This year’s Tokyo Olympics is playing out less like a sporting event and more like a Christopher Nolan thriller. Despite constant hurdles and a horde of bad press, the Tokyo Summer Games is going as per schedule.
We’ve seen crazy athletic feats, multiple records broken and even unfortunate disqualifications, all in a matter of a little more than a week. One of the leading stories from Sunday was the domination of Venezuelan track and field athlete, Yulimar Rojas.
Competing in the women’s triple jump, Rojas was always one of the favourites to finish on the podium. But the youngster from South America defied expectations as she won gold in epic fashion at the ongoing quadrennial showpiece in Japan.
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ALSO READ – WATCH: Absolute Scenes as Italian and Qatar Athletes Share Tokyo Olympics Gold Medal in Men?s High Jump
Yulimar Rojas sets new world record at ongoing Tokyo Olympics 2020
#ViveTokyo2020 🏃♀️| Así fue el salto de nuestra reina @TeamRojas45 donde logra la hazaña de alcanzar una marca de 15.67M y batir un récord mundial que estaba vigente desde 1995 ¡Por 17 centímetros de diferencia! 🏆🇻🇪#VenezuelaEnTokyo #GeneraciónDeOroInvencible pic.twitter.com/LVbOaEtobt
— Vive TV Oficial (@ViveTVOficial1) August 1, 2021
Venezuela’s Yulimar Rojas created history this weekend as she posted won gold in the Women?s Triple Jump (Athletics) event of the Tokyo 2020 (in 2021) Olympic Games at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium with a distance of 15.67 m. In doing so, she set a new world record for the same forever etching her names in Olympic folklore.
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?I am lost for words, I can?t describe this feeling and this moment. Gold medal winner, with an Olympic record, and a world record. Wow. It is a fantastic night. I was looking for it [the record], I knew we had that distance in my legs to get it today. I was failing a bit in the technical aspect, but the last jump was one to give everything, and it was like that,” said Rojas is the first Venezuelan woman to win an Olympic gold medal.
The record was previously held by Ukrainian Inessa Kravets since 1995. Yulimar broke the previous best reading of 15.50 m with her massive final jump.
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Portugal’s Patricia Mamona and Spain’s Ana Peleteiro won silver and bronze respectively on Sunday. Five years ago, Rojas won silver in the triple jump at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games with a 14.98 m.