Triple jump

Triple jump is also a jump with three revolutions in figure ice-skating and roller-skating

The triple jump is an athletics (track and field) event, previously also known as "hop, step and jump", whose various names describe the actions a competitor takes. The athlete runs down a runway until he reaches a designated mark, from which the jump is measured. The takeoff mark is a board, and in modern championships a strip of plasticine is attached to the board to record athletes overstepping the mark. The first landing has to be done with the takeoff foot. The next phase is a step,landing on the opposite foot, and is followed by the jump, into a sand-filled box, as in the long jump. A "foul" or missed jump occurs when a jumper oversteps the launch mark (most commonly), misses the pit entirely, or does not perform the attempt in the allotted amount of time (usually about one minute).

The triple jump has been included in the modern Olympic Games since its first celebration in 1896. In fact, the first modern Olympic Champion, James Connolly, was a triple jumper, however, the event at this time consisted of two hops and a jump. In 1996, a triple jump event for women was added to the Olympics, having already been included in both the Outdoor World Championships and World Indoor Championships.

The triple jump requires speed, power, rhythm and resilience. However, athletes with limited natural ability can still do well by developing a good technique. If an athlete has reasonable 100m speed (under 12 seconds), and is prepared to complete a training program of weight-training, plyometrics and technical work, she or he might eventually be able to achieve distances in excess of 13 or even 14 metres.

The current male and female world record holders are Jonathan Edwards of the UK, with a jump of 18.29 metres (Göteborg, August 7, 1995) and Inessa Kravets of Ukraine with a jump of 15.50 metres (Göteborg, August 10, 1995). The men's world indoor record is shared by Aliecer Urrutia of Cuba and Christian Olsson of Sweden with a mark of 17.83 metres. The women's world indoor record measures 15.36 metres, jumped by Tatyana Lebedeva of Russia at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships.

Top 10 performers

Accurate as of January 1, 2006.

Men

NB: These are the top 10 performers of all time, not the top 10 performances. Other legal jumps by people on this list that would exceed the shortest jump on this list are noted below the table. For a more complete list of all-time performers, see www.alltime-athletics.com.

Mark	Wind	Athlete	Nationality	Venue	Date
18.29	1.3	Jonathan Edwards¹	United Kingdom	Gothenburg	August 7, 1995
18.09	-0.4	Kenny Harrison²	United States	Atlanta	July 27, 1996
17.97	1.5	Willie Banks	United States	Indianapolis	June 16, 1985
17.92	1.6	Khristo Markov	Bulgaria	Rome	August 31, 1987
17.92	1.9	James Beckford	Jamaica	Odessa	May 20, 1995
17.90	1.0	Vladimir Inozemtsev	USSR / Ukraine	Bratislava	June 20, 1990
17.89	0.0	João Carlos de Oliveira	Brazil	Mexico City	October 15, 1975
17.87	1.7	Mike Conley³	United States	San Jose	June 26, 1987
17.86	1.3	Charles Simpkins	United States	Kobe	September 2, 1985
17.85	0.9	Yoelbi Quesada	Cuba	Athens	August 8, 1997

¹ Edwards also has legal jumps of 18.16, 18.01, 18.00, 17.99, 17.98, 17.92, 17.88 and 17.86 m. As of 19 June 2006, he has six of the top 11 jumps of all time.
² Harrison also has a legal jump of 17.93 m.
³ Conley also has a legal jump of 17.86 m.

Women

NB: Again, these are the top 10 performers of all time, not the top 10 performances. For a more complete list of all-time performers, see www.alltime-athletics.com.

Mark	Wind	Athlete	Nationality	Venue	Date
15.50	1.9	Inessa Kravets¹	USSR / Ukraine	Gothenburg	August 10, 1995
15.34	-0.5	Tatyana Lebedeva²	Russia	Heraklion	July 4, 2004
15.32	0.9	Hrysopiyi Devetzi³	Greece	Athens	August 21, 2004
15.30	0.6	Françoise Mbango Etone	Cameroon	Athens	August 23, 2004
15.29	0.3	Yamilé Aldama⁴	Cuba / Sudan	Rome	July 11, 2003
15.20	0.0	Šárka Kašparkova	Czech Republic	Athens	August 4, 1997
15.20	-0.3	Tereza Marinova	Bulgaria	Sydney	September 24, 2000
15.18	0.3	Iva Prandzheva	Bulgaria	Gothenburg	August 10, 1995
15.16	0.1	Rodica Mateescu	Romania	Athens	August 4, 1997
15.16	0.7	Trecia Smith	Jamaica	Linz	August 2, 2004