Dmitry Kroyter

Kroyter was born on February 18, 1993, in Siberia and immigrated to Israel at age six.[1][2] He received an Israeli passport only in 2009, approximately ten years after arriving in the country with his mother.[1] His athletic development took place entirely in Israel, and unlike several other immigrant athletes in Israel's national delegations, he had not previously represented another country in competition.[4]

While still a student at Shevah Mofet High School in Tel Aviv, Kroyter broke Israel's youth high-jump record with a clearance of 2.20 meters.[2] At age 14½ he had already won the Israeli high-jump championship with a result of 1.98 meters, and in 2009 he captured the Israeli senior championship after clearing 2.19 meters.[2] His coach was Anatoly Shafran, who immigrated to Israel from the former Soviet Union and was credited with discovering both Kroyter and fellow high jumper Daniela Frenkel.[7][8]

Kroyter's breakthrough on the world stage came in 2009 at the World Cadet Championships in Bressanone, Italy, where he cleared 2.20 meters to win the high-jump gold medal. The victory made him the first Israeli to win an athletics world-champion title.[2]

The following year brought further success at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore. Kroyter won gold there after clearing 2.19 meters, further cementing his status as one of Israel's most promising young athletes.[3] Before departing for Singapore, he told reporters, "I expect to return to Israel with a medal."[9] In a Ynet interview after the victory, Kroyter said that while standing on the podium and hearing Israel's national anthem, he thought of his brother Yevgeny, who the report said had been detained and deported from Israel seven years earlier. Kroyter expressed hope that his brother might be permitted to visit the country regularly.[3]

By December 2010, Kroyter's personal best stood at 2.24 meters, and he was regarded as a leading Israeli hope for the 2012 London Olympics.[2] In February 2011, just six days before his 18th birthday, he set a then career-best mark of 2.28 meters.[4] He won the Israeli high-jump title in June 2012 with a clearance of 2.17 meters, though he still needed to reach 2.28 meters to achieve the Olympic B qualifying standard.[10]

After setting his 2.28-meter mark, Kroyter spent several years battling a recurring injury to his takeoff thigh that kept him far below his previous level.[4][8] By age 21 he was described as being on the verge of retirement, a stark contrast to the exceptional early promise he had shown.[4]

Coach Anatoly Shafran persuaded Kroyter to seek a further medical opinion rather than quit the sport. A specialist in Germany identified scar tissue that caused recurring thigh strains whenever Kroyter reached a certain level of training intensity.[4] Treatment of the underlying condition allowed his career to resume. In 2014, Kroyter described the financial as well as physical pressure he faced: "If I want to earn money now, I have to jump 2.28 meters immediately, and that is far from me while I am injured."[8]

In 2015, after years away from top form, Kroyter cleared 2.20 meters in Baku and expressed optimism about competing at higher levels.[11] That July he won a silver medal at the European Athletics Under-23 Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, clearing 2.24 meters.[4] He then qualified for the 2015 World Championships by equaling his career best with a 2.28-meter jump in Leiria, Portugal.[4]

Kroyter secured qualification for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games by clearing 2.29 meters.[5] He was among six Israeli track-and-field athletes who officially booked places at those Games.[12] A corporate sponsorship contract was also signed around this time, with Automotive Equipment Group chairman Tzvi Neta backing Kroyter as one of Israel's leading high jumpers in his preparations for Rio.[13]

At the Rio Olympics, Kroyter competed but did not advance beyond the qualifying round.[6] A later retrospective noted that his transition to senior competition marked a point at which his extraordinary youth results did not fully translate into comparable performances at the highest senior level—a trajectory that, while disappointing relative to early expectations, still encompassed major achievements in Israeli athletics.[6]

Kroyter's career became part of a broader account of immigrant coaches raising the standard of Israeli athletics. Anatoly Shafran coached him to an under-18 world championship after immigrating to Israel from the former Soviet Union.[7] A 2019 Ynet retrospective, however, treated Kroyter as one of the standout prospects of 2010 whose youth success did not fully carry into senior competition.[6]

His record nevertheless included an Israeli senior title in 2009 and another national championship in 2012.[2][10] He also won major youth gold medals in 2009 and 2010.[2][3] He later represented Israel at the Rio Olympics.[6]