Yulimar Rojas, the 28-year-old Venezuelan athlete, tore her Achilles tendon during a training session in Spain and underwent surgery in Madrid on Thursday. The injury has forced her to withdraw from the Paris Games and put a temporary stop to her Olympic journey.

Accompanied by a picture of her in a hospital bed, Rojas announced on social media: "My heart is broken and I would like to apologise for not being able to take part in Paris 2024. I have been experiencing severe pain which has been diagnosed as an injury to my left Achilles tendon." After winning silver at Rio 2016, Yulimar Rojas went on to win the gold medal at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games.

Her amazing performances continued with a last-round jump in Budapest last year, where she came from eighth place to win gold with a winning leap of 15.08m, to claim her fourth outdoor world title. Rojas also holds the world record in the event, achieving a staggering jump of 15.74m in 2022.

Sfter being named 'World Athlete of the Year' in the women's fields events last year, Yulimar Rojas was ready to defend her Olympic title in Paris. Her remarkable track record made her a top contender for the coveted gold medal.

"Today I feel very emotionally affected by not being able to defend my Olympic title... but I have to stop, take it in, recover and come back with a lot of strength to continue flying together," concluded Rojas.