Kenyatta University law student Samson Opiyo secured Kenya’s first medal at the ongoing Paris Paralympics in the men’s T37 long jump.
Opiyo won the silver medal after recording a leap of 6.20 meters in his fourth jump, finishing behind Argentina’s Brian Lionel, who took gold with a jump of 6.42 meters. Brazilian Cardoso Mateus finished third, earning the bronze medal with a season’s best of 6.20 meters.
The 28-year-old began competing in Para athletics in 2017 while at university and considers winning a silver medal in the T37 200m and a bronze in the T37 100m at the 2019 International Athletics Meeting in Marrakesh, Morocco, as highlights of his career.
Opiyo improved his personal best from 5.73 meters to 5.83 meters in his second jump, temporarily moving into second place. Despite dropping to sixth with a third jump of 5.88 meters, he made a significant leap in the fourth round to regain second place and secure the silver medal, earning Kenya its first trophy of the Games.
Opiyo qualified for the Paris Paralympics due to his high performance ranking at the World Para Athletics Championships held in Kobe, Japan.
“I am simply over the moon. I want to dedicate this to all those who have supported me and the millions of Kenyans who watched, especially my family,” Opiyo expressed with joy.
“Since Kobe, I have been working with my coach on my technique—execution on the runway, stepping on the board, flight, and landing,” he added.
Opiyo, a final-year law student at Kenyatta University, is coached by Henry Nzungi, a 2012 London and 2016 Rio Paralympian.
Although this was Opiyo’s debut at the Paralympic Games, he had previously participated in three world championships—2019 in Dubai, 2023 in Paris, and 2024 in Kobe, Japan—without medaling. He finished sixth in Kobe with a personal best of 5.73 meters.
This silver marks Kenya’s first field event medal since the 2008 Beijing Paralympics when Mary Nakhumicha won silver in the javelin.
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