On day two of the Lima-based World Under-20 Athletics Championships, Sean Doggett from Athenry AC made a stellar progression from fourth to second in the last 20 metres of the 400m race, guaranteeing his advancement to the semi-finals. The 17-year-old’s outstanding finish was clocked at 47.31 seconds, trailed only by Poland’s Jakob Szarapo with 46.95 seconds.
Doggett, under the mentorship of his father Stephen, holds the honour of being the youngest Irish contender to have participated in the European Championships. This was following his involvement in the men’s 4x400m relay in Rome earlier in June, as well as the mixed 4x400m at the initial day of this competition in Lima, where unfortunately the Irish team failed to qualify.
Before this, Fintan Dewhirst of Donegal’s Tír Chonaill AC secured his spot in the semi-finals of the 400m hurdles race, coming second in his heat with a time of 52.59 seconds. Dewhirst executed an excellently timed run to finish behind Vance Nilsson of the United States, concluding at 51.98 seconds. Dewhirst’s previous achievements include a silver medal at the European Under-18 Championships in 2022.
Regrettably, David Davitt from Clonliffe Harriers was unable to proceed in the same event, ranking fourth in his heat with a time of 52.15 seconds where only the top three were assured advancement.
The championship will see Elizabeth Ndudi contesting in the long jump final and Oisin Joyce in the javelin throw final overnight (Wednesday night/Thursday morning, Irish time) after qualifying in the 12th and 9th places, respectively.