Jewish Australian Jemima Montag took bronze in the 20-kilometer race walk in Paris on Thursday, her first career Olympic medal.
Montag, 26, finished the race in 1:26:25, six seconds behind the Spanish silver medalist and 31 seconds behind the Chinese winner. Montag had placed sixth in the event at the Tokyo Olympics. She is the first Australian to medal in the event since 2004.
“This feels amazing,” Montag said after her win, according to The Guardian. “I was in fifth at about 15km and I wasn’t even sure if I wanted it or not. But I took that risk to go into bronze and I made it.
“I could see the medal in my head and I was like, ‘It is OK, I do not really want it,’” Montag went on. “And then I just heard my coach: ‘Get back on.’ And when I started trying, people responded so well and I knew I could hold this.”
Montag also said performing in front of her family added extra motivation.
“I felt significantly more pressure this year because in Tokyo there were no spectators,” Montag said, echoing a sentiment many Olympians and coaches have expressed. “Today, I had like 30 family and team members yelling my name. I wanted to make sure that I did well for them.”
Montag, who is also a full-time medical student at Melbourne University, is a two-time gold medalist at the Commonwealth Games and a silver medalist at the 2023 World Athletics Championships.
Montag also holds Australia’s record in the 20-kilometer race walk. She was named Australia’s Outstanding Jewish Junior Sportswoman of the Year in 2013 at age 15.
Montag is the second Jewish Australian to medal at the Paris Games, joining all-time great Jessica Fox, who has won gold in the kayak and canoe slalom events.
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