Israel's Hanna Knyazyeva-Minenko became on Tuesday an Olympic contender after capturing the bronze medal for the triple jump in the European Indoor Championships in Prague. In her first attempt in the Prague arena, Knyazyeva-Minenko jumped a distance of 14.49 meters, setting a new Israeli indoor record, after previously setting a new Israeli indoor record with a jump of 14.40 meters. Knyazyeva-Minenko's medal is the first for Israel in the European Indoor Championships since 2000 and marks a new hope for an Olympic medal for Israel in athletics. "I'm happy. ... Alex Merman, my coach, and I managed to earn a historic women's medal for Israel, which is also my first medal competing in a big international adult competition. How symbolic that it all happened on International Women's Day. We have amazing female athletes in Israel who will go on to reach places on the podium. "I'll spend a day or two being happy, and then Alex and I will go on to the next tasks. As far as we're concerned, we look at every single jump in every single competition. Hard work will eventually lead to the results we want," Knyazyeva-Minenko said. In her native Ukraine, the athlete was considered a great promise. She followed her partner, decathlete Anatoly Minenko, to Israel. At the 2012 London Olympics, competing under the Ukrainian flag, Knyazyeva-Minenko placed fourth. She will be 26 for the Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics.
Israeli jumper wins bronze at European Indoor Championships
Triple jumper Hanna Knyazyeva-Minenko takes third place with a 14.49-meter jump that set a new Israeli indoor record, marks Israel's first women's medal for indoor triple jump • Knyazyeva-Minenko: How symbolic it happened on International Women's Day.
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