High jump at the Olympics
High jump at the Olympic Games | |
---|---|
The 1904 high jump competition | |
Overview | |
Sport | Athletics |
Gender | Men and women |
Years held | Men: 1896 – 2016 Women: 1928 – 2016 |
Olympic record | |
Men | 2.39 m Charles Austin (1996) |
Women | 2.06 m Yelena Slesarenko (2004) |
Reigning champion | |
Men | ![]() ![]() |
Women | ![]() |
The high jump at the Summer Olympics is grouped among the four track and field jumping events held at the multi-sport event. The men's high jump has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since the first Summer Olympics in 1896. The women's high jump was one of five events to feature on the first women's athletics programme in , and it was the only jumping event available to women until 1948, when the long jump was permitted.
The Olympic records for the event are 2.39 m (7 ft 10 in) for men, set by Charles Austin in 1996, and 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) for women, set by Yelena Slesarenko. Gerd Wessig is the only man to have set a world record in the Olympic high jump, having done so in 1980 with a mark of 2.36 m (7 ft 8+3⁄4 in). The women's world record has been broken on three occasions at the Olympics, with records coming in 1928, 1932 and 1972.[1]
Ellery Clark was the first Olympic champion in 1896 and Ethel Catherwood became the first female Olympic high jump champion 32 years later. Following the 2020 Olympics, Gianmarco Tamberi from Italy and Mutaz Essa Barshim from Qatar are the reigning men's Olympic champions and Mariya Lasitskene representing the Russian Olympic Committee is the reigning women's Olympic champion. Only two athletes have won two Olympic high jump titles, both women: Iolanda Balaș and Ulrike Meyfarth.
A standing high jump variant of the event was contested from 1900 to 1912 and standing jumps specialist Ray Ewry won all but one of the gold medals in its brief history.
Medalists[]
Men[]
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1896 Athens |
Ellery Harding Clark![]() |
James Connolly![]() |
none awarded |
Robert Garrett![]() | |||
1900 Paris |
Irving Baxter![]() |
Patrick Leahy![]() |
Lajos Gönczy![]() |
1904 St. Louis |
Samuel Jones![]() |
Garrett Serviss![]() |
Paul Weinstein![]() |
1908 London |
Harry Porter![]() |
Géo André![]() |
none awarded |
Con Leahy![]() | |||
István Somodi![]() | |||
1912 Stockholm |
Alma Richards![]() |
Hans Liesche![]() |
George Horine![]() |
1920 Antwerp |
Richmond Landon![]() |
Harold Muller![]() |
Bo Ekelund![]() |
1924 Paris |
Harold Osborn![]() |
Leroy Brown![]() |
Pierre Lewden![]() |
1928 Amsterdam |
Bob King![]() |
Benjamin Hedges![]() |
Claude Ménard![]() |
1932 Los Angeles |
Duncan McNaughton![]() |
Bob Van Osdel![]() |
Simeon Toribio![]() |
1936 Berlin |
Cornelius Johnson![]() |
Dave Albritton![]() |
Delos Thurber![]() |
1948 London |
John Winter![]() |
Bjørn Paulson![]() |
George Stanich![]() |
1952 Helsinki |
Walt Davis![]() |
Ken Wiesner![]() |
José da Conceição![]() |
1956 Melbourne |
Charles Dumas![]() |
Chilla Porter![]() |
Igor Kashkarov![]() |
1960 Rome |
Robert Shavlakadze![]() |
Valeriy Brumel![]() |
John Thomas![]() |
1964 Tokyo |
Valeriy Brumel![]() |
John Thomas![]() |
John Rambo![]() |
1968 Mexico City |
Dick Fosbury![]() |
Ed Caruthers![]() |
Valentin Gavrilov![]() |
1972 Munich |
Jüri Tarmak![]() |
Stefan Junge![]() |
Dwight Stones![]() |
1976 Montreal |
Jacek Wszoła![]() |
Greg Joy![]() |
Dwight Stones![]() |
1980 Moscow |
Gerd Wessig![]() |
Jacek Wszoła![]() |
Jörg Freimuth![]() |
1984 Los Angeles |
Dietmar Mögenburg![]() |
Patrik Sjöberg![]() |
Zhu Jianhua![]() |
1988 Seoul |
Hennadiy Avdyeyenko![]() |
Hollis Conway![]() |
Rudolf Povarnitsyn![]() |
Patrik Sjöberg![]() | |||
1992 Barcelona |
Javier Sotomayor![]() |
Patrik Sjöberg![]() |
Hollis Conway![]() |
Tim Forsyth![]() | |||
Artur Partyka![]() | |||
1996 Atlanta |
Charles Austin![]() |
Artur Partyka![]() |
Steve Smith![]() |
2000 Sydney |
Sergey Klyugin![]() |
Javier Sotomayor![]() |
Abderahmane Hammad![]() |
2004 Athens |
Stefan Holm![]() |
Matt Hemingway![]() |
Jaroslav Bába![]() |
2008 Beijing |
Andrey Silnov![]() |
Germaine Mason![]() |
Yaroslav Rybakov![]() |
2012 London |
Erik Kynard![]() |
Mutaz Essa Barshim![]() |
none awarded |
Derek Drouin![]() | |||
Robert Grabarz![]() | |||
2016 Rio de Janeiro |
Derek Drouin![]() |
Mutaz Essa Barshim![]() |
Bohdan Bondarenko![]() |
2020 Tokyo |
Gianmarco Tamberi![]() |
none awarded | Maksim Nedasekau![]() |
Mutaz Essa Barshim![]() |
Multiple medalists[]
