Swedish talent - Irene Ekelund

[Elival]

Last years best 200 meter times for women in Sweden:

200m
23.50 Elin Backman 88 Helsingborg Budapest, HUN 20.6
23.55 Moa Hjelmer 90 Spårvägen Stockholm/S 6.8
24.03 Helene Bourdin 80 Täby Sundsvall 8.8
24.22 Carolina Klüft 83 Växjö Stockholm/S 31.8
24.30 Mathilda Hultgren 89 Ullevi Göteborg/U 4.7
24.42 Sofie Persson 87 Hammarby Helsingborg 10.7
24.50 Stephanie Olsson 91 KA2 Falun 21.8
24.50 *Stine M Tomb 86 Hammarby Göteborg/U 4.7
24.51 Jenny Kallur 81 Falun Enskede 16.5
24.52 Lena Berntsson 78 Ullevi Leiden, NED 12.6
24.53 Jessica Samuelsson 85 Hässelby Barcelona, ESP 30.7
24.58 Gladys Bamane 89 Spårvägen Göteborg/U 4.7

Yesterday 14 year old (born 1997) Irene Ekelund ran 24.57 in Sollentuna. 24.57 might not be so impressive if she was American or Jamaican, but very impressive for a girl in Sweden. She also ran 100m in 12.12. Her previous best before this meet was 25.71 in 200m and 12.71 in 100m. Rather impressive improvement...

[Marlow]

Yesterday 14 year old (born 1997) Irene Ekelund ran 24.57 in Sollentuna. 24.57 might not be so impressive if she was American or Jamaican,

24.57 for a 14-year-old girl? Yeah, that's impressive anywhere.

[26mi235]

Yesterday 14 year old (born 1997) Irene Ekelund ran 24.57 in Sollentuna. 24.57 might not be so impressive if she was American or Jamaican,

24.57 for a 14-year-old girl? Yeah, that's impressive anywhere.

It would not put her in the top 10 for the country for the year, but if you took a random area with a population of that of Sweden it probably would (i.e., Sweden, with <10,000,000 is ~3% of US, so that time would probably make the top 300 or so in the US).

[Marlow]

It would not put her in the top 10 for the country for the year

Please cite your source. I just queried the very extensive Milesplit database and found one girl in the USA faster for 8th grade (14-year-olds). There may be a couple more, but I'd love to see where you get the '10' number.

[Elival]

I´m most impressed by the improvement. 1,14 sec better then previous best in 200 m and 0,59 sec better in the 100 m.

[26mi235]

It would not put her in the top 10 for the country for the year

Please cite your source. I just queried the very extensive Milesplit database and found one girl in the USA faster for 8th grade (14-year-olds). There may be a couple more, but I'd love to see where you get the '10' number.

Context, Marlow, context. The notion was that she was the top Swede, not the top 14-year-old Swede. She would not be the top American and that was the sense of the comment I was replying to, then I indicated that mainly that was a 'numbers' thing as the US has 33 times the Swedish population, so relatively speaking she is top 10 x 33 on the all-time US list. The implication is that even in a nation with much more of a sprint orientation and reputation she is good.

[Elival]

She is improving. Ran 11.86 (+0.2) in the 100m and 24.11 in the 200m a few days ago.

Swedish best this season:
100m

11.72 Carolina Klüft 83 Växjö Weinheim, GER 28.5
11.75 Caroline Sandsjoe 92 IF Göta Karlstad 30.7
11.75 Erica Jarder 86 Spårvägen Köbenhavn, DEN 6.8
11.78 Lena Berntsson 78 Ullevi Göteborg/S 11.6
11.78 Julia Skugge 88 Glanshammar Sundsvall 31.7
11.86 Irene Ekelund 97 Kil Kil 13.8
11.93 Erica Pettersson 90 IF Göta Sävedalen 12.6
11.96 Pernilla Nilsson 92 Trelleborg Genève, SUI 28.5
11.99 Moa Hjelmer 90 Spårvägen Göteborg/S 11.6
12.02 Elin Backman 88 Helsingborg Karlstad 2.8

200m

23.20 Moa Hjelmer 90 Spårvägen Ostrava, CZE 16.7
24.04 Jessica Samuelsson 85 Hässelby Sundsvall 31.7
24.11 Irene Ekelund 97 Kil Kil 14.8
24.28 Elin Backman 88 Helsingborg Weinheim, GER 28.5
24.28 Pernilla Nilsson 92 Trelleborg Trelleborg 4.6

[26mi235]

She is improving. Ran 11.86 (+0.2) in the 100m and 24.11 in the 200m a few days ago.

