The triple jump world record holder explains how he aims to return to the top of the podium in Toru this month after undergoing Achilles surgery in 2024.
At his peak, Yulimar Rojas was one of the most dominant athletes in track and field. The triple jumper won 2021 Olympic goldfour world outdoor titles, three world golds and a world record holder of 15.74m.
However, every athlete has an Achilles heel, in Rojas’s case, literally.
In the spring of 2024, he was training in Spain to defend his Olympic title in Paris, but suffered an Achilles injury that required immediate surgery.
His 2024 season was wiped out and he returned to the triple jump late last summer to take bronze at the world championships, nearly a meter off his best.
On the eve of the World Championships in Toruń, Poland, however, he believes he is back in top form and ready to jump further than ever.
“When you get injured, it’s a very hard blow and it knocks you down and hurts your mind, especially when it happens in an Olympic year,” he says. “It makes you vulnerable and you fear that another injury might come and that you’ll never come back.
“I was very lucky to have the best psychologist in coach Ivan Pedroso, plus my manager, family and partner. they all helped me believe that I could be me again.
“Now I feel stronger and reborn from my ashes and a new Julimar Rojas. I am pure fire and pure power.”
Rojas replaced South American Catherine Ibarguen as triple jump queen, and the 30-year-old Venezuelan showed she could become the first woman to clear the 16m barrier in the triple jump. He believes he can still do it, even though Achilles surgery interrupted his progress, but he wasn’t always so sure.
“I had a lot of doubts and uncertainties during this period of injury,” he says. “I didn’t know if I would ever come back or when I would come back, and it was very difficult for me.
“That’s why Torun is so important to me, because it will mark the ‘before and after’ of Julimar Rojas.”
“Now my physical form is perfect. As for my technical condition, I have good feelings, good moods. But most of all, I’m happy to be back on the track and meet my competitors and get in front of the cameras.”
So far this year he has competed just once, jumping 14.95m in Valencia. But in Torun, he is preparing for his fourth world title, and in his last victory, in Belgrade in 2022, he set a world record.
Rojas’ goal is to return to the top of the podium at the next Olympics in Los Angeles in two years. He also spoke his native Spanish here, but is learning English and aims to conduct interviews in English by LA 2028.
His homeland has been experiencing a period of extreme instability since the arrest of President Nicolás Maduro by US forces earlier this year. But Rojas believes that Venezuelans like him can overcome the problems.
“I’ve always been known for never giving up and showing that no matter what happens to us,” said Rojas, who grew up in a modest “ranchitoIn a deprived area of the country, “it’s an incentive to fight for what I want in life.
“Sport is everything for me. Although my career has taken a different path, I have always made it clear that my fighting spirit prevails and my desire to return has always been there.
“My mission has always been the same. My country has gone through turbulent and rather difficult times. But from my point of view, I’ve tried to overcome what’s happening by working harder, focusing more and being motivated for what’s to come. My goal has been clear since I got injured.”
“Torun is an opportunity to show that dreams can come true.”