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mutaz Essa Barshim | ![]() |
2012–2020 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
2 | Valeriy Brumel | ![]() |
1960–1964 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Jacek Wszoła | ![]() |
1976–1980 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
Javier Sotomayor | ![]() |
1992–2000 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
5 | Derek Drouin | ![]() |
2012–2016 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
6 | Patrik Sjöberg | ![]() |
1984–1992 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
7 | John Thomas | ![]() |
1960–1964 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Hollis Conway | ![]() |
1988–1992 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Artur Partyka | ![]() |
1992–1996 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
10 | Dwight Stones | ![]() |
1972–1976 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Medalists by country[]
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() |
13 | 14 | 8 | 35 |
2 | ![]() |
4 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
3 | ![]() |
3 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
4 | ![]() |
2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
5 | ![]() |
1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
6 | ![]() |
1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
7 | ![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
10 | ![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
11 | ![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
13 | ![]() |
0 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
14 | ![]() |
0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
15 | ![]() |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
![]() |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
17 | ![]() |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
18 | ![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Women[]
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1928 Amsterdam |
Ethel Catherwood![]() |
Lien Gisolf![]() |
Mildred Wiley![]() |
1932 Los Angeles |
Jean Shiley![]() |
Babe Didrikson![]() |
Eva Dawes![]() |
1936 Berlin |
Ibolya Csák![]() |
Dorothy Odam![]() |
Elfriede Kaun![]() |
1948 London |
Alice Coachman![]() |
Dorothy Tyler![]() |
Micheline Ostermeyer![]() |
1952 Helsinki |
Esther Brand![]() |
Sheile Lerwill![]() |
Aleksandra Chudina![]() |
1956 Melbourne |
Mildred McDaniel![]() |
Thelma Hopkins![]() |
none awarded |
Mariya Pisareva![]() | |||
1960 Rome |
Iolanda Balaș![]() |
Jarosława Jóźwiakowska![]() |
none awarded |
Dorothy Shirley![]() | |||
1964 Tokyo |
Iolanda Balaș![]() |
Michele Brown![]() |
Taisia Chenchik![]() |
1968 Mexico City |
Miloslava Rezková![]() |
Antonina Okorokova![]() |
Valentina Kozyr![]() |
1972 Munich |
Ulrike Meyfarth![]() |
Yordanka Blagoeva![]() |
Ilona Gusenbauer![]() |
1976 Montreal |
Rosemarie Ackermann![]() |
Sara Simeoni![]() |
Yordanka Blagoeva![]() |
1980 Moscow |
Sara Simeoni![]() |
Urszula Kielan![]() |
Jutta Kirst![]() |
1984 Los Angeles |
Ulrike Meyfarth![]() |
Sara Simeoni![]() |
Joni Huntley![]() |
1988 Seoul |
Louise Ritter![]() |
Stefka Kostadinova![]() |
Tamara Bykova![]() |
1992 Barcelona |
Heike Henkel![]() |
Alina Astafei![]() |
Ioamnet Quintero![]() |
1996 Atlanta |
Stefka Kostadinova![]() |
Niki Bakoyianni![]() |
Inha Babakova![]() |
2000 Sydney |
Yelena Yelesina![]() |
Hestrie Cloete![]() |
Kajsa Bergqvist![]() |
Oana Pantelimon![]() | |||
2004 Athens |
Yelena Slesarenko![]() |
Hestrie Cloete![]() |
Vita Styopina![]() |
2008 Beijing |
Tia Hellebaut![]() |
Blanka Vlašić![]() |
Chaunté Howard![]() |
2012 London |
Anna Chicherova![]() |
Brigetta Barrett![]() |
Ruth Beitia![]() |
2016 Rio de Janeiro |
Ruth Beitia![]() |
Mirela Demireva![]() |
Blanka Vlašić![]() |
2020 Tokyo |
Mariya Lasitskene![]() |
Nicola McDermott![]() |
Yaroslava Mahuchikh![]() |
Multiple medalists[]
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Iolanda Balaş | ![]() |
1960–1964 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Ulrike Meyfarth | ![]() |
1972–1984 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
3 | Sara Simeoni | ![]() |
1976–1984 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
4 | Stefka Kostadinova | ![]() |
1988–1996 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
5 | Dorothy Tyler-Odam | ![]() |
1936–1948 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Hestrie Cloete | ![]() |
2000–2004 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
