Israel Olatunde secures another Irish record at National Indoor Championships

Israel Olatunde has continued his domination of Irish Athletics with another incredible race, as he once again showcased why he is known as Ireland’s fastest man.

The Dundalk sprinter, who now competes in the colours of his college and new club UCD AC, lit up proceedings at Sunday’s 123.ie National Senior Indoor Championships with a blistering time 6.57 seconds to win gold in the 60m final.

The 20-year-old broke fast from his lane in the middle of the track and by the final few strides was soaring away from his colleagues. Having clocked a superb time of 6.62 in 2022, a year later he has broken the Irish indoor record by 0.04 seconds.

That’s not to say he won this gold medal easy, as with his rise in the ranks, so too has the standard of sprinting in the country risen. The race marked a huge leap forward for the sport, with all eight finalists clocking 6.83 seconds or better. Even at home, Olatunde is being constantly tested.

The indoor record had been held by Paul Hession for the last 16 years, having clocked a time of 6.61 back in 2007. This is this second of his achievements to be broken by the talented runner, having taken the 100M outdoor record in a time of 10.17 seconds in the European Final last year.

The former Dun Dealgan AC runner’s time moved him up to 7th in Europe in advance of next month’s European Indoor Championships. With another record under his belt and the experience of a European Final already in the bank, he is sure to motivated for more success.

Elsewhere Kate O’Connor, who came to prominence when coming home from the Commonwealth Games with a silver medal last year, was in action across a variety of disciplines in the colours of Dundalk St Gerards.

She finished the games with two podium finishes, taking a silver medal in the 60M Hurdles final behind Sarah Lavin, who finished fifth in last year’s European Championships, and the shot put too, courtesy of a throw that went 14.28 metres.

Also competing at the Sport Ireland Arena was St Peter’s Cian Gorham, who was moving up from the Juvenile ranks to take part in his first Senior Finals.

He was involved in a strong heat in the 800M event and finished in fourth spot, narrowly missing out on the final by just 1.17 seconds. He did have some solace in the fact it was a personal best indoor time of 1.55.09. He looks to have a bright future in the sport.