Elite Excessive Jumpers Take Heart Stage at Doha’s ‘What Gravity Problem’

Elite Excessive Jumpers Take Heart Stage at Doha’s ‘What Gravity Problem’

The second version of the ‘What Gravity Problem’ takes place right now on the open-air Katara Amphitheatre, the place a number of the world’s greatest excessive jumpers will rise, fall, and rise once more.

The person behind all of it is Mutaz Barshim, who’s a nationwide hero in Qatar and a three-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist. The 32-year-old has seen all of it on the most important phases, however at residence, he’s constructing one thing private. One thing lasting. “This occasion began to honour and empower athletes,” Barshim instructed reporters on the eve of the occasion. “It’s about making a motion, difficult limits, celebrating abilities, and doing it within the coronary heart of Qatar and past.”

What started as a excessive soar showcase in 2023 has rapidly grown right into a daring experiment in how the game could be offered. Gone are the qualifying rounds, lengthy breaks, and half-empty stadiums. This can be a single-discipline, single-session occasion beneath the lights, with music, manufacturing, and an viewers that comes simply to see athletes fly.

This yr, Barshim is as soon as once more on the beginning listing, however he’s not alone. The boys’s area contains Olympic silver medalist Shelby McEwen of the U.S. and New Zealand’s Hamish Kerr, who claimed bronze on the Tokyo Olympics. All eyes, nonetheless, might shift to a brand new and really welcome addition of the ladies.

For the primary time, the What Gravity Problem will characteristic a ladies’s competitors, and the organizers didn’t maintain again. Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh, the not too long ago topped Olympic champion in Paris and holder of the ladies’s world file, headlines the sphere. She’ll be joined by Australia’s Eleanor Patterson and Germany’s Christina Honsel, each of whom are ranked among the many world’s greatest.

Mahuchikh spoke with confidence forward of her season opener in Doha. “I’m in a robust bodily and psychological state, and I’m excited to start my season right here,” she stated. “This competitors affords a singular environment and a platform to push the boundaries of what we are able to obtain.”

This mix of artistry and athleticism is not only for present. The occasion carries a $155,000 prize purse, with the winner receiving a custom-designed trophy by Qatari sculptor Ahmed Al-Bahrani. His work, rooted in each trendy artwork and native custom, provides one other layer of id to the competitors, connecting sport to tradition in a means that feels earned fairly than compelled.

The format is designed for depth. A condensed area, a compact venue, and an energized crowd imply athletes have to be sharp from the primary soar. That urgency is what Barshim believes will hold folks returning, not simply followers.

The Katara Amphitheatre, usually reserved for live shows and cultural occasions, offers a cinematic setting. The venue’s Roman-inspired steps and seaside backdrop provide one thing tv can’t all the time seize: intimacy. Followers sit simply meters from the jumpers, shut sufficient to listen to their exhale earlier than a run-up.

As world monitor and area searches for tactics to attach with youthful audiences, the What Gravity Problem is a daring swing. And whereas it might not carry the burden of a serious championship, it has one thing most meets lack, readability of goal. It’s quick, sharp, and constructed across the sort of moments that go viral.

The hope, in fact, is that it conjures up not simply followers however the subsequent era of athletes. “Once I was a child, I by no means imagined doing one thing like this,” Barshim stated. “Now we now have the possibility to point out the way forward for our sport proper right here in Doha.”