FINN Valley AC’s John Kelly shattered his latest Donegal record this afternoon.
While competing in Växjö, Sweden, Kelly broke a record that stood for 41 years.
The Johnston man broke the Donegal discus record with a new mark of 43.50 metres.
It is almost a metre further than the previous record, which had been in place since 1979.
Fellow Finn Valley AC man Carlin reached out to 42.62m while competing at the Irish Army Championships at The Curragh in ’79.
“John has gone to Sweden to further his progress and this underlines his capability,” Finn Valley AC’s former Irish Olympic team manager Patsy McGonagle said.
“The discus is not John’s number one event, but it was a chance to get further competitive action for him.
“He has joined a serious training group in Sweden. His next target is to break 19m in the shot and the group are very confident that he will do that. John worked extremely hard during the lockdown this year and his performances have showed that.
“Looking at 2021, the 19m has to be a target and he also needs to be looking at qualifying for a major championships.”
In July, Kelly broke the Ulster, Donegal and Finn Valley AC shot put records while competing in Växjö.
Then, Kelly landed a superb 18.62m throw – bettering the 18.51m he had set in Portugal in August 2019. It was also slightly better than the 18.61m for an Irish Junior record in 2015.
When Kelly first claimed the Donegal shot put record, it was also a long-standing record – that of John Gallagher – which he broke.
His new discus mark came on a day when his younger brother James won the Ulster senior shot put crown.
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