There has only been one Irish pole vaulter to make an Olympic Games, Tori Pena, but there could well be another on the way, with experienced coach in the event, Jim Alexander, describing Mikey Kent as an exciting raw talent.
Kent hails from Gusserane in county Wexford and has field events in his genes; mum, Ailish O’Brien, was an international athlete, competing in the throws, so the family is already familiar with the logistics of competing in field events.
Pole vault is among one of the most technical events in athletics and also involves the headache of transporting 11-foot implements to and from tracks and events. Even in recent times, athletes have struggled to get poles onto planes for international competitions.
Kent’s dedicated parents travel to the National Indoor Arena once a week, with poles strapped to the car, to train with Belfast-based coach Alexander, who has been an important player in some of the country’s top vaulters.
The 17-year-old has already competed for Ireland twice at underage level, but not in the pole vault. Kent is also an accomplished long jumper, making the final of the European Youth Olympic Festival in 2022.
The goal this summer will be to achieve a first Irish vest in his favoured event. Kent, now within the U20 bracket, has a modest target of the European Junior Championships in Finland in August, but does admit the standard is high.
“I kind of have an eye on European U20s, it’s kind of a long shot as the standard is very high, but it’s nice to have something to aim for, and maybe a senior cap too, you never know,” Kent said in the latest episode of Athletics Ireland’s Inside Training Series on YouTube.
Mikey Kent receiving his first National Senior gold medal from his mother Ailish O'Brien
The teenager’s sights may be on the upcoming European Team Championships. With no individual entry standards, the team-based event can be the perfect gateway for young athletes to claim their first senior vests but he will need to top the Irish rankings before 9 June.
Alexander, however, is confident that Kent will have a personal best in 2025, starting with the number five. The DMP man has already cleared 4.70m this year, when he claimed his first senior title at the National Indoor Championships in February.
The Northern coach first came across Kent in 2021 but has been working with him since 2023 when an injury prompted his family to harness his speed in a healthy way.
“I first met Mikey in December 2021, and my recollection was ‘this kid’s got speed, he is going to kill himself’.
“In late 2023, the family approached me.. He had got quite a bad back injury, and they wanted a bit of help to avoid future injuries.
“The x-factor in athletics is speed, and he has that in abundance; that’s what makes him a very attractive proposition to coach.
“I have accumulated 30 years’ worth of knowledge in the event, but I haven’t had the opportunity to work with someone with quite this much raw potential.”
Kent does admit he still has a lot to learn, and the sessions can be gruelling with the technical analysis adding time to training that other athletes may not have to consider.
“There is so much to it, I have been doing it since the start of 2022, and technique-wise it’s just nowhere near there yet, there is so much to learn.
“An hour to two hours of jumping you have to unpack things before and after, so that takes it to two and a half or three [hours]… They last a while, so you have to section away a lot of the day.”
"I have accumulated 30 years' worth of knowledge in the event, but I haven't had the opportunity to work with someone with quite this much raw potential." - Jim Alexander
There has been a shift in Kent’s event focus, while last year he was more focused on the long jump over pole vault. This year has been the opposite.
“I would say last year was a 70-30 split towards long jump, but this year I kind of flipped it.
“I still go to my long jump coach in Laois, Liam Kelly, he does a lot with me and he does my gym programmes.”
This weekend, Kent will contest the 123.ie All Ireland Schools Track and Field Championships in Tullamore. He is entered in both the long jump and pole vault. Last year, he claimed double gold and broke a 31-year-old record in the vertical event in the intermediate age group.
You can watch Episode 5 of the Inside Training series with Mikey Kent on the Athletics Ireland YouTube channel from 7pm on Thursday, 29 May https://youtu.be/Wk__7xZkKno
