The Italian Gianmarco Tamberi was crowned world champion in the high jump, a competition in which the three-time world title holder, the Qatari Mutaz Essa Barshim ranked third, Tuesday in Budapest.
Tamberi (31), who shared Olympic gold with Barshim in Tokyo two years ago, won by clearing 2.36m on his first try, a bar Barshim failed to pass. American JuVaughn Harrison, 2.36m cleared on his second attempt, won the silver medal.
However, it was Barshim, world champion in 2017, 2019 and 2022, who arrived in Budapest with the best world performance of the season. Precisely the 2.36 m equaled by Tamberi and Harrison. It peaked at 2.33m on Tuesday evening. Both the Italian and the American then failed to pass 2.38m.
World gold was the only one missing from the list of Tamberi, already double European champion (2016 and 2022), world indoor champion (2016) and European indoor champion (2019). At the Outdoor Worlds, he had never done better than fourth, in 2022.
Sacred a few minutes apart from Soufiane El Bakkali, he over 3,000 m steeplechase, the Italian showman, half-shaven face as he is used to on special occasions, was to celebrate the freshly won world gold by going immerse yourself in the 3,000 m steeplechase river with the Moroccan. At the same time, the Italian hit “Sara perché ti amo” resounded in the Hungarian stadium. The Kenyan Abraham Kibiwot, bronze medalist in the 3,000m steeplechase, happily accompanied the golden duo.
