World Championships: Men's triple jump
Many all-time greats won gold at the first IAAF World Championships at Helsinki, but that wasn’t the case with the triple jump, won by Poland’s now largely forgotten Zdzislaw Hoffmann. It was a memorable competition, however, due to being one of the first jumps with rhythmic clapping started by the charismatic Willie Banks.
Banks led after four rounds with 17.18m which saw the unique situation where four pairs of jumpers each had identical distances. Hoffmann spoiled the symmetry in round five with a 17.35m and improved to 17.42m in the last round for an easy win with Banks holding on for second although Ajayi Agbebaku matched his distance in the last round. European and Commonwealth champion Keith Connor missed out on a final place.
World record-holder Banks didn’t make the final in Rome in 1987 but would have to have been at his best to thwart Khristo Markov. The Bulgarian opened with a windy 17.70m and improved to 17.73m before jumping the second ever best 17.92m in round four to challenge the world record.
Olympic silver medallist Mike Conley, who had been fourth in 1983, was a clear second with leaps of 17.65m and 17.67m.
In Tokyo in 1991, it was American Kenny Harrison who was in top class form, opening with a foul around 18 metres and then jumping 17.78m into a headwind and celebrating with a back flip. Soviet Leonid Voloshin came close as Conley took bronze.
In Stuttgart in 1993, Conley was now Olympic champion and at the fourth attempt filled in the one missing position in winning with three top class jumps in the 17.70m to 17.86m range with Voloshin again taking silver with 17.65m. Bronze went to Briton Jonathan Edwards who went into third with a 17.44m fifth round.
Edwards was a much improved athlete by the time Gothenburg came around and earlier in the season had four times bettered 18 metres albeit only in windy conditions, but had improved the world record to 17.98m in Salamanca.
The Briton started superbly and smashed the world best with a 18.16m opening jump and in round two sailed out to a still unbeaten 18.29m. Well back, just three centimetres covered the next top three with Brian Wellman winning Bermuda a silver with Conley seventh. Yoelbi Quesada was the athlete who missed out on a medal on countback and his fourth place came after previous seventh and twelfth finishes.
In Athens in 1997 the Cuban was a better athlete and led from the start, opening with a 17.60m and then sealing gold with 17.85m in the second round. Edwards wasn’t at his best but his last three jumps were between 17.57m and 17.69m giving him silver.
The Briton’s form in Seville in 1999 was even more disappointing and well below that of the world-record holder, describing his bronze as ‘a disaster’ as his 17.48m left him 11cm down on Charles Friedek’s 17.59m PB.
In Edmonton in 2001, Edwards, now finally Olympic champion, almost went out in qualifying, needing three jumps to get to the final. Only fifth after two rounds, he produced the world’s best jump for three years when he leapt 17.92m which gave him nearly half a metre on Christian Olsson. It was his fifth successive medal.
The Swede was the big favourite in Paris in 2003, where Edwards announced it was his fnal competition. Olsson won easily with 17.72m and had the best five jumps. In his sixth final, Edwards was last. Quesada, also in a record equalling sixth final, was ninth.
In Helsinki in 2005, the winning mark was the worst since 1983 as Walter Davis won with 17.57m and Nathan Douglas, who had jumped 17.64m before the championships, could only manage a 16.53m in qualifying.
Davis was third in Osaka in 2007 in a contest won comfortably by Nelson Evora’s 17.74m as he became the first ever Portuguese male to win a world title.
In Berlin in 2009, the 2008 Olympic champion Evora opened with 17.54m to narrowly lead British Olympic silver medallist Phillips Idowu, who jumped 17.51m. Idowu was close again in round two but took the lead in round three with an outdoor PB of 17.73. Evora responded with a 17.55m final jump but Britain won another gold.
Idowu jumped even better in Daegu in 2011, opening with a 17.56m and then jumping 17.70m in the third and 17.77m in the fourth but it wasn’t enough for the title as American Christian Taylor achieved a 17.96m in the fourth round.
Idowu’s six jump average was a major championships best ever of 17.56m with his worst jump 17.38m.
France’s Teddy Tamgho had produced three jumps over 17.90m in 2011 but was injured and missed Daegu but was back fit and healthy for Moscow in 2013. He opened with a 17.65m but lost the lead to Pedro Pichardo’s 17.68m third round. Tamgho matched that in round four to go ahead on countback due to his superior second best jump.
Any doubts as to who was best though were removed when Tamgho produced a huge 18.04m final jump which at that time put him third all-time behind Edwards and Harrison. Will Claye won his second successive bronze as Olympic champion and former winner Taylor finished fourth.
Year | Winner | Jump | GB position and mark
1983 Zdzislaw Hoffmann (POL) 17.42 NQ Keith Connor 16.18
1987 Khristo Markov (BUL) 17.92 No competitor
1991 Kenny Harrison (USA) 17.78 NQ John Herbert 16.79
1993 Mike Conley (USA) 17.86 3 Jonathan Edwards 17.44
1995 Jonathan Edwards (GBR) 18.29 Also: NQ Francis Agyepong 16.58
1997 Yoelbi Quesada (CUB) 17.85 2 Jonathan Edwards 17.69
1999 Charles Friedek (GER) 17.59 3 Jonathan Edwards 17.48
2001 Jonathan Edwards (GBR) 17.92 Also 7 Larry Achike 16.79
2003 Christian Olsson (SWE) 17.72 12 Jonathan Edwards 16.31 (16.94q)
2005 Walter Davis (USA) 17.57 NQ Nathan Douglas 16.53wq
2007 Nelson Evora (POR) 17.74 6 Phillips Idowu 17.09
2009 Phillips Idowu (GBR)` 17.73 Also: 10 Nathan Douglas 16.79 (17.00q)
2011 Christian Taylor (USA) 17.96 2 Phillips Idowu 17.77
2013 Teddy Tamgho (FRA) 18.04 No competitor
Points table (8 for 1st etc)
1. USA 94
2. CUB 79
3. GBR 55
4. RUS 27
5. URS 24
6. SWE 22
7. FRA 20
8. POR 19
9= BER 18
9= BAH 18
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