Israel Olatunde smashes Irish 60m record to take national title

The UCD man took 0.04 off Paul Hession’s benchmark. 

CHEST OUT: Israel Olatunde of UCD AC, Dublin, crosses the line to win the senior men's 60m final in a national record time of 6.57. Picture: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

After the year he had in 2022, Israel Olatunde had an awful lot to live up to this indoor season, and for much of the past month it looked like he might be falling short. But in the space of 6.57 scintillating seconds, the 20-year-old dispelled any doubts, obliterating the Irish 60m record at the National Indoor Championships in Abbotstown on Sunday.

After a rocket start, powerful pick-up and a flying finish, Olatunde had daylight between him and his rivals, his arms spread wide, eyes to the sky, after he hit the line, and that elation came before he knew his time. When he saw that he’d taken 0.04 – a whopping chunk in 60-metre terms – off Paul Hession’s Irish record of 6.61, he sprinted almost as fast back down the home straight in the opposite direction, before looping back to celebrate with the crowd, at which point a cramp in his calf sent him crashing to the track.