Mutaz Essa Barshim on his quest for high jump greatness

Mutaz Essa Barshim likes to push the bar whenever he competes.

Seeing how high he can jump has helped the Qatari star win Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020 in 2021, and three consecutive world titles.

His personal best of 2.43m is the second-highest jump of all-time, just two centimetres shy of the world record.

Ahead of his bid for an unprecedented fourth men’s high jump world crown in Budapest, Barshim remains as hungry as he did when he first jumped as a 15-year-old.

“I’ve made history being on top of my game for the past decade, but I still thrive for more,” he told World Athletics ahead of the Diamond League opener in Doha on 5 May.

"High jump is my passion and I want to make sure that my name is mentioned whenever high jump is mentioned… Whenever I step on the track, I always want to give my best, that has been the case since my first Diamond League appearance back in Doha 2011."

As he chases titles and the world record, Barshim continues to work on his resilience that was tested by a career-threatening injury in 2018, and cultivate a winning mentality he hopes will see him win gold again at Paris 2024.

• Mutaz Barshim: From being 'the worst', to jumping into the record books

Mutaz Barshim on his focus for 2023: 'The World Championships and Asian Games'

Barshim has more than lived lived up to his Arabic name Mutaz - which translates to 'pride' - becoming his nation's most decorated Qatari track and field athlete.

The 31-year-old delighted athletics fans in Tokyo when he and Italian Gianmarco Tamberi decided to forgo a jump-off and share gold.

Since then, he has added a third world title and is relishing getting started this season.

“My training in Qatar went smoothly over the winter and I look forward to my Wanda Diamond League season-opener in Doha. World Championships in Budapest and the Asian Games in China are my top targets for the season,” he said of his 2023 plans.

“It’s important that I prioritise my health and stay consistent with a routine that works for me.”

Soaring heights has been a constant for Barshim who was born in Doha to Sudanese parents. Five World Championships later and four Olympic Games, he’s been a master of consistency.

Mutaz Barshim on responding to adversity

In 2017, Barshim became the first athlete in history to clear 2.40m in five consecutive years and remained unbeaten that season.

The following year, he was trying to break Cuba’s Javier Sotomayor’s world record of 2.45m which has stood since July 1993.

On his third attempt at 2.46m at the Gyulai Istvan Memorial meet in Hungary, he suffered a painful setback.

He recalled recently in the Mind Set Win podcast with Cédric Dumont, "As soon as I started towards the bar when I planted my left foot, which is my take-off foot, it just snapped. I twisted both my left and my right so both ligaments just like 'Pap'.

"I fell down screaming and feeling the pain. One second you just cleared the highest jump in the world and a few moments later you are on a wheelchair and you can’t walk. Your season is done, possibly your career is done.

“I found one doctor, he had been operating on sports injuries for 30–40 years, told me ‘This is the worst I have ever seen.' He said any chance of coming back is ‘maybe one per cent, it’s impossible!'"

But Barshim battled back to return to action after almost a year, and learned plenty about resilience.

"It took me a little bit more than a year when I could do something, jog, hop, take some steps. But with so much pain, I was on painkillers. Before the surgery my training was really fun but coming back my training was really a struggle.

“You start questioning yourself, 'Am I going to be able to do what I did again? Am I ever going to be able to jump again? This is my passion, I almost put my life on pause just to do what I do. If this just stops now, who am I going to be? What am I going to do?'"

Barshim also used the power of his mind as he retained his world title on home soil in 2019. 

He told the podcast, "When I got into the finals, entering the stadium it was full, like, 40,000 people. The first few jumps, poor jumps that I was really disappointed with. Something was not clicking.

"I failed on my first, second attempt, and now I was in a position if I failed my third attempt I am going home. I looked at my coach, he said, ‘You can do it!’ But I felt at that moment I could never be able to do what I did again.

“Something changed. I got back, closed my eyes, and I planted my foot. I cleared the bar so well. When I landed on the mat, the whole stadium was shaking. The screaming was loud, at that moment I forgot everything, I just knew I was back."

How he responded to what would have been the biggest failure of his life continues to motivate him as he seeks to become the world’s greatest ever high jumper.

“Imagine if I decided to give up, I would not know…when I look a few years back, maybe if I tried, I would be …I don’t want to be in that position.

“I’d say to everyone if you love something do everything you can go for it. It may seem impossible it may seem difficult if you truly believe in yourself, it’s really worth it.”

"I'm going to do everything I can, if it’s meant to be, it will be. I have to put 120 per cent in because 100 per cent isn’t enough anymore."