The 17-year-old Moser emerged as a favorite early in the season when she vaulted 4.41 meters in June, topping the world rankings in her age group. In Skopje, she not only confirmed that level but surpassed it—earning her place in the world record books.
“I’m really happy that I was able to jump just the way I had envisioned during training,” Moser said after the competition. “I knew I would start jumping later than the others. I believed 4.52 was possible. The jump went technically well and I felt confident—the fact that it turned out to be a world record makes this day truly special.”
Moser’s achievement is even more remarkable given that it was her first competition without her personal coach Erki Nool. Nool, who recently coached Saga Vanninen to gold at the U23 European Championships, was due to arrive in Skopje early in the morning, but technical issues with his flight left him stranded in Norway.
“I found out at 7:20 in the morning that Erki wasn’t coming—Mairo Tänav (Tänak) told me. It was quite a surprise, but I managed! It went really well. Mairo filmed my attempts and sent them to Erki, and he replied with messages or called to give advice. I’ve done all my previous competitions with Erki,” she said with a smile.
Allika trains under Erki Nool and Kädy Tänav-Tänak, and in
just three years has risen to the top of Estonian age-group pole vaulting. She
previously trained in acrobatics, which she believes laid a strong physical
foundation for her success.
In the medal standings, Estonia finished in 35th place. Just missing out on medals were Evamaria Albert in the cycling time trial and Ervin Markus Raudsepp, who set a U20 Estonian record of 47.55 in the 400 m.
To date, Estonia has won a total of 15 gold, 15 silver, and 13 bronze medals across 18 editions of the Summer European Youth Olympic Festival. The next festival will take place in Lignano Sabbiadoro, Italy, in 2027.