Double delight as Williams and Knight win gold in Italy

It was another week of fantastic results for Irish athletes on the international circuit. Records tumbled, podium places were awarded and personal bests were achieved.

Ciara Mageean broke her own Irish 1,500m record with a time of 3.55.87 at the Diamond League meeting in Brussels while Sarah Lavin won the 100m hurdles in 12.76 in Italy, setting a new meeting record. At the same meeting Brian Fay finished second in the 3,000m and set a new personal best (PB) in the process. On the same evening, Sophie O’Sullivan set a new under-23 3,000m record with a time of 8.44.

Success wasn’t confined to the big names in Irish athletics as some Kilkenny athletes also made the headlines. At the CSIT World Games, which were held in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, David Williams (St Senan’s) took gold in the 1,500m while Jordan Knight (St Joseph’s) took gold in the long jump.

In other news Athletics Ireland announced the team for the World Road Running Championships which will be held in Riga, Latvia at the end of the month. The team includes Kilkenny City Harriers (KCH) runner Peter Lynch.

Double Gold

David Williams (St Senan’s) and Jordan Knight (St Joseph’s) earned two of the four gold medals won by Irish athletes at the CSIT Games held in Forli, near Bologna last week.

The CSIT World Games has its roots in the labour movement and was founded in Ghent (Belgium) in 1913. CSIT hosted several thousand participants across multiple sports with over 50 countries taking part. It is based on the idea of the International Workers Olympics of the 1920s and ’30s. These were created as a counterweight for the Olympic Games, which were criticised for being confined to the upper echelons of society and privileged people.

The Olympic Games were based on rivalry between the nations, but the Workers’ Olympiads stressed internationalism, friendship, solidarity and peace. CSIT has been recognised by the IOC since 1986. In more modern times the games take place every two years. For the past few decades Ireland has participated in these games, with Athletics Leinster sending a selection of athletes.

Williams was the youngest participant in the 1,500m event which saw athletes from Austria, France, Mexico, Italy and other countries take part. Under a scorching hot sun that saw temperatures soar to in excess of 30 degrees, the St Senan’s runner had to contend with difficult conditions.

Led from start

Williams led from the start, throwing off a challenge from Moises Alvirez of Mexico in the first lap. Quentin Legay (France) passed the fading Alvirez but failed to close the increasing gap that Williams had created between himself and the rest of the field. With a 30 metre lead, Williams had his first win on the international scene. He will now switch his attention away from the track and towards the looming cross-country season.

Jordan Knight closed out his 2023 outdoor season with the CSIT games long jump competition. The St Joseph’s athlete is now under-23 and has competed at under-23 and senior level on a regular basis all season.

Long jumpers generally like competing in warm weather. However, the issue of staying cool between jumps does pose a challenge. Knight felt good in his warm up – the legs were strong and with no wind, conditions for jumping were favourable.

His first jump was around the seven metre mark but with his foot over the board, it was deemed a non-jump. His second jump also resulted in a non-jump.

The pressure was on, resulting in Knight making a cautious jump on the third round that surprisingly propelled him into the lead and was in fact the winning jump.

Mathis Vaz Corrondo (France) had similar issues with non-jumps; try as he might he was no match for Knight. Like his fellow county man David Williams, Jordan Knight stood on the podium for his first international win.

Both Knight and Williams had a rare opportunity to compete in a 4x400m relay that finished second behind France.

International duty

In a season where several county Kilkenny athletes competed on the international stage, yet another county athlete was called up for international duty.

Peter Lynch (KCH) was selected by Athletics Ireland for inclusion in the Irish squad for the World Road Racing Championships, which will be held in Riga, Latvia from September 30 to October 1. Double Olympian Kevin Seaward will lead the men’s team in the half-marathon, where he will be joined by Lynch and Hiko Tonosa.

Lynch has spent the last five years at the University of Tulsa where, over the summer, he completed a masters in Engineering. He will return from the USA to take part in his international debut over the 21km distance. Lynch was selected for his first ever senior Irish team last December, competing with distinction in the European Cross-Country Championships in Turin.