daughter compete. There would not have been time to interview Larissa’s family as her dad (and coach), her mum, aunt, cousins, grandma and sister were present. Hilary Kpatcha was third with 6.98. Two centimeters from first to third.
Larissa said: “It feels amazing to take the gold. It was magical to win, my first area title here in the UK and in Birmingham. It really has not sunk in. It will take me time to process it. The European long jump is on fire at the moment, so the competition out there was world-class. The other girls are just amazing. I love it when it gets fiery and competitive. I knew I had to jump well and be the best version of myself. My dad, my coach, has got me in great shape for these champs. The Italian team has been incredible this year. It has been a great week for us from captain Tamberi right through to today. It is important to start strong, and I normally don’t, so it puts you in a position to control the competition, and I was mentally ready to respond if anyone passed me. We Europeans have set the bar so high. It was a world-class field out there with just one or two missing. The stadium was amazing; the crowd here loves their athletics, and it was so loud out there. Having my family here made it extra special”.
What made Jazmin’s performance even more satisfying was that she had just joined the seven-meter club when she suffered a horrendous injury and was out of competition for 20 months. I saw her at the last European Championship doing media. I also never tire of telling this story that Jazmin is the only athlete who’s ever stood me up for an interview because she had been invited to sing at a function! Jaz is an almost professional-standard singer, and, of course, she did the interview the following day.
Jazmin, who had jumped 6.90 to qualify, said of the final: “That was such a crazy competition. It was such a consistent series, but with that comes a shred of frustration. When you have that consistency, there’s always a bigger jump there. That has helped me to realize that I can mix it with the absolute best. My coach, Aston Moore, is such a legend in the sport. He’s so invested in everything he does, everything he says. He brings the right energy to training and competitions. I’m only able to be the athlete I am right now because of him and the team. I’m just so grateful. The big home crowd on the back straight pushed me on so much. It makes a huge difference when there’s big energy around the runway; it really pushes us all on to produce our best jumps. All the girls did that today”.
It is always lovely to hear athletes acknowledging their coaches as Jaz and Larissa did.
