One of our most effusive athletes in the sport is Yulimar Rojas. Yulimar should be a multi-eventer, but, she has put her focus on the Triple jump and long jump. In the Olympics, Rojas dominated the Triple Jump from her first jump of 15.41m, and by the time she leaped the world record, many saw it as a fait accompli!
Yulimar Rojas taking TJ gold, photo by Kathy Camara via TV, Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Pierre Weil, a sports journalist from the University of Oregon, studying with Professor Lori Shontz, wrote for us at the US Olympic Trials and is covering a variety of topics for @RunBlogRun during the Tokyo Olympics.
Yulimar Rojas finally grabs Women’s Triple Jump World Record
By Pierre Weil
TOKYO, Japan — Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela grabbed the Women’s Triple Jump World Record she so desperately coveted with her sixth and final jump on her way to Gold in Tokyo on Sunday night with a jump of 15.67 meters
“I knew. I already knew. I knew from the run. I knew I couldn’t miss that one. I knew it was right there,” Rojas said of her record-breaking jump. “I didn’t even have to look. My head, my heart, my body.”
Rojas, the defending Silver medalist from Rio and 2-time defending World Champion, had three of the top five best triple jumps of all time coming into the competition.
She set the Olympic record on her first jump with a 15.41-meter leap but stalled a little bit on her next four jumps.
A world record! Yulimar Rojas set the WR that she had dreamed of, 15.67m, photo via TV by Kathy Camara
Then as she glided down the runway, Gold Medal already secured, Rojas seemingly levitated through the air before finally crashing down into the sand, breaking Inessa Kravets’ World Record from 1995 of 15.50 meters.
“Since I woke up today I knew that it was going to be a great day,” she said. “I felt that magic, that good energy, that things could be huge and I could make history.”
Not only did Rojas make history with her jump, but she also became the first female athlete from Venezuela to ever win an Olympic gold medal.
PatrÃcia Mamona of Portugal and Ana Peleteiro of Spain both set National Records on their way to silver and bronze, respectively. Mamona set the NR of 15.01 meters on her fourth attempt, while Peleteiro set hers of 14.87 meters on her fifth.
Ana Peleteiro, Rojas’ training partner, said she knew Rojas had it in her all along.
“I train with her every day and suffer with her every day,” Peleteiro said. “I didn’t have doubts that she was going to get it.”
Immediately after Rojas’ final jump, she and Peleteiro embraced and jumped up and down to celebrate the historic day.
Keturah Orji, the American Champion, came in 7th, while the defending Olympic Champion Caterine Ibargüen of Colombia came in 10th.
