[ad_1]
PARIS: American long jumper Tara Davis-Woodhall got off to a flying start at the Paris Olympics, winning her qualifying round on Tuesday and then putting up a tough fight in the final to beat reigning Olympic champion Malaika Mihambo of Germany.
Mihambo fouled in her first two attempts but cleared 6.86m in her final attempt to finish third behind Italy’s Larissa Iapichino. Mihambo, currently the world leader, cleared 7.22m in June as she recovered from a hamstring injury sustained last year.
Davis-Woodhall’s best time this year is 7.18 seconds, which shows that she has enough fighting spirit.
To the applause and cheers of the Stade de France crowd, she cleared 6.64m on her first attempt and 6.90m on her second. The 25-year-old, who won silver at last year’s world championships and sixth at the Tokyo Olympics, is going for gold in Paris.
“I’m having a lot of fun and I have to stay focused and try to advance so we can have fun in the final,” Davis-Woodhall said. “I’m just happy to be here.”
Davis-Woodhall carried the U.S.’s medal hopes in the long jump after Brittney Reese retired after winning silver at the Tokyo Olympics. But Malaika triumphed at the last second: She won the gold medal on her last attempt at the Tokyo Olympics.
Nigeria’s Ese Brume, who won bronze at the Tokyo Olympics, qualified for the finals with a time of 6.76, while Jasmine Moore, who won bronze for the United States in the triple jump on Saturday, finished sixth with a time of 6.66 to secure a spot in the finals.
Athletes must jump a time of at least 6.75 seconds, or finish in the top 12, to qualify for the final at 8pm local time (18:00 GMT) on Thursday.
[ad_2]
Source link
