A leap for the ages
U20 world bronze for 15-year-old
Mason M has stunned the athletics world by winning a long jump bronze medal as a 15-year-old at the World U20 Championships in Peru.
The youngest member of Australia’s 68-strong team recorded a personal best of 7.80 metres to claim third place behind two 19-year-olds, Croatia’s Roko Farkas (8.17m) and Serbia’s Luka Boskovic (7.93m).
His jump was the third longest in history by a 15-year-old, according to Trinity Director of Athletics Matt Wade.
Athletics Australia also confirmed he is the youngest ever Australian medallist at the World U20 titles.
His leap was seven cms better than his previous best of 7.73m and just two cms short of the 12th-placed finalist at the Paris Olympics.
Mason, who turns 16 later this month, helped Australia to finish seventh on the medals table in Lima, its best result in the competition’s history, with two gold, seven silver and five bronze.
Australian team horizontal jumps coach Alwyn Jones said: “For a 15-year-old to have won a medal, it simply has never happened and it’s one of the best performances I have ever seen.”
Mason is coached at Trinity by Mr Wade, Paris Olympics triple jump finalist and Old Boy Connor Murphy, Olympic long jumper Liam Adcock, and 2018 Commonwealth Games representative Emmanuel Fakiye. His strength and conditioning is in the hands of Director of Athletic Performance Elliot Taylor.
Under the 2025 Sport Australian Hall of Fame scholarship and mentoring programme, he will be paired with former world 400m champion Jana Rawlinson.
He also excels in AFL and was part of the Sydney Swans Academy side that went undefeated in its division of the U16 national championships.
