Triple Jump in History

Events in Sport

  • 1896-04-06 First modern Summer Olympic Games open in Athens, Greece; American athlete James Connolly becomes first modern Olympic champion when he wins triple jump (then 2 hops and a jump); later 3rd in long jump, 2nd in high jump
  • 1936-08-06 Japanese athletes quinella the triple jump at the Berlin Olympics; Naoto Tajima wins gold and Masao Harada silver
  • 1968-10-17 Soviet athlete Viktor Saneev sets world record 17.39m to win the triple jump at the Mexico City Olympics; world record improved 5 times by 3 different athletes during competition
  • 1984-08-04 Americans Al Joyner and Mike Conley take the gold and silver medals in the men's triple jump at the Los Angeles Olympics
  • 1985-06-16 Willie Banks of USA sets triple jump record (58 feet 11 inches) in Indianapolis
  • 1987-02-27 American Mike Conley sets world indoor triple jump record (17.76m) in New York
  • 1990-08-25 Li Hui Rong of China sets triple jump woman's record (47'8½")
  • 1993-02-28 Iolanda Chen triple jumps world indoor record hop step (14.46m)
  • 1994-01-14 Inna Lassovskaya triple-jumps ladies world record (14.61m)
  • 2000-04-01 Michelle Kwan pushes through all 7 triple jumps at the Palais des Exposition in Nice, France to become the first American since Peggy Flemming to win 3 world figure skating titles

Birthdays in Sport

  • 1888-04-12 Dan Ahearn, Irish-American athlete (men's triple jump WR 15.52m 1911-24), born in Athea, Ireland (d. 1942)
  • 1893-01-20 Georg Åberg, Swedish athlete (Olympic silver triple jump; bronze long jump 1912), born in Norrköping, Sweden (d. 1946)
  • 1904-05-27 Chūhei Nambu, Japanese athlete (Olympic gold triple jump 1932; only person to have held WRs in both long jump & triple jump), born in Sapporo, Japan (d. 1997)
  • 1905-03-30 Mikio Oda, Japanese triple jumper (Olympic gold 1928, 1st individual Asian Olympic champion), born in Kaita, Japan (d. 1998)
  • 1908-01-01 Kinue Hitomi, Japanese athlete (World record women's 100m, 200m, long jump, triple jump; Olympic silver 800m 1928), born in Okayama, Japan (d. 1931)
  • 1927-09-29 Adhemar da Silva, Brazilian triple jumper (Olympic golds 1952, 56), born in São Paulo, Brazil (d. 2001)
  • 1932-10-12 Vitold Kreyer, Russian athlete (Olympic bronze, triple jump 1956, 60) and coach (Soviet athletics team 1967–80; head Russian team 2000 Olympics), born in Krasnodar, Russia (d. 2020)
  • 1934-06-05 Vilhjálmur Einarsson, Icelandic athlete (Olympic silver triple-jump 1956; Iceland's first ever Olympic medal), born in Reyðarfjörður, Iceland (d. 2019)
  • 1943-09-04 Giuseppe Gentile, Italian athlete (Olympic bronze triple jump 1968; WR 17.22m 1968), born in Latina, Italy
  • 1945-10-03 Viktor Saneyev, Georgian athlete (Olympics 3 x gold, Soviet Union, triple jump 1968, 72, 76; silver 1980), born in Sukhumi, Georgia (d. 2022)
  • 1957-09-16 Keith Connor, British triple jumper (Olympic bronze 1984), born in Anguilla, West Indies
  • 1960-01-19 Al Joyner, American athlete (Olympic gold triple jump 1984), born in East St. Louis, Illinois
  • 1961-07-26 Yolanda Chen, Russian triple jumper (indoor record), born in Moscow, Russia
  • 1962-10-05 Mike Conley Sr., American athlete (Olympic gold triple jump 1992; World C'ship gold 1993), born in Chicago, Illinois
  • 1965-02-13 Kenny Harrison, US triple jumper, born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • 1966-05-10 Jonathan Edwards, British athlete (Olympics gold triple jump 2000, silver 1996; World C'ship gold 1995, 2001), born in London, England
  • 1966-10-05 Inessa Kravets, Ukraine, long/triple jumper (Olympic silver/gold-92, 96)
  • 1967-06-30 Sheila Hudson, American triple jumper (US record 1992), born in Wurzburg, Germany
  • 1967-08-09 Elexa Orrange, American long jumper/triple jumper, born in Orange, Texas
  • 1971-11-05 Erick Walder, American triple jumper, born in Mobile, Alabama
  • 1973-09-26 Olga Vasdeki, Greek triple jumper, born in Volos, Greece
  • 1982-01-12 Dimitrios Tsiamis, Greek triple jumper, born in Karditsa, Greece
  • 1995-10-21 Yulimar Rojas, Venezuelan athlete (Olympic gold triple jump 2020 WR 15.67m), born in Caracas, Venezuela

Deaths in Sport

  • 1931-08-02 Kinue Hitomi, Japanese athlete (World record women's 100m, 200m, long jump, triple jump; Olympic silver 800m 1928), dies from pneumonia at 24
  • 1942-12-20 Dan Ahearn, Irish-American athlete (men's triple jump WR 15.52m 1911-24), dies at 54
  • 1946-08-18 Georg Åberg, Swedish athlete (Olympic silver triple jump; bronze long jump 1912), dies at 53
  • 1997-07-23 Chūhei Nambu, Japanese athlete (Olympic gold triple jump 1932; only person to have held WRs in both long jump & triple jump), dies at 93
  • 2019-12-28 Vilhjálmur Einarsson, Icelandic athlete (Olympic silver triple-jump 1956; Iceland's first ever Olympic medal), dies at 85
  • 2020-08-01 Vitold Kreyer, Russian athlete (Olympic bronze, triple jump 1956, 60) and coach (Soviet athletics team 1967–80; head Russian team 2000 Olympics), dies at 87
  • 2022-01-03 Viktor Saneyev, Georgian athlete (Olympics 3 x gold, Soviet Union, triple jump 1968, 72, 76; silver 1980), dies at 76