2024-08-05 07:05:02
Yaroslava Mahuchikh of Ukraine has won a thrilling Paris 2024 women’s high jump final at the Stade de France on Sunday, 4 August. Nicola Olyslagers of Australia won silver as both she and Mahuchikh cleared 2.00m, but Olyslagers took three attempts to do it and the Ukrainian went over the bar first time.
Australia’s Eleanor Patterson and Ukraine’s Iryna Gerashchenko tied for bronze after both cleared 1.95m but failed to go clear on their three attempts at 1.98m.
After the competition, world record holder Mahuchikh spoke to Olympics.com about just what this gold medal meant to her.
“I dreamed of this moment when I started my track & field career and it was a big motivation to me,” she said, before later adding: “I thank God that I jumped [over at 2.00m] with my first attempt and that gave me the gold medal that I want to dedicate to my country.”
Olyslagers took time to reflect on her journey in the sport that has taken her to this moment of winning her second silver medal at the Olympic Games three years after her second-place finish at Tokyo 2020.
“I had people that saw something inside of me and said ‘keep going – you’ve got a gift’,” she said. “I started high jump when I was eight years old. As soon as I did it, I just fell in love with it. I wasn’t the best at it at the beginning, it was that love that carried me through. “