Swedish best this season:
100m

11.99 Moa Hjelmer 90 Spårvägen Göteborg/S 11.6

200m

23.20 Moa Hjelmer 90 Spårvägen Ostrava, CZE 16.7

Me thinks that Moa has a PR 100 in her future.... I wonder what her 100m split was...

[andyjgt]

Of course she has been promoted to silver after Pizhankova's drugs ban.

[LopenUupunut]

Elival - do Sweden's top orienteers ever compete against your track specialists? I'd have to guess they'd be very competitive...

[Elival]

As you probably already know by now, she ran 7.38 in the 60 m and 23.52 in the 200 m last weekend. Told you she was talented almost 2 years ago

[Elival]

She qualified to compete for the 60 m in the Gothenburgh European indoor champs later this month, but her trainer said she will not take part and it is her and the trainers own decision.

[Elival]

Swedish Champion on 60 meter today ahead of Moa Hjelmer. Irene was clocked at 7.39 and Moa at 7.50:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cKHBhDvlyE

[eldanielfire]

Swedish Champion on 60 meter today ahead of Moa Hjelmer. Irene was clocked at 7.39 and Moa at 7.50:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cKHBhDvlyE

For Moa (I because a bit of a fan last year) 7.50s is pretty fab for somebody who must now being considered a 400m runner.

[Elival]

Irene Ekelund just won the 200m in the same championship in 23.15 !! 2nd came again Moa Hjelmer in 23.32.

[Blues]

Irene Ekelund just won the 200m in the same championship in 23.15 !! 2nd came again Moa Hjelmer in 23.32.

Just in case anyone doesn't realize how impressive Ekelund's 23.15 is, Irene is still 15... In the USA, only two high school athletes have ever run a faster 200m indoors... Bianca Knight ran 22.97 (at altitude) at the age of 18 in 2007, and Allyson Felix ran 23.14 at the age of 17 in 2003....

[fasttrack85]

Everytime i check this Swedish talent page this girls pb just keeps dropping lol. She is on par (if not better) with many of the ncaa girls. She is on track for something huge as long as no ones messes her up.

[SantaC]

Irene Ekelund just won the 200m in the same championship in 23.15 !! 2nd came again Moa Hjelmer in 23.32.

Just in case anyone doesn't realize how impressive Ekelund's 23.15 is, Irene is still 15... In the USA, only two high school athletes have ever run a faster 200m indoors... Bianca Knight ran 22.97 (at altitude) at the age of 18 in 2007, and Allyson Felix ran 23.14 at the age of 17 in 2003....

holy crap, she is one of the greatest 200m talents ever seen.

[FrankieB]

on thursday she will race in XL-Galan stockholm on 60m against the toughest opposition she
has faced, can she lower her record on 60m also?

Ezinne Okpararebo NOR
Laverne Jones -Ferrette ISV
Mariya Ryemyen UKR
Myriam Soumare FRA
Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce JAM
Irene Ekelund SWE

[Elival]

on thursday she will race in XL-Galan stockholm on 60m against the toughest opposition she
has faced, can she lower her record on 60m also?

Ezinne Okpararebo NOR
Laverne Jones -Ferrette ISV
Mariya Ryemyen UKR
Myriam Soumare FRA
Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce JAM
Irene Ekelund SWE

Considering her form and the inspiring opponents, I think she can. Maybe under 7.35!?

[Elival]

Irene Ekelund just won the 200m in the same championship in 23.15 !! 2nd came again Moa Hjelmer in 23.32.

