Atheltics Weekly

PERFORMANCE
TECHNIQUE
DISSECTING THE
TRIPLE JUMP
Kola Adedoyin:
the technical and
physical demands
of the event
should not be
underestimated,
he says
SCIENTISTS SAY NO ATHLETE
EMBODIES THE OLYMPIC MOTTO OF
‘FASTER, HIGHER, STRONGER’ MORE
THAN THE TRIPLE JUMPER. ENGLAND
INTERNATIONAL KOLA ADEDOYIN
EXPLAINS MORE
PICTURES: MARK SHEARMAN
F ALL athletics
O
events, the triple
jump is widely
acknowledged by
sports scientists as one of the
most physically demanding.
Research at the University of
Iowa a few years ago showed
that, at the landing between the
hop and step phases, the force
exerted by a triple jumper on
the ground can be the
equivalent of up to 22 times
their bodyweight – just about
the highest measured force that
a human limb is exposed to
during any intentional activity.
According to Dr Sam Allen,
a lecturer in biomechanics at
Loughborough University, that’s
the equivalent of an athlete
briefly weighing 1.7 tonnes,
and having to stand on one
leg at that time. Writing on the
website theconversation.com
last year, Dr Allen explained how
published papers have proven
triple jumpers develop unusually
thick thigh and shin bones to
enable them to withstand the
force of the event.
But the event is as
technically demanding as it is
physically and errors in posture
or execution can cost an athlete
dearly. “Physics dictates that
the higher in the air an athlete
travels, the further they will jump
– provided they don’t sacrifice
their speed,” said Dr Allen. “So,
the athlete needs to carefully
balance the speed and the
height of their jump, in order to
perform really well. Because of
this, technique is an extremely
important aspect of the triple
jump.”
Add the mental fortitude that
is required to come down the
track at 9.5-10.5 metres per
second, then to take off and
land on the same leg and it
becomes evident that bravery
is essential to take up this
event. So what does it take to
perfect the stages of this most
challenging event?
The run-up
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