NOT SINCE ’21 HAD Yaroslava Mahuchikh suffered 3 consecutive defeats but that was the situation facing the Ukrainian WR-holder as she arrived in Budapest.
Second place-finishes behind Australia’s Eleanor Patterson at the DL Final in Brussels and the Heilbronn HJ meet in Germany, preceded by an unfamiliar 4th in Zürich had led to some questioning whether Mahuchikh had lost her mojo. The wave of doubt was countered by the fact she had cleared bars set at 6-5 (1.96), 6-6¾ (2.00) and 6-6¾ (1.99).
In the end though, the ’24 OG champion and ’23 world champ returned to form on the very same track where she won her one outdoor world title to date.
She dominated an otherwise modest competition which saw all the competitors wrapped up well to fend off the cold on a chilly September night in the Hungarian capital.
In the brave new world of Ultimate track, the opening height was 6-1¼ (1.86) and the bar moved quickly up to 6-3¼ (1.91), which Poland’s ‘25 WC silver medalist Maria Żodzik, Ukraine’s Yuliya Levchenko and ’22 NCAA winner Lamara Distin failed to clear. The latter’s misses followed by just 2 weeks Distin improving her Jamaican outdoor best to 6-6 (1.98).
With the 8-woman field now down to 5, and the bar moving up in big increments, the next height was 6-4¾ (1.95).
Jumping first, Mahuchikh sailed over with her first attempt and then just lay back and watched her rivals struggle while lying prone and cozily cocooned in a sleeping bag.
Australia’s ’25 WC gold medalist and last year’s T&FN No. 1 HJ Ranker Nicola Olyslagers, who ended Mahuchikh’s 3-year streak at the top, made hard work of a height she has cleared at 9 out of her 10 meets this year. She finally went over with her third effort.
However, Patterson, Serbia’s Angelina Topić and Ukraine’s Iryna Gerashchenko departed, leaving the field down to 2 protagonists as the bar moved up to 6-6¾.
Mahuchikh again produced a soaring clearance, this time on her second attempt, while Olyslagers never looked like she had the height in her legs barely 2 weeks after she cleared an outdoor WL of 6-7½ (2.02) to win in Zürich.
With the money in the bank, Mahuchikh finished her night’s work with 3 attempts at an absolute WL of 6-8¼ (2.04). This would have topped her 6-8 (2.03) set indoors in her very first meeting of the year on home soil in Lviv back in January — but none of her tries were particularly close.
Finishing the campaign on a high note, Mahuchikh said, “This season was good enough for me but, to be honest, I expected a little more. That is why today I did everything possible to finish it on such a positive note.”
She added, “When all the athletes received these beautiful bracelets for the World Athletics Ultimate Championship, I wanted to be able to place mine on the trophy, bring it home to Ukraine, and put it together with all the Diamond League trophies and other awards.”
UC WOMEN’S HIGH JUMP RESULTS
September 11
1. Yaroslava Mahuchikh (Ukr) 6-6¼ (1.99)
(6-3¼, 6-4¾, 6-6¼ [2], 6-8¼ [xxx]) (1.91, 1.95, 1.99 [2], 2.04 [xxx])
2. Nicola Olyslagers (Aus) 6-4¾ (1.95)
(6-3¼, 6-4¾ [3], 6-6¼ [xxx]) (1.91, 1.95 [3], 1.99 [xxx])
=3. Eleanor Patterson (Aus) 6-3¼ (1.91)
(6-3¼, 6-4¾ [xxx]) (1.91, 1.95 [xxx)
=3. Angelina Topić (Ser) 6-3¼ (1.91)
(6-1¼, 6-3¼, 6-4¾ [xxx]) (1.86, 1.91, 1.95 [xxx)
5. Iryna Gerashchenko (Ukr) 6-3¼ (1.91)
(6-1¼ [2], 6-3¼ [2], 6-4¾ [xxx]) (1.86 [2], 1.91 [2], 1.95 [xxx])
=6. Lamara Distin (Jam) 6-1¼ (1.86)
=6. Yuliya Levchenko (Ukr) 6-1¼ (1.86)
=6. Maria Żodzik (Pol) 6-1¼ (1.86).
