World Athletics proposes big changes to long jump, trial to introduce 'take-off zone' to reduce no-jump calls
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Updated 20/02/2024 at 18:32 GMT
A third of long jump attempts at the World Athletics Championship in 2023 were invalid due to athletes overstepping the take-off board. A new trial could be introduced for a 'take-off zone' - which will see a jump measured from where the athlete’s front foot leaves the ground to where they land in the pit. Four-time Olympic champion Carl Lewis called the proposed change a "joke".
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There are plans to introduce a new method of measuring long jump take-offs, to cut down on the amount of no-jumps.
It comes after a third of all jumps at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest were invalid due to athletes overstepping.
Currently, long jumpers take off from a wooden board, with a no-jump being signalled if their foot crosses the line.
World Athletics is looking to change things with a trial of a ‘take-off zone’ - which will see a jump measured from where the athlete’s front foot leaves the ground to where they land in the pit.
Reflecting on the current system, World Athletics CEO Jon Ridgeon told the Anything But Footy podcast: “That doesn't work, that is a waste of time.
"So we are testing at the moment a take-off zone, rather than a board.
"But at the same time we are trying to work out ways of getting instant results so that you don't have to wait 20 or 30 seconds before the result pops up, and how we speed up the whole thing."
Speaking about the potential positives the change will make, Ridgeon said: "It will mean that every jump counts.
"It adds to the jeopardy and the drama of the competition."
Not everyone has taken kindly to the news, including four-time Olympic long jump champion Carl Lewis.
He wrote on X: “You’re supposed to wait until April 1st for April Fools jokes.
Ridgeon knew the proposal would cause backlash from some.
"You cannot make change in a sport that was basically invented 150 years ago without some controversy," he said.
"If you have dedicated your life to hitting that take-off board perfectly and then suddenly we replace it with a take-off zone, I totally get that there might be initial resistance.
"We will spend this year testing it in real life circumstances with very good athletes. If it doesn't pass testing, we will never introduce it. We are not going to introduce things on a whim."
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