Major figures who will miss the Paris Olympics

Helena Sanchez
Paris, Jul 23 (EFE).- The Paris Olympic Games, which begin in less than a week, will bring together the best athletes in each discipline, but not all of them, since injuries, accidents or poor results in qualifying phases have kept some great figures and teams out of the event.

From the Venezuelan athlete Yulimar Rojas From basketball player Kawhi Leonard to the Brazilian football team, a good number of sports stars will miss the Games.

These are the main absentees:

– Yulimar Rojas (Triple Jump, Venezuela): The reigning Olympic champion, world record holder and four-time world champion suffered a torn Achilles tendon in April, which will prevent her from defending her title in Paris. The absence of Rojas, 28, leaves a significant void in the women’s triple jump, where she was the main favourite for gold.

– Elaine Thompson-Herah (Athletics, Jamaica): Jamaican sprinter Elaine Thompson-Herah, 32, a four-time gold medal winner in the 100m and 200m at the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympics, withdrew from Paris 2024 following an Achilles tendon injury last June.

– Oksana Chusovitina (Gymnastics, Uzbekistan): The legendary Uzbek gymnast will not be competing in her ninth Games due to an injury sustained during the Asian Gymnastics Championships in April. A major blow for the athlete, who was hoping to bid farewell to the Olympic Games with a historic record. Chusovitina, 49, one of the longest-serving and most decorated gymnasts in history, has made her mark on the sport of artistic gymnastics.

– Kelvin Kiptum (Athletics, Kenya): The Kenyan long-distance runner and world marathon record holder died in a car accident in February at the age of 24. Kiptum was one of the great promises of world athletics and his premature death shocked the world of sport.

– Brazilian men’s football team: The ‘canarinha’ failed to qualify for Paris 2024 after losing to Argentina in the South American pre-Olympic tournament, which frustrated their dream of winning a third consecutive gold medal at the Olympic Games.

– Argentina men’s basketball team: The Albiceleste team will also miss the Olympic Games after failing to qualify in the continental pre-Olympic tournament. Figures such as Campazzo, Laprovittola, Deck and Vildoza will miss the Paris event. Argentina, Olympic runner-up in 2004, will not be at the Olympics for the first time since Los Angeles 1984.

– Katie Archibald (UK track cycling): The two-time Olympic champion will also miss the Paris event due to injuries sustained in a fall at home in June. Archibald, 30, will not be able to defend the medals she won at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.

– Kawhi Leonard (Basketball, United States): Leonard, winner of two NBA rings and one of the many stars of the ‘Dream Team’, is out due to various physical problems. Another great figure of the team, Kevin Durant -also two-time NBA champion-, has problems with his calf and has missed several preparation games, although for now he remains in the American training camp.

– Kylian Mbappé (Football, France): Despite having expressed his desire for years to compete in the Olympic Games in his city, the French football star will not participate due to the decision of his new club, Real Madrid, and after having competed in the recent European Championship in Germany.

– Bruno Fratus (Swimming, Brazil): Bronze medallist in the 50-metre freestyle at the Tokyo Games and with multiple trophies in world championships, Fratus -35 years old- will not be in Paris due to a series of physical problems, for which he underwent knee surgery in February.

– Tadej Pogacar (Cycling, Slovenia): Slovenian cyclist Tadej Pogacar, who won the Tour de France for the third time on Sunday with six stage victories, has withdrawn from the 2024 Paris Games to rest, the Slovenian Olympic Committee announced on Monday.