High jump at the Olympics
High jump at the Olympic Games | |
---|---|
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 | Gianmarco Tamberi (ITA) Mutaz Essa Barshim (QAT) |
Women | Mariya Lasitskene (ROC) |
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 United States |
James Connolly United States |
none awarded |
Robert Garrett United States | |||
1900 Paris |
Irving Baxter United States |
Patrick Leahy Great Britain |
Lajos Gönczy Hungary |
1904 St. Louis |
Samuel Jones United States |
Garrett Serviss United States |
Paul Weinstein Germany |
1908 London |
Harry Porter United States |
Géo André France |
none awarded |
Con Leahy Great Britain | |||
István Somodi Hungary | |||
1912 Stockholm |
Alma Richards United States |
Hans Liesche Germany |
George Horine United States |
1920 Antwerp |
Richmond Landon United States |
Harold Muller United States |
Bo Ekelund Sweden |
1924 Paris |
Harold Osborn United States |
Leroy Brown United States |
Pierre Lewden France |
1928 Amsterdam |
Bob King United States |
Benjamin Hedges United States |
Claude Ménard France |
1932 Los Angeles |
Duncan McNaughton Canada |
Bob Van Osdel United States |
Simeon Toribio Philippines |
1936 Berlin |
Cornelius Johnson United States |
Dave Albritton United States |
Delos Thurber United States |
1948 London |
John Winter Australia |
Bjørn Paulson Norway |
George Stanich United States |
1952 Helsinki |
Walt Davis United States |
Ken Wiesner United States |
José da Conceição Brazil |
1956 Melbourne |
Charles Dumas United States |
Chilla Porter Australia |
Igor Kashkarov Soviet Union |
1960 Rome |
Robert Shavlakadze Soviet Union |
Valeriy Brumel Soviet Union |
John Thomas United States |
1964 Tokyo |
Valeriy Brumel Soviet Union |
John Thomas United States |
John Rambo United States |
1968 Mexico City |
Dick Fosbury United States |
Ed Caruthers United States |
Valentin Gavrilov Soviet Union |
1972 Munich |
Jüri Tarmak Soviet Union |
Stefan Junge East Germany |
Dwight Stones United States |
1976 Montreal |
Jacek Wszoła Poland |
Greg Joy Canada |
Dwight Stones United States |
1980 Moscow |
Gerd Wessig East Germany |
Jacek Wszoła Poland |
Jörg Freimuth East Germany |
1984 Los Angeles |
Dietmar Mögenburg West Germany |
Patrik Sjöberg Sweden |
Zhu Jianhua China |
1988 Seoul |
Hennadiy Avdyeyenko Soviet Union |
Hollis Conway United States |
Rudolf Povarnitsyn Soviet Union |
Patrik Sjöberg Sweden | |||
1992 Barcelona |
Javier Sotomayor Cuba |
Patrik Sjöberg Sweden |
Hollis Conway United States |
Tim Forsyth Australia | |||
Artur Partyka Poland | |||
1996 Atlanta |
Charles Austin United States |
Artur Partyka Poland |
Steve Smith Great Britain |
2000 Sydney |
Sergey Klyugin Russia |
Javier Sotomayor Cuba |
Abderahmane Hammad Algeria |
2004 Athens |
Stefan Holm Sweden |
Matt Hemingway United States |
Jaroslav Bába Czech Republic |
2008 Beijing |
Andrey Silnov Russia |
Germaine Mason Great Britain |
Yaroslav Rybakov Russia |
2012 London |
Erik Kynard United States |
Mutaz Essa Barshim Qatar |
none awarded |
Derek Drouin Canada | |||
Robert Grabarz Great Britain | |||
2016 Rio de Janeiro |
Derek Drouin Canada |
Mutaz Essa Barshim Qatar |
Bohdan Bondarenko Ukraine |
2020 Tokyo |
Gianmarco Tamberi Italy |
none awarded | Maksim Nedasekau Belarus |
Mutaz Essa Barshim Qatar |
Multiple medalists[]
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Mutaz Essa Barshim | Qatar (QAT) | 2012–2020 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
2 | Valeriy Brumel | Soviet Union (URS) | 1960–1964 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Jacek Wszoła | Poland (POL) | 1976–1980 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
Javier Sotomayor | Cuba (CUB) | 1992–2000 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
5 | Derek Drouin | Canada (CAN) | 2012–2016 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
6 | Patrik Sjöberg | Sweden (SWE) | 1984–1992 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
7 | John Thomas | United States (USA) | 1960–1964 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Hollis Conway | United States (USA) | 1988–1992 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Artur Partyka | Poland (POL) | 1992–1996 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
10 | Dwight Stones | United States (USA) | 1972–1976 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Medalists by country[]
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | United States (USA) | 13 | 14 | 8 | 35 |
2 | Soviet Union (URS) | 4 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
3 | Russia (RUS) | 3 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
4 | Canada (CAN) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
5 | Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
6 | Poland (POL) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
7 | Australia (AUS) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
East Germany (GDR) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
Qatar (QAT) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
10 | Cuba (CUB) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
11 | Italy (ITA) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
13 | Great Britain (GBR) | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
14 | France (FRA) | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
15 | Germany (GER) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
17 | Norway (NOR) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
18 | Algeria (ALG) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Belarus (BLR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Brazil (BRA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
China (CHN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Czech Republic (CZE) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Philippines (PHI) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Ukraine (UKR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Women[]
