Sommer hoping to raise the bar in Birmingham

IT’S incredible to think that at just 22 years old Birmingham will be Sommer Lecky’s second appearance at the Commonwealth Games.

Four years ago the gifted Castlederg high jumper finished 10th at the Gold Coast Games in Australia and needless to say she’s hoping to better that early next month.

“When I competed at the Gold Coast I was just 17, I was young and very inexperienced and was taking it all in,” she reflected.

“This time I have the experience under my belt. I want to jump really well, enjoy myself, take in the crowd and hopefully place better.

“The last Commonwealth Games I was so young and it was the biggest crowd that I had ever competed in front off. I have learned a lot since then, grown up and I have competed in that environment multiple times.

“I know what to expect, how to deal with different situations. Every competition you learn that bit more and with that comes confidence in the process.”

Following the upheavel of Covid and all the restrictions that came with that, this has been a “normal” season for Sommer.

She has been competing on a regular basis in Ireland, the UK and Europe and had her successes along the way. The U20 World Championship silver medallist struck gold at the Irish Championships – one of her main goals for the season – and that event proved yet another valuable learning experience.

“The event was suspended for a few hours because the weather was so bad,” she exclaimed.

“Coping with that situation and adapting was another great experience, definitely a lesson learnt.”

As well as competing, Sommer’s training has all been geared towards Birmingham and with assistance of Athletics NI she has been using their facilties at Jordanstown.

The Finn Valley club athlete also works part-time in the family’s retail business,

But as the countdown to the Games begins in earnest the former Ulster Herald Sports Personality of the Year winner’s full focus will be on trying to qualify for the high jump final in Birmingham.

“It’s hard to know what to expect because the list of competitors hasn’t yet been confirmed,” she continued.

“The main thing for me is to focus on myself, you can’t control what someone else does. Whatever will be will be.

“I always have targets in my own head but things can happen that will hinder that, like the weather did at the Irish Championships.

“The high jump is one of the most competitive events. It includes Olympic competitors – it’s basically a world final.

“It’s hard but it’s where I want to be; competing against some of the very best. I want to one day compete at the Olympics, the World Championships and hopefully this is another stepping stone to help me get there.

“The nice thing about Birmingham is it feels like a home championships. I can fly in there one or two days before the event. Qualifying is on August 4th with the final a few days later.”

TWO PAGE COMMONWEALTH GAMES SPECIAL IN TOMORROW’S ULSTER HERALD, DUNGANNON HERALD AND STRABANE CHRONICLE