Tokyo: Team Qatar star Mutaz Barshim, who claimed the gold in the high jump competition in the athletics competitions at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, which is currently being held in Japan, and will run until August 8, spoke with pride about his decision to share the gold medal with his Italian colleague Gianmarco Tampere.
In a press statement today, Barshim said, “The decision to share the Olympic gold medal was a purely emotional decision which reflects my respect and love for my fellow competitor. I know how much it means to win gold. The opportunity to share gold is something I will cherish for the rest of my life.”
Tamberi celebrated loudly after Barshim agreed to share the gold, and hugged his Qatari friend in a snapshot that attracted world attention and was widely praised. This is the first time an Olympic gold in athletics has been shared since the 1912 Stockholm Olympics in the pentathlon and decathlon.
The Qatari star added that he hopes he can inspire people that the participation and support of colleagues is one of the most powerful gifts we have.
Barshim added, “As an individual sport, high jumping imposed on me a lot of loneliness and personal exercises, and a lot of sacrifices, challenges and difficult times that were the price of winning gold.”
He pointed out that this edition of the games was the most difficult in the history of the Olympic Games in the modern era. It is difficult to find three players who clear a height of 2.37 m.
And about his relationship with his Italian competitor, Barshim explained by saying, “Tamberi and I have been friends for 11 years. We were in the youth category, then in the general category, then professionalism, and we have a friendship that is not only within the competition, and he was injured in 2016 and the same was repeated in 2018, and he performed the same operation, And when something like this happens, it is very difficult to return, especially with psychological and moral pressure, as well as very difficult to return to running and jumping at a high level in the world championships, and he worked to improve his return and so did I, and we reached 2.37 m and there was a “playoff” option to make a jump Another to see who would win, and as an advantage I was better than him personally and he knew that, and the referee came to explain the new law that allows two players to win gold.”
Speaking about the Aspire Academy, the Qatari athlete stressed that Aspire enhances your sports and educational excellence. “Before that, things were difficult because of the lack of coordination between study and exercise, but in the academy, things have changed by organizing training and studying times. The educational level is very strong, As well as the sports culture is very strong, the sports champions are always present to answer the students’ questions and this generates a great impact on the mentality of the student, and makes you live in a sports atmosphere.” He said.
The Olympic champion Mutaz Barshim succeeded in embracing glory and writing history at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, when he won the gold medal in the high jump, to be the first Qatari champion to win three Olympic medals in three consecutive sessions. He won bronze in 2012 in London, and silver in Rio 2016 Brazil, then Tokyo 2020 gold medal.
The Golden Falcon has also imposed himself as the best in the world in recent years as he added this Olympic gold medal to his back to back gold medal at world championships in 2017 and 2019.
Barshim became a model for the Qatari athletes that everyone is proud of and a model for the international athletes, thanks to his high morals.
His golden moment was historic when he agreed to share the gold with Italian Tampere, in a scene described as the best in the “Tokyo Olympics”
The success of the Golden Falcon in presenting an honorable image of the Qatari, Gulf and Arab athlete did not stop there, but rather became the first Asian athlete to win three Olympic medals in athletics, a new achievement added to the honorable record of the Qatari champion with global successes and high morals.
Source: Qatar Olympic Committee