Lara Baars (born 23 December 1996) is a Dutch

Paralympic athlete The Paralympic sports comprise all the sports contested in the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games. As of 2020, the Summer Paralympics included 22 sports and 539 medal events, and the Winter Paralympics include 5 sports and disciplines and about ...

competing in

shot put The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...

and

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field event in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than their competitors. It is an ancient sport, as demonstrated by t ...

events. She was born with

achondroplasia Achondroplasia is a genetic disorder with an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance whose primary feature is dwarfism. In those with the condition, the arms and legs are short, while the torso is typically of normal length. Those affected ha ...

, a form of dwarfism. She represented the Netherlands at the

2016 Summer Paralympics The 2016 Summer Paralympics (), the 15th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for disabled sports, athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, fro ...

in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and she won the bronze medal in the women's shot put F40 event. At the

2015 IPC Athletics World Championships The 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships were a Paralympic track and field meet organized by the World Para Athletics subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee. The event was the 7th edition of what is now known as the World Par ...

in Doha, Qatar, she won the silver medal in the women's shot put F40 event. At the

2018 World Para Athletics European Championships The 2018 World Para Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe, plus Azerbaijan and Israel. It was held i ...

in Berlin, Germany, she won the silver medal in the women's shot put F40 event and the bronze medal in the women's discus throw F41 event. The following year, she competed in the women's shot put F40 event at the

2019 World Para Athletics Championships The 2019 World Para Athletics Championships was a Paralympic track and field event organised by the World Para Athletics subcommittee of the International Paralympic Committee. It was held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from 7 to 15 November 201 ...

held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates where she finished in 5th place with a new personal best of 7.47 m. She won two medals at the

2021 World Para Athletics European Championships The 2021 World Para Athletics European Championships was a track and field competition for athletes with a disability open to International Paralympic Committee (IPC) affiliated countries within Europe and a refugee team with one athlete. This wa ...

in Bydgoszcz, Poland: she won silver in the shot put F40 event and bronze in the discus throw F41 event.

References

External links

* Living people 1996 births Place of birth missing (living people) Paralympic athletes for the Netherlands Dutch female discus throwers Dutch female shot putters Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Paralympic bronze medalists for the Netherlands Competitors in athletics with dwarfism Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the World Para Athletics Championships Medalists at the World Para Athletics European Championships 21st-century Dutch women {{Netherlands-athletics-bio-stub