SOMMER LECKY HAS qualified for the European Youth high jump final, while Arlene Crossan has advanced to the semi-finals of the 400m hurdles.
The Finn Valley AC pair were in action at the European Youth Athletics Championships in Tbilisi this morning and starred.
Lecky (pictured above with coach Niall Wilkinson), a bronze medalist last year at the European Youth Olympic Festival, also held in Tbilisi, was safely through after clearing 1.78m.
The Castlederg native was one of four athletes in her heat to reach 1.78m; also successfully clearing it were Abby Ward (Great Britain), Maja Nilsson (Sweden) and Lea Halmans (Germany).
[adrotate group=”39″]Last month, 16-year-old Lecky won the high jump at the Glo Health National Senior Athletics Championships in Santry.
She scooped gold with a jump of 1.71 metres at Morton Stadium, becoming the first female athlete from Tyrone to win a national senior crown.
That came a day after she broke a 32-year-old record at the Tailteann Games, also in Santry, winning the high jump there with a 1.79 leap that wiped Ursula Fay’s record from 1984.
Crossan is into the semi-finals of the 400m hurdles after coming second in her heat this morning.
[adrotate group=”60″]The Lurgybrack woman finished in 61.76 seconds, with the heat won by Lada Vondrová of Czech Republic in 61.58.
Crossan will be in heat 2 of tomorrow’s semi-final.
She has only recently taken up the 400m hurdles. Last year, she reached the long jump final at the EYOF in Tbilisi, finishing ninth.
Later today, Finn Valley sprinter Janine Boyle goes in the 100m heats while Lifford-Strabane AC’s Brendan O’Donnell is in the hammer throw final.
