Maguchikh and Gerashchenko Advance to the 2026 European Championships Final
Ukraine will have two representatives in the final of the 2026 European High Jump Championships. Yaroslava Mahuchikh and Iryna Gerashchenko confidently advanced through the qualifying round and will now compete for medals at the event.
The qualifying bar was set at 1.91 meters. To advance to the final, the athletes had to either clear this height or achieve a sufficient result in the qualifying round. Iryna Herashchenko began her performance at 1.80 m. She then successfully cleared heights of 1.84 m, 1.88 m, and 1.91 m in succession. She cleared all four heights on her first attempt.
For Gerashchenko, this meant a very confident advance to the final. The Ukrainian did not waste any extra attempts and conserved her energy for the next stage of the competition. Yaroslava Mahuchikh began the qualifying round even higher—at 1.88 m. She successfully cleared both of her attempts. After that, the Ukrainian no longer needed to continue competing, as her result was sufficient to advance to the final.
For Mahuchikh, this is yet another appearance at the highest level. The Ukrainian remains one of the top contenders for the top spots in the event. This season, she has already claimed victories at international tournaments, including winning the Diamond League meet in Rabat with a jump of 1.97 m.
Who Else Advanced to the Final
A total of 15 athletes advanced to the final. In addition to the two Ukrainian athletes, representatives from Montenegro, Sweden, Estonia, Italy, Germany, Serbia, Cyprus, Poland, Belgium, Finland, France, and Great Britain will compete for medals.
Among the finalists are Maria Vuković of Montenegro, Louise Ekman of Sweden, Carmen Bruus of Estonia, Asia Tavernini and Idea Pieroni of Italy, Christina Honzel from Germany, Angelina Topić from Serbia, Elena Kulichenko from Cyprus, Maria Żodzik from Poland, Merel Mas from Belgium, Ella Junnila from Finland, Solène Jiquelle from France, and Morgan Lake from Great Britain.
So in the final, the Ukrainian women will have to compete against a strong international field. It will be particularly interesting to watch Maguchikh, who has repeatedly proven that she is capable of competing for the top spots at major tournaments.
This isn’t the first time Maguchikh and Gerashchenko have competed together for medals
For Ukrainian fans, seeing Maguchikh and Gerashchenko reach the same final is nothing new. Both athletes have been part of the world’s high jump elite for many years. At the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Maguchikh won the gold medal, while Gerashchenko took bronze. Thus, the two Ukrainian athletes stood together on the Olympic podium in the same event.
In 2026, both continue to compete at a high level. Geraschenko returned to the international stage after the birth of her daughter and, as early as February, won bronze at the Golden Tour event in Belgrade, clearing 1.91 m. Mahuchikh also managed to put in several strong performances. In early summer, she won the competition in Rabat with a jump of 1.97 m and went on to win other international tournaments as well.
When is the final
The women’s high jump final is scheduled for June 15 at 10:07 p.m. Kyiv time, according to the competition schedule. So Ukrainian fans will have two reasons to watch the final. Mahuchikh and Gerashchenko have already accomplished the main goal of the qualifying round—they cleared the required heights and advanced to the medal round.
Now everything will be decided in the final round. That’s where we’ll find out whether the Ukrainian athletes can add medals from the 2026 European Championships to their numerous international accolades.
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