Jameson lays groundwork for exciting future

Heather Jameson finished eighth in the T37/38 Long Jump final at the IPC Athletics World Championships in the Rhone Stadium this morning, while John McCarthy was fifth in the T51 200m final.

There was disappointment for Amanda Crotty however, as she ran well below her best in the T12 1500m semi-final.

Jameson is laying the groundwork for a very exciting future. Having already competed at the London Paralympics and Lyon World Championships in the 100m, 200m and Long Jump at the tender age of 16, she has laid a firm foundation on which to build her road to Rio.

The Dubliner did very well to make the final eight, holding off the late challenge of local favourite, Anais Jaron. That was despite fouling twice, but in a very tight affair, her initial attempt of 3.87 earned sufficient points (801) to squeeze through.

She was red-flagged on her next attempt again but tweaked her timing and approach sufficiently to hit the board correctly in her fifth and sixth jumps.

They were both measured at 3.70m and though Jameson momentarily moved up to seventh on countback, fellow 16-year-old Matthildur Thorsteinsdottir (Iceland) managed to leapfrog her once more in a competition won by Russian Margarita Goncharova.

With athletes of the calibre and experience of Jaron, Juanelie Meijer, Jenifer Santos and Johanna Benson in her wake however, it is little wonder that Head of Irish Paralympic Athletics, James Nolan was enthusiastic about the future.

"Heather did very well to make the top eight in the Long Jump, an event that has moved on considerably since London 2012. At only 16 years old, a few years of technical training will have Heather in a good place for Rio."

John McCarthy portrayed his championship pedigree once more with another personal best of 44.85 in his re-run final.

The initial decider took place yesterday afternoon but an appeal by Italian, Alvise de Vidi was upheld by competition judges and Algerian Mohamed Berrahal, who finished second, was disqualified.

This proved a completely different race, with Mexican Edgar Navarro retaining his title and setting a new championship record. He was third yesterday and Toni Piispanen, who won that contest, had to be content with the silver when it counted.

It was slightly bittersweet for McCarthy too in that while he added a PB to another personal landmark in the 100m, he actually finished in a quicker time yesterday of 43.62.

Nevertheless, the 37-year-old from Dunmanway is continuing to make a good transition to the track having been a silver medallist in the Discus at the AthensParalympics in 2004, as well as an international wheelchair rugby player.

It was a tougher day for Crotty however. With Kevin Nolan guiding her, the 28-year-old struggled in the intense heat that has threatened a postponement of the afternoon proceedings. The Cork native finished fourth in her semi-final in a time of 5.27.34, more than 12 seconds outside her best.

Tomorrow will see Orla Barry looking to at least match her bronze medal at London 12 months ago in the morning's F57/58 Discus final. The 22-year-old from East Cork threw an unofficial world record at the test event at this venue in May though, so must be amongst the favourites.