Atheyna Bylon of Panama Has Secured a Medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics

Panama’s Atheyna Bylon has secured a medal by qualifying for the semi-finals of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Why is this happening?  To answer this question, we must go back to the 1948 London Olympics, when a bronze medal match was last contested.  It turns out that boxing, at that time, was scheduled for the last days of the competition, which meant that the fights were fought with little time for rest.  This caused boxers who lost in the semi-finals to arrive physically and emotionally depressed, to the point that several fights could not be held due to the athletes’ decision.  For the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, it was decided to eliminate the bronze medal, so only gold and silver medals were awarded in this discipline. This caused anger among several boxers, who pointed out that their efforts were not recognized.  Thus, the International Olympic Committee established for the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games that two bronze medals would be awarded to the losers of the semi-finals. This measure was also adopted by other combat sports, such as judo, taekwondo, Greco-Roman wrestling and even karate, which was active in Tokyo 2020.  President Mulino of Panama called Bylon by cell phone and offered his congratulations directly.

 Gianna Woodruff will have another date in France when she competes in the repechage round of the women’s 400m hurdles at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.  After placing fifth in Heat 2 in the first round , Woodruff advanced to this round, which consists of three heats of seven athletes each, for a total of 21 competitors.  The Panamanian will be in the second lane of Series 2 and her goal is to be among the first two places to access the semifinals.  Date:  Monday, August 5, 2024  Estimated time: 3:50 am (Panama time)