Twenty years after Canada won its last Olympic track and field gold medal, with Donovan Bailey winning the 100 meters in Atlanta, the nation’s gold medal drought came to an end in the men’s high jump.
WATCH: Canada’s Drouin takes gold in men’s high jump
Derek Drouin cleared 7 feet, 9 ¾ inches (2.38 meters) on his first attempt at that height, and after Ukraine’s Bohdan Bondarenko failed to clear 2.40 meters Drouin was the Olympic champion. With the Olympic record being 2.39 meters, set by Austin Charles of the U.S. in 1996, Drouin made one attempt at 2.40 meters following Bondarenko’s failed attempt with the gold medal sewn up. He is Canada’s first gold medalist in the high jump since 1932.
Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim took silver with a best jump of 7 feet, 8 ¾ inches (2.36 meters), with Bondarenko taking bronze with a best jump of 7 feet, 7 ¾ inches (2.33 meters). Great Britain’s Robert Grabarz and Ukraine’s Andriy Protsenko also cleared 2.33 meters, but missed jumps at the next height of 2.36 meters resulted in their not getting onto the medal stand.
American Erik Kynard also posted a best jump of 2.33 meters, but he also missed on all three attempts at 2.36 meters. Kynard finished sixth by virtue of the two misses at 2.33 meters that came before his successful attempt at that height, with Grabarz and Protsenko both having successful jumps on their first attempts at 2.33.
