An utterly dominant performance by Conor Kelly has earned him the title as the best under-20 400 metres runner in Europe. No one else came close, as the 18-year-old powered to victory on day three of the European Under-20 Athletics Championships in Tampere, Finland.
Kelly went into Saturday evening’s final ranked number one in his event, thanks to the 45.85 seconds he clocked at the Morton Games last month, but he still had to produce the goods when it mattered. Undaunted, he again improved his Irish Under-20 record to 45.83 seconds, winning gold by over half a second.
The Finn Valley AC athlete, who only turned 18 last month, afforded himself a punch of the air after crossing the line, as well he might. The silver medal went to Milann Klemenic from France in 46.44, the track belonging to Kelly, who also landed the first Irish medal of these championships.
In the now 50 years since John Treacy claimed Ireland’s first medal at these Under-20 championships, winning bronze in the 5,000m in Athens in 1975. Plenty of other successful names have followed in his footsteps, including Mark Carroll, Ciara Mageean, Sarah Lavin, Sarah Healy, Kate O’Connor and Rhasidat Adeleke.
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Kelly adds his name to that list, becoming only the ninth Irish athlete to win gold at this level, his potential over the distance now clear for all of Europe to see.
Kelly has already won the Irish indoor senior title this year, and delivered on all his potential in Tampere. Born in London to Irish parents, his mother from Derry, his Lisburn-born father growing up in Dublin, he also continues the Irish athletics medal rush of this summer, the 12th medal won across European underage and World University Games level.
In the same race, Seán Doggett from Athenry AC finished seventh in 47.16, having put himself in medal contention over the first half of the race. Doggett had improved his lifetime best to 46.58 in the semi-final.
Cormac Dixon was the top-ranked athlete going into the 3,000m final, after running 7:56.59 indoors in the US earlier this season, but the Tallaght AC athlete found himself in the midst of a slow-burn race. In the last lap sprint, Hakon Moe Berg from Norway kicked for gold in 8:43.20, running a 53-second last lap.
Dixon chased hard down the backstretch, still in fourth, but had to settle for ninth in 8:48.27.
Precious Akpe-Moses was also just run out of the medals in the 200m, finishing fourth in 23.72, having finished in seventh in the 100m final, while Cian Crampton also produced a fine performance to finish sixth in the discus with his best throw of 57.76m.
Akpe-Moses also played a part in the women’s 4x100m, making Sunday’s final along with Fatima Amusan, Molly Daly and Leila Colfer, with the prospect of another medal to come.
In the last month alone, Irish athletes have already won 11 international medals, O’Connor winning gold in the heptathlon at the World University Games, before Nicola Tuthill added silver in the hammer.
Tuthill also won the silver medal at the European Under-23 Championships in Bergen, Norway, one of four Irish athletes to win medals there, along with Anika Thompson (gold in the 10,000m and bronze in the 5,000), Nick Griggs (silver in the 5,000m), and Eimear Maher (bronze in the 1,500m)
At the European Youth Olympics in Skopje, North Macedonia last month, another four Irish athletes won medals: Erin Friel and Ben Sykes won bronze in the 400m and 100m respectively, before Ellis McHugh and Joe Burke also won bronze in the 400m hurdles and 200m respectively.
