GILL Jacko

New Zealand

Athletics

Date of Birth: 20 Dec 1994

Age: 26

Gender: Male

Youth Olympian

Place of birth: TAKAPUNA

Birth Country:

New Zealand

Place of residence : AUCKLAND

Residence Country:

New Zealand

Events and Medals
Records
Schedule
Bio
General Interest
Milestones

Events and Medals

Discipline	Event	Rank	Medal
Athletics	Men's Shot Put	9

Records

Record	Event	Mark	Date	Location
WU20R	Men's Shot Put	23.00 m	18 August, 2013	Auckland (NZL)

Schedule

Change

Start Time	Location	Event	Status
	Olympic Stadium - Shot Put B	Men's Shot Put Qualification - Group B	Finished
	Olympic Stadium - Shot Put A	Men's Shot Put Final	Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

Athlete:

Olympic Games

Year	Location	Shot Put
2016	Rio de Janeiro, BRA	9th (20.50)

Youth Olympic Games

Year	Location	Shot Put
2010	Singapore, SIN	2nd (22.60)

World Athletics Championships

Year	Location	Shot Put
2019	Doha, QAT	7th (21.45)
2017	London, GBR	9th (20.82)
2015	Beijing, CHN	8th (20.11)

Oceania Championships

Year	Location	Shot Put
2019	Townsville, QLD, AUS	1st (20.75)

Diamond League overview - Three best ranks per season and event since 2017

Year	Shot Put
2017	1 x 8th

Diamond League - Ten best performances since 2020

Rank	Year	Event	Location	Result
8	2017	Shot Put	Lausanne, SUI	20.70

World Challenge - Ten best performances since 2020

Rank	Year	Event	Competition	Location	Result
3	2017	Shot Put	World Challenge	Berlin, GER	20.71
5	2017	Shot Put	World Challenge	Ostrava, CZE	20.41

Legend
SF - Semifinal, QF - Quarterfinal, 1R - 1st Round, Qual. - Qualification, QR - Qualification Round, DNF - Did Not Finish, DNS - Did Not Start, DQ - Disqualified, NM - No Mark, [Relay athlete without time] - Did not run in final

Occupation:

Athlete

Languages spoken:

English

Club name:

Takapuna Amateur Athletic and Harrier Club [Auckland, NZL]

Coach:

Mike Schofield

Sporting relatives:

His father Walter was a two-time New Zealand national shot put champion, while his mother Nerida was a national discus champion. His sister Ayla has also represented New Zealand as a discus and hammer thrower, and competed in the hammer throw at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Moncton, NB, Canada. (nzherald.co.nz, 21 Dec 2011; olympic.org.nz, 23 Jul 2016; SportsDeskOnline, 20 Jul 2020)

Other sports:

He was selected for a New Zealand national age-group basketball team. (tewahanui.nz, 28 Mar 2019)

Injuries:

In mid-2018 he sustained a pectoral [chest] injury during a weight training session. (nzherald.co.nz, 30 Mar 2019)

In late 2017 he was diagnosed with myocarditis, a disease that causes inflammation of the heart. He was forced to take eight months off training and competition. (nzherald.co.nz, 30 Mar 2019)

He sustained a groin tear in early 2017. (nzherald.co.nz, 30 Mar 2019)

He suffered a foot fracture four weeks before the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, but was able to compete at the Games despite the injury. (olympic.org, 01 Sep 2019)

He withdrew from the 2016 Auckland Track Challenge in New Zealand because of a wrist injury. (iaaf.org, 25 Feb 2016)

He suffered a groin injury in March 2014, an ankle injury in 2013, and a finger injury in July 2011. (stuff.co.nz, 19 Mar 2014; athletics.org.nz, 17 Oct 2013)

Start:

He took up athletics at age nine at his family home, after his father set up an outdoor area for him to throw in. (tvnz.co.nz, 03 Apr 2012)

Reason:

He followed his family into the sport. The family used to host their own athletics sports days. (nzherald.co.nz, 30 Apr 2011)

Ambition:

To win a gold medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (olympic.org, 01 Sep 2019; hayesknight.co.nz, 03 Aug 2020)

Hero:

Swedish discus thrower Ricky Bruch. "He was probably the craziest and most passionate guy I've ever met in sport. He was amazing. He had flair as a thrower and before his death [in May 2011] he used to talk to me most days over the internet. He passed away very suddenly and it was really sad." (iaaf.org, 23 Jul 2014; Instagram profile, 12 Jul 2016)

Award:

In 2011 he won the Emerging Talent Award at the Halberg Awards in New Zealand. (tvnz.co.nz, 03 Apr 2012)

General Interest

General
HEART DISEASE
He says the period from late 2017 to mid-2018, when he was unable to train due to myocarditis, was one of the toughest of his career. "I wanted to be out there so bad, but specialists told me I would be risking my life. My purpose for waking up every day was to train to get better and that was taken away. I did get very low. When you go through changes like that, you do suffer. I went through some not very nice places. But it made me realise that this is what I want to be doing and I'm very grateful for the time that I have, even just training. It took a few months back into training to see that I am lucky. It [myocarditis] is common amongst young sportspeople. It doesn't run in the family and the other good news is I'll be as good as new, with no long-term effects." (olympic.org, 01 Sep 2019; nzherald.co.nz, 30 Mar 2019)

Milestones

He became the first male New Zealand athletics competitor to win a gold medal at the world youth championships, when he was victorious in shot put at the 2011 edition of the tournament in Lille, France. The win also made him the first male New Zealand athletics competitor to win gold medals at both the world junior championships and world youth championships, following his victory in shot put at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Moncton, NB, Canada. (stuff.co.nz, 08 Jul 2011; SportsDeskOnline, 20 Jul 2020)

At age 15 years and 213 days, he became the youngest male athletics competitor from any nation to win a gold medal at the world junior championships, when he was victorious in shot put at the 2010 edition of the tournament in Moncton, NB, Canada. (nzherald.co.nz, 30 Mar 2019; SportsDeskOnline, 20 Jul 2020)

Social Media

Legend

:: Gold Medal Event
:: Silver Medal Event
:: Bronze Medal Event
WU20R:: World U20 Record

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