11 Aug 2024
Aspire Academy graduate Mutaz Barshim’s incredible Olympic journey ended in Paris 2024 with a moment of history: he became the first athlete to win four high jump medals in the history of the Games.
His bronze for Qatar at the 2024 Games will now sit alongside his gold from 2020 and the silvers he won in 2012 and 2016.
He is also the first athlete representing an Arabic country to win four Olympic medals.
Despite an injury concern in the qualification round, the 33-year-old cleared a season’s best of 2.34m.
He eventually finished behind winner Hamish Kerr of New Zealand and silver medalist Shelby McEwen from the USA.
The two athletes turned down the chance to share the gold medal in what would have been a repeat of the historic moment from the Tokyo 2020 Olympics when Mutaz Barshim and Italy's Gianmarco Tamberi won joint gold. Instead, the duo proceeded to a sudden-death jump off with Hamish Kerr eventually claiming the gold medal.
After collecting his medal, Mutaz Barshim, who graduated from Aspire Academy in 2009, confirmed that these would be his final Olympic Games.
“My feelings of pride today are beyond words,” he posted on Instagram.
“I had the honor of raising my country’s flag in four Olympic Games with four medals.”
“I’m thankful for all the support from my country, Qatar, my family, my supporters worldwide and my team who have stood by me throughout more than 13 years of local and international competitions.”
“With this Olympic Games, I conclude my Olympic journey, and I am truly happy to have stood on the podium in all my participations. #WhatGravity 👐🏽.”
There were season’s bests for Aspire Academy graduate Bassem Hemeida at the Games in Paris.
He twice set a season’s best in the 400m hurdles, first in the heats and then improved that time in the repechage round. Unfortunately, it was not enough for him to reach the semi-finals.
Competing at his third consecutive Olympics, 2015 graduate Abubaker Haydar Abdulla did not progress directly to the semi-finals from his heat and was then unable to take to the start line in his repechage race.