Erik Kynard had his chances to win the men’s high jump on Tuesday at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. But Russia’s Ivan Ukhov kept raising the bar, literally, and forced the American to settle for silver.
Team USA’s Erik Kynard Wins Silver Medal In Men’s High Jump
Kynard was first to clear 2.33 meters in the men’s high jump, but Ukhov topped that twice, at 2.36 and 2.38 meters, and Kynard could not clear the bar at either of those heights or at 2.40 meters.
Ukhov’s medal is the third Russian gold in the event in the last four Olympiads. Kynard’s is the first American medal since 2004, when Matt Hemingway took silver.
Three bronze medals were awarded in the event, to Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim, Canada’s Derek Drouin and Great Britain’s Robert Grabarz. All three cleared 2.29 meters and failed just three times in the competition, all at the 2.33-meter height.
Three other competitors cleared the 2.29-meter height, including the U.S.‘s Jamie Nieto, but had more failures.
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