Reece Ademola: The Cork teen on a long-jump mission

Meet Reece Ademola - the 6'9" Cork teenaged long-jumper with a love for gastronomy and a dream to make the Olympic Games.

Back in August Ademola produced a brilliant jump of 7.83 metres at the European U-20 Championships in Cali, Colombia.

That effort moved him to third on the Irish senior all-time list behind Ciaran McDonagh [8.07m set in 2005] and Adam McMullen [7.99m, 2018].

The 19-year-old missed out on a medal at the Worlds as he eventually finished fifth, but there's no question his star is on the rise. His short-term focus is on the U-23 World Championships in July 2023, but after that, he's eyeing the Paris Games.

Even with the current buzz surrounding Irish athletics' next generation, you'd be forgiven for not being aware of Ademola.

He grew so tall and so quickly that he had to take a two-year break when he was 17 as injury issues hampered his progress. Those problems have eased now - and he's ready to make up for lost time.

"I think I was just born for this," he said at the announcement of 123.ie as the official partner to Athletics Ireland.

"I've a huge passion for track and field, always have.

"I'd say I would have been hitting the six-foot mark when I was 12. I was always the tallest in my class and suffered a lot of injuries because of my height and how quickly I was growing. The bone wouldn't catch up to the muscle. I'd a lot of back problems, knee problems... there are faults to being tall.

"When I was 17 the knee issue became a thing. I had to take a two-year gap. I'm back now. But growing up it was hard on the lower back. I had to limit myself. I wasn't going full out when I was growing up. Now it's easing off. I've stopped growing, I think. I definitely feel a lot more comfortable."

Reflecting on his