AGE: 25 COUNTRY: South Africa EVENT: Women's High Jump THE DRAMA: Family turmoil could distract Cloete, or propel her to a new world record THE COMPETITION: Russian Yelena Slesarenko has equaled Cloete's season's best of 2.04 m
Posted Sunday, August 8, 2004; 11.13BST
South African high jumper Hestrie Cloete will celebrate her 26th birthday on Aug. 26, the day of the qualifying round for the Olympic women's event. Two days later, she hopes to go one better than her silver medal in Sydney 2000 or even two better, because Cloete is also gunning for the world record of 2.09 m set 17 years ago by Bulgarian Stefka Kostadinova.
To date, Cloete's highest jump has been 2.06m the African record she set in 2003 but she wants to be the first woman to clear 2.10 m, preferably in Athens. While Cloete's movement over the bar may be smooth, away from the high jump things have been distinctly choppy for the native of Coligny, west of Johannesburg.
Last month, an ongoing feud between Cloete and her parents over money erupted into a very public slanging match; now the parties are no longer in contact. The fight made Cloete, who smokes up to a pack of cigarettes a day, question her choice of career, but she has since decided to stick with high jumping and will hit Athens with renewed vigor. "Now I'm angry," she told South Africa's Rapport newspaper. She will no doubt be using those churning emotions to propel her to new heights.
Double Dutch in the Olympic Pool [Jul. 26, 2004]
Twin sisters Sonja and Bianca van der Velden are in this together — and they have plenty to smile about
Straight To Video [Jul. 26, 2004]
Sure, the Games are always TV-friendly. But the Athens Olympics are designed for cameras, not fans. No sweat: ticket sales are slow anyway
Leaving the Past Behind [Jul. 12, 2004]
Victory for Taiwan's baseball team may restore some luster to the island's scandal-tainted diamonds
Is She the Next Nadia? [Jul. 05, 2004]
Catalina Ponor, cultivated in the hothouse of Romanian gymnastics, wants to be nothing less
To The Hammer Born [Jun. 21, 2004]
In Koji Murofushi's family, becoming a world-class athlete is just the standard career path
Athens Clears A Hurdle [May. 24, 2004]
The Olympic Stadium is topped off and gets a big thumbs-up for its prep work
The King of Racewalking [May. 31, 2004]
Poland's Robert Korzeniowski is the greatest of all time — and he's going for one last gold in Athens
Going to the Temple of Love [May. 24, 2004]
A sailor's tribute to Aphrodite is uncovered by Olympic constructors
How Safe Is Athens? [May. 17, 2004]
Bombs go off 100 days before the Olympics begin. A look at who may have planted them, and how officials plan to secure the Games
Mogadishu at 60 Miles an Hour Arms merchants are once again doing brisk business after a rapid change of power in this tough town, but so far the peace has held
The Year of The Nuke A rundown of the world's nuclear powerhouses, and what to expect in the coming months
