Before the start in Turku, Julia Levchenko wrote on social media that what initially seemed like acclimatization after returning from Asia turned out to be food poisoning. She spent almost a week recovering — and still competed in the event.
At the Paavo Nurmi Games — a gold-level tournament of the World Athletics Continental Tour in Finnish Turku — Levchenko competed for victory against Jamaican Lamara Distin, who led throughout the competition. The decisive moment came at 1.97 m: Distin failed to clear it, while Levchenko succeeded on her third attempt.
"The Ukrainian track and field athlete won a gold-level World Continental Tour competition — the Paavo Nurmi Games, held in the city of Turku"
Ukrainian National Olympic Committee
This is her second gold of the season — after her victory at the Diamond League in the Chinese city of Xiamen. Between them — fourth place in Rabat (1.91 m), which the athlete herself attributed to the same health issues.
Why the result matters more than the number itself
To understand the scale: Levchenko's silver medal at the 2017 World Championships in London was 2.01 m. After that career peak, things went downhill: fourth place in Doha, missed seasons, results hovering around 1.91–1.92 m in the Diamond League circuit. According to Tough Athletics, for the first time in five years she has crossed the 2.00 m mark again — this season, in the Diamond League final.
So Turku is not an isolated victory. It is part of a series that looks like a systematic comeback, rather than a fleeting flash of form.
What lies ahead
The next major milestone is the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, where Levchenko will compete for the sixth time in her career. The question is specific: will she have enough consistency in her results during the remaining qualifying window to approach Tokyo not just as a participant, but as a medal contender — as she was in 2017?
