Patterson and Olyslagers Soar to Final

On the first day of Track and Field at the 2024 Olympic Games, NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) athletes Nicola Olyslagers and Eleanor Patterson qualifyed for the Women’s High Jump Final.

The auto standard for the final was 1.97m but eventually 1.95m would be sufficient to progress. 

In pool A, Eleanor placed second requiring two attempts at 1.92m, before going clean over 1.95m to clinch a finals berth and a season’s best.

“I’m really happy with how today went, you know, pretty clean and concise,” Eleanor said.

“Fantastic to be able to get a feel of what the surface is like and feel an amazing crowd. I did not expect the crowd to be absolutely stacked. It was wildly electric and I’m excited for the final.”

Nicola compiled a clean sheet in pool B clearing 1.88m, 1.92m and 1.95m to progress to the final as number one in her pool. 

The Tokyo silver medallist has cleared a personal best and Australian Record of 2.03m this season and comes to Paris after a good training block and into the Olympics injury free.

“I can say my foot’s good, so if I can get over 95, I’m sure in the next few days, hopefully we can get higher,” Nicola said.

“After the Paris Diamond League, I had a fantastic training block, which from Stockholm Diamond League to Paris Diamond League in that month, there was one jump session, in the entire session, the entire block.

“But for this one, we’ve been able to jump consistently every week and be hitting the heights that I was doing out there today for the final.”

The Women’s High Jump Final is 3:50am AEST Monday morning.

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NSWIS athlete Rose Connolly finished in third place in the women’s 5000m to progress to the final.

Fellow NSWIS athlete Ella Connolly was also on point, running 11.29s (+1.5) for sixth in her heat. Her run on the purple track in Paris was her fastest time internationally. She was ranked 33rd in the heats.

“Look, it was a great experience. I ran my fastest time this year at the Olympics, so I can’t be too disappointed,” Ella said.

“I was hoping for a little bit more, obviously, a little bit disappointed, not getting through to the semis. But I’ve got a week to sort of recoup and get ready for the relay.

“We’ve got four girls in individual events, so it shows that Australian sprinting is really on the up, which is exciting. Obviously, my teammate Bree is through to the semis, which is a really good sign also. 

Article courtesy of AOC