‘I knew I wanted to compete for Ireland. It’s my home country’ – Elizabeth Ndudi wants to be like Rhasidat Adeleke
New Irish record gives teenager belief she can hit the Olympic long jump standard in time for Paris
Ireland's Elizabeth Ndudi poses for a photograph at Dublin Airport after returning from the U-20 European Athletics Championships in Jerusalem, where she won gold in the women's long jump event. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Elizabeth Ndudi knows how to make a first impression. In her first jump at her first outdoor event in her first American collegiate season, she jumped further than she had ever jumped before. Last month, Ndudi broke the 14-year-old Irish long jump record with a leap of 6.68m at the Gary Wieneke Memorial in Illinois.
She beat Kelly Proper’s previous Irish record by 6cm, bettered her own personal best by 12cm, and leapt her way into the conversation for Olympic qualification. She turned 19 in March. How about that for a seasonal take-off?
