It was a bar set at 1.97m that enabled Ruth Beitia (ESP) to become Olympic high jump champion in Rio at the age of 37. On Saturday, at the MEETING de PARIS, the Spaniard, who is the current Diamond League leader, went one centimetre further, producing a jump of 1.98m to win the event and equal the season’s best performance. After putting in a practically perfect display, during which she only failed to clear 2.02m three times, Beitia finished two centimetres ahead of Saint Lucia’s Levern Spencer. Italy’s Alessia Trost (1.93m) finished third, while Olympic silver medallist Mirela Demireva (BUL) could only manage 1.90m for sixth place. Marine Vallet, the only French athlete taking part, finished 10th with a jump of 1.75m.
27 August, 2016
