Yaroslava Mahuchikh of Ukraine fulfilled her pre-Paris Games promise, winning the women’s Olympic high jump at the Stade de France on Sunday. The reigning world champion and world record holder cleared a height of 2.00 meters, securing victory on countback over Australia’s Nicola Olyslagers. Eleanor Patterson of Australia and Iryna Gerashchenko of Ukraine shared the bronze medal, both clearing 1.95m.
Sporting her signature blue and yellow eyeliner – representing the Ukrainian flag – Mahuchikh’s performance fell short of her world record of 2.10m set at the Paris Diamond League last month. That mark eclipsed the previous record held by Bulgaria’s Stefka Kostadinova since the 1987 world championships in Rome, one of track and field’s longest-standing records. However, Mahuchikh’s performance in Paris was enough to secure the Olympic gold, the only trophy missing from her impressive collection.
The 22-year-old athlete, who escaped the Russian bombardment of her hometown, Dnipro, in February 2022, claimed world gold in Budapest last year. Prior to that, she secured silver in Eugene and Doha in 2019. Due to the ongoing war, Mahuchikh had to embark on a six-day car journey to Belgrade in 2022, where she added the world indoor high jump title to her collection of world silvers and an Olympic bronze. Earlier this year, Mahuchikh claimed world indoor silver in Glasgow in March.
