Ukraine's Oleh Doroshchuk followed in the footsteps of his compatriot Yaroslava Mahuchikh by taking high jump gold at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26 on Saturday (21).

The European indoor champion claimed his first global medal by clearing 2.30m on his first attempt. Managing the same height, but on his third attempt, earned Mexico’s Erick Portillo a surprise silver medal, while the defending champion Woo Sanghyeok and Raymond Richards took joint bronze.

Although world and Olympic champion Hamish Kerr decided to miss the championships, the competition had still looked set to be a very close one. It featured seven athletes who had cleared at least 2.30m during the season, with Jan Štefela the sole athlete to break the barrier with 2.32m.

Woo, Doroshchuk and Richards moved slightly ahead after being the only competitors to clear 2.26m on their first attempts. But the Korean two-time world indoor champion and the Jamaican bronze medallist from Nanjing did not manage to make it over 2.30m.

Doroshchuk cleared that height on his first attempt, after a perfect scorecard up to that point. That was also the moment when Portillo emerged from the shadows. Just as Doroshchuk was on the verge of clinching the gold, the Mexican cleared 2.30m on his third and final attempt, keeping the suspense alive.

Only the Ukrainian and the Mexican remained in the competition. While some of his rivals preferred to jump in silence, Portillo urged the crowd to cheer him on – the 25-year-old opting for a show as he won over the Toruń crowd. 

But even to the sound of AC/DC’s ‘Highway to Hell’, Portillo could not manage 2.33m. That meant the gold medal went to Doroshchuk, who also failed his three attempts at that height.

Doroshchuk’s victory is not a sensation – the 24-year-old had finished in the top six at the past four global championships he had contested, but this is the first time he has reached the global podium.

“I didn't think about how to grab the medal here,” he said, surprised. “This indoor season was not as good as we planned before, which is why I just wanted to enjoy the competition and the atmosphere in this amazing arena, thinking a little bit about possibly improving my season's best.”

This season has been quite challenging for Doroshchuk. He was not satisfied with his jumps, and due to the ongoing war situation in Ukraine he must have got used to hearing the air raid sirens that go off in his hometown, Kropyvnytskyi.

“It is a very difficult situation. During the winter, we also had power cuts every day,” he added. “I believe it was a reason why the season has been hard for me, so far.”

Despite ultimately losing to Doroshchuk, Portillo can still be proud of his performance. The 25-year-old, who started with the lowest season’s best of all the competitors, won Mexico's first ever global medal in a vertical jumps event.

“The last couple of weeks before these championships were stressful because I did not know if I would qualify,” he said. “I was third on the waiting list, but then I got a place. This is a baby step towards my goal of becoming a world and Olympic champion.”

Štefela, who came to Toruń with a world-leading 2.32m, could not avoid mistakes. He cleared 2.17m, 2.22m and 2.26m on his second attempts and missed out on a podium finish, coming sixth behind Japan's Tomohiro Shinno.

Mateusz Kołodziejski finished seventh in front of a home crowd. The 23-year-old returned to Toruń after recently claiming his first Polish indoor title with a season’s best of 2.30m. Although the Pole may have had medal aspirations after his first two attempts, when he easily cleared 2.17m and 2.22m, this time he did not manage to reach anything more.

Piotrek Przyborowski for World Athletics

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