Gold Medallist Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim celebrates on the podium alongside silver medallist Woo Sanghyeok of South Korea and bronze medallist Andriy Protsenko of Ukraine during the medal ceremony.
Doha: Mutaz Essa Barshim’s gold medal in Eugene marked a new milestone in the career of the gold hunter who became the first high jumper to clinch three consecutive World Athletics Championships titles.
The Qatari Champion won the gold medals in three different versions of the World Championships, in London 2017, Doha 2019 and Eugene USA 2022 to become a living legend in the history of athletics.
In addition to the colourful medals at the Olympic, world, continental and regional levels, and the Diamond League fixtures, Barshim achieved what no other athlete had ever achieved in high jump.
Barshim was regarded as one of the greatest high jumpers in history of athletics - alongside world record holder Javier Sotomayor.
Barshim’s association with numbers began in the year of 2010 - as this year witnessed the emergence of his talent - as he participated in the World Indoor Championships in Doha in which he came 8th with a mark of 2.23 meters at the age of 18.
Since then he started his journey of success in local, continental, and world championships reaching the best jump recorded in the last three decades at a height of 2.43. Barshim made this achievement in Belgium in 2014.
Barshim has a series of successes that began in 2010, when he won the gold at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Canada (2.31m), the same mark which he recorded to win the 2010 Asian Junior Athletics Championships gold medal. Barshim also holds the Asian indoor record.
In 2014, Barshim made the best high jump in the history of the Asian Games in South Korea with a 2.31 metre mark. He jumped the same height at the 2011 World Military Games in Brazil.
Barshim also clinched the 2014 World Indoor Championship gold medal in Poland. Barshim, an Aspire Academy graduate, is a model of a champion with strong will and patience.
He suffered a tendon injury in 2017 during a meeting in Hungary while trying to break the world record, and it almost cost him his sporting future. But he continued to work on recovery and returned with persistence and defiance to win gold at the World Athletics Championships in Doha.
Despite his beginning as a runner at Al Rayyan Sports Club, Barshim shifted to high jump following advice of the age group coach at the time.
Barshim’s achievements are inspired by the great support of the Qatar officials, the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), and the Athletics Federation. The QOC President H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani who was present at the Hayward Field in Eugene, praised the Qatari champion's latest achievement and congratulated Barshim.