7 | Yordanka Blagoeva | ![]() |
1972–1976 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Blanka Vlašić | ![]() |
2008-2016 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Medalists by country[]
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() |
4 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
2 | ![]() |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
3 | ![]() |
2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
4 | ![]() |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
5 | ![]() |
1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
6 | ![]() |
1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
![]() |
1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |
8 | ![]() |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
11 | ![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
16 | ![]() |
0 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
17 | ![]() |
0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
18 | ![]() |
0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
![]() |
0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
20 | ![]() |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
21 | ![]() |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
![]() |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
23 | ![]() |
0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
24 | ![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
![]() |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Standing high jump[]
Standing high jump at the Olympic Games | |
---|---|
![]() Ray Ewry in the 1904 standing high jump competition | |
Overview | |
Sport | Athletics |
Gender | Men |
Years held | Men: 1900 – 1912 |
Olympic record | |
Men | 1.655 m Ray Ewry (1900) |
From 1900 to 1912 a variation of the event was contested at the Olympics where athletes had to high jump from a standing position. This was one of three standing jumps to have featured on the Olympic programme, alongside the standing long jump (present for the same period) and the standing triple jump (1900 and 1904 only).[2]
The standing jump competitions were dominated by Ray Ewry, who won the Olympic standing high jump titles in 1900, 1904 and 1908. His clearance of 1.655 m (5 ft 5 in) at the 1900 Olympics remained as the Olympic record for the event until its discontinuation in 1912. Ewry took Olympic three gold medals in standing jumps in both 1900 and 1904, then won the standing high and long jumps at the 1908 Olympics, as well as the 1906 Intercalated Games.[3] After Ewry's retirement, Platt Adams became the winner of the final Olympic standing high jump competition in 1912.[4]
The standing high jump—and standing jump events in general—had been a relatively common type of athletics event at the end of the 19th century, but became increasingly rare at top level national and international competitions as the 20th century progressed.[3] The Olympic event remains the only major international competition to have featured the event, except for the 1919 and 1920 editions of the South American Championships in Athletics.[5] The standing high jump retained some popularity as a championship event in Scandinavia in the second half of the century.[6][7]
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1900 Paris |
Ray Ewry![]() |
Irving Baxter![]() |
Lewis Sheldon![]() |
1904 St. Louis |
Ray Ewry![]() |
Joseph Stadler![]() |
Lawson Robertson![]() |
1908 London |
Ray Ewry![]() |
John Biller![]() Konstantinos Tsiklitiras ![]() |
None awarded |
1912 Stockholm |
Platt Adams![]() |
Benjamin Adams![]() |
Konstantinos Tsiklitiras![]() |
Intercalated Games[]
The 1906 Intercalated Games were held in Athens and at the time were officially recognised as part of the Olympic Games series, with the intention being to hold a games in Greece in two-year intervals between the internationally held Olympics. However, this plan never came to fruition and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) later decided not to recognise these games as part of the official Olympic series. Some sports historians continue to treat the results of these games as part of the Olympic canon.[8]
Continuing its presence since the first Olympics, a men's high jump event was contested at the 1906 Games. The competition rules were exhausting for the athletes as the bar was incremented by one centimetre each time and all athletes had to attempt each height. This caused the event to be postponed when darkness fell and competition resumed the following morning. Irishman Con Leahy won the event for Great Britain with a mark of 1.775 m. Lajos Gönczy of Hungary, a 1900 high jump medallist, returned to the Olympic podium with 1.75 m for second. American Bert Kerrigan, who also competed in the pole vault and standing long jump, took third place alongside Themistoklis Diakidis of Greece.[9]
