• World record-holder Yaroslava Mahuchikh aims to regain the world indoor title
• Defending champion Nicola Olyslagers seeks third consecutive gold
• Home crowd hopes Maria Zodzik will repeat her success from Tokyo

After suffering two crushing defeats at the hands of Nicola Olyslagers last year, Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh is determined to be the best in the world once again. But following an outstanding 2025 season, her Australian rival is keen to stay on the path of glory.

Mahuchikh – the world record-holder, Olympic champion, 2023 world champion and 2022 world indoor champion – was relegate to bronze behind Olyslagers at both the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing and World Championships in Tokyo last year.

Seemingly fired up by those experiences, 24-year-old Mahuchikh has started 2026 in superb form, opening her season with a world-leading 2.03m in Lviv, then following it with victories in Karlsruhe (2.01m) and at the Ukrainian Indoor Championships (1.96m).

But Olyslagers has no intention of going down without a fight. The winner of the 2025 World Athletics Field Athlete of the Year award now aims to join Stefka Kostadinova as the only woman to win three consecutive world indoor high jump titles.

The entries include eight women who have cleared 2.00m at some point during their careers. Aside from Mahuchikh, the only other athlete to achieve the feat this season is Serbia’s world bronze medallist Angelina Topić, who jumped 2.00m in Banská Bystrica last month.

The hosts will be keeping their fingers crossed for Maria Żodzik, who claimed a surprise world silver in Tokyo last year. The 29-year-old has finished in the top three in all five of her competitions so far this year and equalled her indoor PB of 1.98m at the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Arena, venue of the World Indoors.

Australia’s Eleanor Patterson joined compatriot Olyslagers on the podium at the 2023 World Championships, 2024 Olympics and 2025 World Indoors. The 2022 world champion will be keen to repeat the feat again in Toruń.

Piotrek Przyborowski for World Athletics

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