Colombian athlete Caterine Ibarguen took gold in Thursday’s triple jump final at the World Athletic Championships in Moscow, Russia.
In a week that has seen much cause for celebration in Colombian sport, Ibarguen secured her victory with a 14.85 meter jump. This is just slightly less than the 14.99 meter jump she produced in 2011 which was the season’s longest.
Ibarguen had previously taken silver in London’s 2012 Olympic Games and was named as El Espectador’s sports person of the year in 2011. Her winning the Olympic silver resulted in 2012 being Colombia’s most successful games to date since the country started competing in 1932.
MORE: Caterine Ibarguen wins Olympic silver in triple jump
Ibarguen was born in 1984 in the town of Apartado, Antioquia department. She was raised by her aunt who says that her athletic career began in college after she was selected for the athletic team. Since then she has gone from strength to strength, becoming one of Colombia’s most successful athletes.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos wasted no time tweeting his congratulations to Caterine, describing the result as “historic.”
¡Oro para Catherine que brilla desde Moscú en el Mundial de Atletismo! Histórico para Colombia, qué orgullo.
— Juan Manuel Santos (@JuanManSantos) August 15, 2013
Sources
Ibargüen: gold and pride for Colombia (Semana)
