Venezuelan triathlete Yulimar Rojas seeks another world record in Madrid

Madrid, March 2 (RHC/PL)-- Venezuelan triple jumper Yulimar Rojas, current Olympic champion, will seek this Wednesday to beat her world indoor record at the athletic meeting in Madrid, according to the South American athlete.

Jumping 15.43 meters (universal indoor record) here was special. Every time I remember it, it motivates me to keep working. Now I hope to equal or surpass that mark. Madrid is always good for me and Gallur is a track I miss, said Rojas, a day before returning to the Spanish competition.

The world record holder also aspires to win the final title of the World Indoor Tour and will have among her main rivals the Cuban Liadagmis Povea, who has a personal best of 14,54.

In the men's category of the specialty, Latin America will have as its main representative the Cuban Lázaro Martínez, who arrives at the meeting with the best record of the season among the competitors with 17.21 meters.

Martínez defeated in the Lievin meeting the German Max Hess (16.76 this 2022), who leads the World Indoor Tour ranking after finishing second and third in the French competition and in Karlsruhe, and the Finnish Simo Lipsanen (16.71), whose only options are to win in Madrid.

The fans are waiting for a great Spanish duel in the 3,000m between Adel Mechaal and Mohamed Katir, who will run alongside the Ethiopian duo formed by the Olympic 10,000m champion, Selemon Barega, and the runner-up under the five rings in the 3,000m steeplechase, Lamecha Girma.

Mechaal arrives at the Madrid meeting after winning the 1,500m and the 3,000m at the Spanish Indoor Championships, where he showed his class to win both distances.

In addition, in the 1,500m he achieved the best time ever obtained in a national indoor championships: 3:36.89 minutes. This record joins the European record achieved less than a month ago in Staten Island (United States), where he set the European record for the 3,000 meters with 7:30.82.

In the 60-meter dash, American veteran Michael Rodgers (6.48) and Frenchman Jimmy Vicaut (6.48) know what it is like to go under 6.50 seconds and, in the case of Rodgers, he has a world indoor runner-up in 2010.

However, it is his compatriot Elijah Hall who has the best mark of 2022 (6.53) and also holds second place in the all-time indoor 200m ranking with 20.02.

In the men's 60m hurdles, Asier Martinez, recent Spanish indoor champion, comes to the event with the best time of the season (7.55 seconds) among the participants.

Martínez will face, among others, the British Andrew Pozzi (7.57), the Swiss Jason Joseph (7.57) and the also Spanish Enrique Llopis (7.59), national runner-up.

In the women's division, two women who know what it means to go under eight seconds this season will compete: Finland's Reetta Hurske (7.93) and the Netherlands' Zoe Sedney (7.98).