SEATTLE - This year's Paris Olympic Games suffered a huge blow to their star power as Venezuelan athlete and "queen of the triple jump" Yulimar Rojas announced that she will miss them due to injury.
Rojas announced on social media that she had suffered an Achilles tendon injury while training and she will not be able to defend her title. "My heart is broken and I feel so much sadness, I want to apologize for not being able to represent you in Paris 2024," said Rojas.
Rojas also wished success to the Venezuelan delegation in Paris and concluded with a message of hope, "see you soon, with the same dreams and desire," she added.
The two-time Olympic medalist underwent surgery in Madrid, Spain, to repair the tendon. She said that during a jump in a training session she "felt intense pain, which was diagnosed as an injury to the left Achilles tendon."
Rojas' career hasn't been short of successes. She is the holder of both the world and Olympic records, jumping 15.74 meters in 2022 and setting the Olympic record in 2021 with a 15.67 meters mark.
Just last year, she claimed her seventh straight world title (three indoor titles) in Budapest when she recorded a leap of 15.08 meters in her final attempt to take home the gold medal. Such efforts were rewarded by World Athletics, naming her World Athlete of the Year in field events.
World Athlete of the Year - Women’s Field 👑
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) December 11, 2023
Yulimar Rojas 🇻🇪 is your World Athlete of the Year for field events 👏 #AthleticsAwards pic.twitter.com/UwtPZ47p2G
Rojas remains unbeaten since September 2019 when she won the second of her seven world titles. After collecting a silver medal in Rio 2016, Rojas was able to win the triple jump event in Tokyo 2020 and became the first woman in the history of Venezuela to win an Olympic gold medal.
The Venezuelan hasn't competed in any events since September of last year, when she won her third consecutive Diamond League crown.
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