Sarah Lavin powers to fifth place finish in world final

Sarah Lavin capped a superb a World Indoor Championships performance with a fifth-placed finish in the final of the 60m hurdles.

The Emerald AC athlete clocked a time of 7.91 - just a hundredth of the a second outside the personal best she managed in the morning's heat and this evening's semi-final - lunging to finish fifth in a world-class field.

The quality of the field was underlined by the world record time run from winner Devynne Charlton, the Bahamas sprinter crossing the line in 7.65.

France's Cyrena Samba-Mayela took silver in 7.74, while Poland's Pia Skrzyszowska finished third.

For the 29-year old Lavin, it was a second successive appearance in the world indoor final and a significant improvement on her performance in Belgrade.

The Limerick sprinter finished seventh in the final in March 2022, posting a time of 8.07. Her 7.91 time this evening would have earned her a fourth-placed finish two years ago.

"To finish 5th in the world is amazing and to do it in final where the world record was broken too," Lavin remarked after the race.

"7.79 won bronze today, and that's never be required before to win a medal so it just shows where the standard is going.

"We've a Europeans in June which I want to be really competitive at, but the Olympics is everything, it’s the biggest stage in the world. Paris will be sensational so I’m really looking forward to what’s to come."

Looking forward to her outdoor season, Lavin said "We’ve a Europeans in June which I want to be really competitive at, but the Olympics is everything, it’s the biggest stage in the world. Paris will be sensational so I’m really looking forward to what’s to come".

Earlier, the Ireland women's relay team likewise finished fifth in the final of the 4x400m at the World