All Rhasidat Adeleke had to do was to run like the athlete she is: the fastest teenage girl in Europe.

In Tallinn, Estonia, yesterday that’s exactly what the 18-year-old Dubliner did, exploding from the blocks and leaving her rivals trailing to win the women’s 100m in 11.34.

It was the first Irish gold at this event since 2017, when Gina Akpe-Moses – also the daughter of Nigerian immigrants – won the same title. Proof, as if needed, that Irish athletics has a new facade and it’s one that’s stronger, faster.

For a nation with a traditional phobia of the favourite’s tag, it was carried by Adeleke like a badge of honour.

Athletes as tall as her typically aren’t fast starters, but she had the lead soon after rising. For her rivals, that was essentially that, Adeleke using her considerable stride length, astonishing power and slick technical proficiency to skip clear.

It spoke volumes that when she crossed the line, the Tallaght star did not erupt in celebration – though the smattering of Irish fans in the stands did – and instead slowed to a stop like an athlete underwhelmed by her time, which was just outside her personal best of 11.31.

It hinted at someone who holds far bigger objectives than this, an athlete who’s unlikely to think of herself as having made it due to the plethora of underage titles and records. She has been here before, albeit at a younger age, winning 200m gold at the European U-18s in 2018.

Looking at her trajectory, it makes it all the more baffling that she was overlooked for a place on the Irish mixed 4x400m team for Tokyo, this despite Adeleke clocking by far the fastest 4x400m split of any Irishwoman this year.

She is, quite simply, the standout young star of European sprinting, and that she has got to this point should give immense pride to her previous coaches in Dublin, Johnny Fox and Daniel Kilgallon, along with those at Tallaght AC.

Since the start of the year she’s been based at the University of Texas, guided by Edrick Floreal, who has taken many a young star to the sport’s highest reaches.

That decision to leave Dublin, to wave goodbye to friends and family and move almost 5,000 miles from home – speaks of an athlete who wants to be better than just very, very good. She wants to be great.

After winning gold her focus shifted to the 200m heats just hours later. There, Adeleke coasted to victory in 23.20. Want to know how fast that is? No U-20 woman in Europe has got close to it this year.

Adeleke did it in a qualifying heat. Barring disaster, she looks primed to complete the sprint double in the 200m final at 4.55pm Irish time today. Just watch her fly.