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1928 Amsterdam |
Ethel Catherwood Canada |
Lien Gisolf Netherlands |
Mildred Wiley United States |
1932 Los Angeles |
Jean Shiley United States |
Babe Didrikson United States |
Eva Dawes Canada |
1936 Berlin |
Ibolya Csák Hungary |
Dorothy Odam Great Britain |
Elfriede Kaun Germany |
1948 London |
Alice Coachman United States |
Dorothy Tyler Great Britain |
Micheline Ostermeyer France |
1952 Helsinki |
Esther Brand South Africa |
Sheile Lerwill Great Britain |
Aleksandra Chudina Soviet Union |
1956 Melbourne |
Mildred McDaniel United States |
Thelma Hopkins Great Britain |
none awarded |
Mariya Pisareva Soviet Union | |||
1960 Rome |
Iolanda Balaș Romania |
Jarosława Jóźwiakowska Poland |
none awarded |
Dorothy Shirley Great Britain | |||
1964 Tokyo |
Iolanda Balaș Romania |
Michele Brown Australia |
Taisia Chenchik Soviet Union |
1968 Mexico City |
Miloslava Rezková Czechoslovakia |
Antonina Okorokova Soviet Union |
Valentina Kozyr Soviet Union |
1972 Munich |
Ulrike Meyfarth West Germany |
Yordanka Blagoeva Bulgaria |
Ilona Gusenbauer Austria |
1976 Montreal |
Rosemarie Ackermann East Germany |
Sara Simeoni Italy |
Yordanka Blagoeva Bulgaria |
1980 Moscow |
Sara Simeoni Italy |
Urszula Kielan Poland |
Jutta Kirst East Germany |
1984 Los Angeles |
Ulrike Meyfarth West Germany |
Sara Simeoni Italy |
Joni Huntley United States |
1988 Seoul |
Louise Ritter United States |
Stefka Kostadinova Bulgaria |
Tamara Bykova Soviet Union |
1992 Barcelona |
Heike Henkel Germany |
Alina Astafei Romania |
Ioamnet Quintero Cuba |
1996 Atlanta |
Stefka Kostadinova Bulgaria |
Niki Bakoyianni Greece |
Inha Babakova Ukraine |
2000 Sydney |
Yelena Yelesina Russia |
Hestrie Cloete South Africa |
Kajsa Bergqvist Sweden |
Oana Pantelimon Romania | |||
2004 Athens |
Yelena Slesarenko Russia |
Hestrie Cloete South Africa |
Vita Styopina Ukraine |
2008 Beijing |
Tia Hellebaut Belgium |
Blanka Vlašić Croatia |
Chaunté Howard United States |
2012 London |
Anna Chicherova Russia |
Brigetta Barrett United States |
Ruth Beitia Spain |
2016 Rio de Janeiro |
Ruth Beitia Spain |
Mirela Demireva Bulgaria |
Blanka Vlašić Croatia |
2020 Tokyo |
Mariya Lasitskene ROC |
Nicola McDermott Australia |
Yaroslava Mahuchikh Ukraine |
Multiple medalists[]
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Iolanda Balaş | Romania (ROU) | 1960–1964 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Ulrike Meyfarth | West Germany (FRG) | 1972–1984 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
3 | Sara Simeoni | Italy (ITA) | 1976–1984 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
4 | Stefka Kostadinova | Bulgaria (BUL) | 1988–1996 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
5 | Dorothy Tyler-Odam | Great Britain (GBR) | 1936–1948 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Hestrie Cloete | South Africa (RSA) | 2000–2004 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
7 | Yordanka Blagoeva | Bulgaria (BUL) | 1972–1976 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Blanka Vlašić | Croatia (CRO) | 2008-2016 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Medalists by country[]
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | United States (USA) | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
2 | Russia (RUS) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
3 | Romania (ROU) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
4 | West Germany (FRG) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
5 | Bulgaria (BUL) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
6 | Italy (ITA) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
South Africa (RSA) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | |
8 | Canada (CAN) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
East Germany (GDR) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
Germany (GER) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
11 | Belgium (BEL) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
Hungary (HUN) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
Spain (ESP) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
ROC (ROC) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
16 | Great Britain (GBR) | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
17 | Soviet Union (URS) | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
18 | Poland (POL) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Australia (AUS) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
20 | Croatia (CRO) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
21 | Greece (GRE) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Netherlands (NED) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
23 | Ukraine (UKR) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
24 | Austria (AUT) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Cuba (CUB) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
France (FRA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Sweden (SWE) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Standing high jump[]
Standing high jump at the Olympic Games | |
---|---|
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 United States |
Irving Baxter United States |
Lewis Sheldon United States |
1904 St. Louis |
Ray Ewry United States |
Joseph Stadler United States |
Lawson Robertson United States |
1908 London |
Ray Ewry United States |
John Biller United States Konstantinos Tsiklitiras Greece |
None awarded |
1912 Stockholm |
Platt Adams United States |
Benjamin Adams United States |
Konstantinos Tsiklitiras Greece |
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 |
Con Leahy (GBR) | Lajos Gönczy (HUN) | Themistoklis Diakidis (GRE) Bert Kerrigan (USA) |
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 |
Ray Ewry (USA) | Martin Sheridan (USA) Léon Dupont (BEL) Lawson Robertson (USA) |
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