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1906 Athens |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() ![]() |
The standing high jump variant was also contested at the Intercalated Games. Ray Ewry, who entered as the undefeated Olympic champion in the event, won a further gold medal with his mark of 1.56 m (5 ft 1+1⁄4 in). Second place was a tie between Martin Sheridan, Léon Dupont and Lawson Robertson, whose joint marks of 1.40 m (4 ft 7 in) was some way behind the winner.[10]
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1906 Athens |
![]() |
![]() ![]() ![]() |
Non-canonical Olympic events[]
In addition to the main 1900 Olympic men's high jump, a handicap competition was held four days later. All of the podium finishers in the event had failed to medal in the main Olympic final. Tore Blom was first with 2.05 m (35 cm handicap), Gyula Strausz placed second in 2.00 m (also 35 cm), while third place went to Waldemar Steffen with 1.95 m (30 cm handicap).[11][12]
Two professionals-only contests were held in 1900. Mike Sweeney of the United States won with 1.80 m (the second best of the festival after Irv Baxter Olympic record in the amateur event). Another American, Otto Bruno Schoenfeld, was second in 1.75 m, while of France was third in 1.55 m. A handicap professional contest was also held but the results have not been located.[11][13]
The handicap event returned at the 1904 Summer Olympics and the three Olympic finalists who failed to win medals comprised the top three. Ervin Barker won with 1.88 m off a 4.5 inch handicap, Lajos Gönczy was runner-up with a mark of 1.80 m with a three-inch handicap, and Emil Freymark took third, recording 1.80 m with a five-inch handicap.[11]
These events are no longer considered part of the official Olympic history of the high jump or the athletics programme in general. Consequently, medals from these competitions have not been assigned to nations on the all-time medal tables.[11]
References[]
- Participation and athlete data
- Athletics Men's High Jump Medalists. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-03.
- Athletics Women's High Jump Medalists. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-03.
- Olympic record progressions
- Mallon, Bill (2012). TRACK & FIELD ATHLETICS - OLYMPIC RECORD PROGRESSIONS. Track and Field News. Retrieved on 2014-05-03.
- Specific
- ^ 12th IAAF World Championships In Athletics: IAAF Statistics Handbook Berlin 2009 (pgs. 554–55, 546, 644–5). IAAF (2009). Retrieved on 2014-05-03.
- ^ Athletics Men's Standing Long Jump Medalists Archived 2014-08-04 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Ray Ewry Archived 2014-05-31 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ Athletics at the 1912 Stockholm Summer Games: Men's Standing High Jump Archived 2014-05-08 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ South American Championships (Men). GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ Norwegian Indoor Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ Swedish Indoor Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ 1906 Athina Summer Games Archived 2013-09-22 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-01-26.
- ^ Athletics at the 1906 Athina Summer Games: Men's High Jump Archived 2013-12-13 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-03.
- ^ Athletics at the 1906 Athina Summer Games: Men's Standing High Jump Archived 2014-05-08 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-07.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Handicap Olympic Athletics Events. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2014-04-18.
- ^ Athletics at the 1900 Paris Summer Games: Men's High Jump, Handicap Archived 2014-05-05 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-05.
- ^ Athletics at the 1900 Paris Summer Games: Men's High Jump, Professionals Archived 2014-05-05 at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on 2014-05-05.
External links[]
- IAAF high jump homepage
- Official Olympics website
- Olympic athletics records from Track & Field News
- High jump at the Olympics
- High jump competitions
- Athletics events at the Olympics