Long jump | Training, Technique & History (2024)

FAQs

What is the historical background of long jump? ›

History. The origins of the long jump can be traced to the Olympics in Ancient Greece, when athletes carried weights in each hand. These were swung forward on take-off and released in the middle of the jump in a bid to increase momentum.

There are three major flight techniques for the long jump: the hang, the hitch-kick, and the sail.

The first recorded high jump event took place in Scotland in the 19th century. Early jumpers used either an elaborate straight-on approach or a scissors technique. In later years, the bar was approached diagonally, and the jumper threw first the inside leg and then the other over the bar in a scissoring motion.

Barbell squats, leg extensions, and leg presses are all excellent weight-resistant exercises for long jumping. Keep in mind, you need to be limber to jump, so focus on doing a high number of repetitions with a lower weight. Always stretch thoroughly before and after weight training.

It is proposed that the ancient Greek long jump was a continuous succession of five standing broad jumps, in which the landing phase of one jump was also the countermovement for the next jump.

In 1962, Yevgeni Andreyev jumped from 83,523 feet (25.458 km) and set a new longest-distance free fall record that was surpassed by Felix Baumgartner who made three jumps in 2012 from 71,581 feet (21.818 km), 96,640 feet (29.46 km), and 128,000 feet (39 km), respectively.

Expert male jumpers take about 20 strides, while female jumpers take about 16 strides. For the beginner, start with 8 strides. As you approach the jumping board, do not hesitate and slow down. Maintain your velocity - you should be at top speed right before takeoff - and look straight ahead.

The Long Jump is an action of a single jump preceded by a run-up. The jump is made by the athlete placing the take off foot on the mat and landing in the pit, usually on both feet. Each athlete is entitled to 3 jumps the best of which is recorded as the jump. No jumps are included in the three jumps.

Prior to Mexico City 1968, the straddle jump had been the dominant high jump technique at the Olympics. It involved an athlete jumping face forward and twisting their body mid-air to navigate their way over the bar. But a young American named Dick Fosbury was readying himself to change the sport forever.

How does long jump improve strength? ›

Long jumpers use a variety of squat weight-bearing exercises to de- velop the rapid strength required for their specialties. These exercises are closer to the specific requirements regarding movement structure and force characteristics. And the weight of the squat is more about the speed of force.

The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a group are referred to as the "horizontal jumps".

The test was first described nearly 100 years ago (Sargent, 1921). The procedure below describes the method used for directly measuring the vertical jump height jumped. There are other methods such as using timing systems that measure the time of the jump and from that calculate the vertical jump height.

In modern times, the long jump has been ever-present in the programme since the modern Olympics Games' inception in 1896. It was also known as running broad jump in the early days. Until 1912, a variant called standing long jump or broad jump was also present at the Olympics.