Barshim is a three-time World Champion and Olympic gold medalist
Qatar’s golden falcon, Mutaz Essa Barshim will be traveling to Zurich next month after sealing a spot for the Diamond League finals.
The three-time World Champion and Olympic gold medalist finished second place at the Lausanne Diamond League over the weekend.
Performing in the La Pontaise Olympic stadium, Barshim tied up with Ukraine’s Andriy Protsenko at 2.24 meters.
However, Protsenko made a clean jump over the bar on his first attempt marking a 2.15m, 2.20m, and 2.24m which drove Barshim to a silver medal.
Despite falling short in the competition, Barshim bested America’s JuVaughn Harrison, who joined the duo with a bronze medal.
Proud of his performance, Barshim is looking forward to defending his title at the finals in Zurich.
“I am in a good shape and good mental space, there are a few important meets ahead… I will be defending my third consecutive DL title at the finals in Zurich, so there is a lot at stake for me. Of course I want to finish my season as good as I can,” the Qatari superstar said.
The Men’s High Jump has a fierce contest as Barshim faced his friend and rival Gianmarco Tamberi. The Olympian superstars became icons to the sports world when they shared a high jump gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The moment touched the heart of billions of viewers worldwide, especially since the Olympics has not witnessed athletes sharing a medal since 1912.
Tamberi won the Diamond Trophy in last year’s competition, making him the first-ever Italian to do so.
Zurich’s final will be a demanding match for the 31-year-old superstar as he will face Canada’s star Django Lovett, New Zealand’s Hamish Kerr, and several other high jump athletes, including Tamberi.
Barshim debuted his newly signed Pumas sneakers at the Lausanne meeting after being signed to the sports company earlier last week.
A partnership was rumored to occur with the Qatari athlete, Puma, endorsed the deal by naming Barshim “the most successful high jumpers of all time.”