Just in case anyone doesn't realize how impressive Ekelund's 23.15 is, Irene is still 15... In the USA, only two high school athletes have ever run a faster 200m indoors... Bianca Knight ran 22.97 (at altitude) at the age of 18 in 2007, and Allyson Felix ran 23.14 at the age of 17 in 2003....

holy crap, she is one of the greatest 200m talents ever seen.

Almost the same time as Allyson Felix and 2 years younger...

[Blues]

Irene Ekelund just won the 200m in the same championship in 23.15 !! 2nd came again Moa Hjelmer in 23.32.

Just in case anyone doesn't realize how impressive Ekelund's 23.15 is, Irene is still 15... In the USA, only two high school athletes have ever run a faster 200m indoors... Bianca Knight ran 22.97 (at altitude) at the age of 18 in 2007, and Allyson Felix ran 23.14 at the age of 17 in 2003....

holy crap, she is one of the greatest 200m talents ever seen.

Almost the same time as Allyson Felix and 2 years younger...

Closer to 1 year and 4 months younger, but you still make a valid point...15 year old Irene Ekelund from Sweden is the real deal and has tremendous potential, and I'm looking forward to seeing what she can accomplish in the future as she matures physically and if she possibly moves on from her obviously talented coaches now to even more elite level coaching and training...

[Elival]

Closer to 1 year and 4 months younger, but you still make a valid point...15 year old Irene Ekelund from Sweden is the real deal and has tremendous potential, and I'm looking forward to seeing what she can accomplish in the future as she matures physically and if she possibly moves on from her obviously talented coaches now to even more elite level coaching and training...

Good point. She gets away with her raw talent now, but to get even better she need elite level coaching and Sweden has no tradition of good sprinters. Maybe she should eventually do as Angelica Bengtsson did (who moved to France to train with Lavillenie´s ex-coach), to seek some foreign expertis.

[t_monk]

She runs in the 60m today in Stockholm with a strong field including SAFP.

60m Female:

1 Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce JAM
2 Natalya Pogrebnyak UKR
3 Laverne Jones -Ferrette ISV
4 Mariya Ryemyen UKR
5 Myriam Soumare FRA
6 Irene Ekelund SWE, Kils AIK

[Elival]

Thought I would change the topic and add her name.

[Elival]

A video of her running 23.15
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhq6gMUGx_4

[Elival]

And here you see part of the race from a different angle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14y5rfTZ9tY

[az2004]

she lloks like a special talent to me

felix in the making

thanks for the new angle, thats the first one i found

comparing ekelend at 15, she is over a second faster than the faster usa hs kid who is 18


24.38Deajah Stevens (Cardozo, Oakland Gardens, NY)

highly hyped american is

24.64(A)
*Dior Hall (Washington, Denver, Co)


although top talent in usa over 300 is from guyana
37.54Kadecia Baird’ (Evers Prep, Brooklyn, NY/Guyana)

[Elival]

Irene Ekelund 4th in 7.32 ! Winner SAFP in 7.04.

[batonless relay]

7.32 against that competition is excellent. Lets hope Swedish coaching get her to USA or Jamaica level in the next few years. I have my doubts but it would be great to see.

[az2004]

her 23.15 is a full second faster than the fasteamerican hser

is 7th fastest time globally

200 is her event maybe our jamaica fans can fill us in on their young jamaican hs kids

Desiree Henry of gbr did 23.28 outdoors last year and was 16

world youth timed from 2012

http://www.iaaf.org/records/toplists/sp ... outh/2012/


world junior from 2012

http://www.iaaf.org/records/toplists/sp ... outh/2012/

[batonless relay]

She clearly has the ability to be a top 100m sprinter. Jodie Williams, who was the last youth sprinter to run under 7.40, has a PB of 7.21 at 60m (age 17 years 6 months) and ran 7.38 when she was 15years 4 months, approximately. Ekelund ran 7.32 today. Williams has PB's of 7.21, 11.18 and 22.79.

[starboyunlimited]

Olympic Champ Shelly-ann Fraser Pryce vs 15 year old Irene Ekelund 60m XL-Galan Stockholm 2013
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyhRb6132Dg

[az2004]

thanks for that video, victory lap to gether aka saturday night

[Elival]

23.15 indoors means she could already now run like 22.80 or something outdoors in good conditions!?