A moment in history was made this week when Dubliner Rhasidat Adeleke smashed the 21-year withstanding record for the indoor 400 m run by over an entire second.
At the University of New Mexico Collegiate Classic this week, Rhasidat Adeleke took the win in the 400m indoor race with a time of 50.45 seconds, faster than her own outdoor record of the same length.
In doing so, she smashed the previous Irish record, 51.58 seconds, held by Karen Skinkins for the last 21 years.
The 20-year-old is in her junior year at the University of Texas and has set a precedent as the fastest time in the world this year so far.
Rhasidat Adeleke smashes 21-year Irish indoor 400m record – a ground-breaking Irish record
In a ground-breaking move in Irish athletics, Adeleke smashed a 21-year indoor 400m record this week.
The time of 50.45 seconds is even faster than her own outdoor record of 50.53, recorded when she finished fifth in the European Championship 400m final in Munich in August 2022.
After this, she also led the 4x400m relay team to a final placing, another Irish record. The track at Albuquerque, New Mexico, is known to be fast. It benefits from the mile-high altitude that favours spring and jump events.
Last month, on the very same track, she also broke her own Irish 200 m indoor record with a world-leading time of 22.52 seconds.
Rhasidat Adeleke – an impressive career so far
Rhasidat Adeleke is as impressive an Irish athlete as they come. Born in Dublin in 2002, she won the gold medal in the 200-metre race at the 2018 European Athletics Under-18 Championships held in Hungary at just 15 years old.
The next year, she won the 100m/200m sprint double at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Azerbaijan.
Ever since then, she has been building an impressive reputation for herself. In 2021, she took up a scholarship with the University of Texas and competed in the US Collegiate Indoor Championships.
2023 has been an incredible year so far, having been voted Sportswoman of the Month by the Irish Times in January, now beating the Irish record for the indoor 400m.
What’s next? – looking forward to the future
As more people are beginning to take notice, we have to wonder what is next for the budding Irish athlete.
With her world-leading time of 22.52 for the 200m, it leaves her a firm favourite to win the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) title that will take place in the same venue in March this year.
At only 20 years old, there is so much potential for her in the field, and we can’t wait to watch her succeed.
To keep up to date with Rhasidat Adeleke and her athletic career, follow her Instagram here.
