The Triple Jump

My most favorite sport absolutely destroys my legs and I love it. I found this event three years ago, during the middle of my sophomore year of high school. I grew in my skill and now currently compete for Monmouth University’s Track & Field team as a freshman. I haven’t actually been able to compete yet due to COVID-19 but I am grateful for the permission to practice from my school. Track & Field keeps me grounded: more specifically the Triple Jump. I am still a student of the event and have much to improve on but I am here to document all that I have learned.

The Run

I never knew how important this part of my event was until I became a collegiate athlete. In high school, all I did was sprint right off the bat until I bounced off the board and began my triple jump. Run and jump; that’s all I knew. You may be thinking the same thing — that's all there is to it — but my college coach taught me that there are different pieces of the run that make it effective and efficient. It needs to put you at your top speed by the time you hit the board but also not tire you out by the end of the event. The board is the location for take-off; where the jumping begins. A jumper may take off anywhere behind the board but if even a toe is over, the attempt is disqualified. Sometimes the board is made of just tape on the runway and other times wood built-in. I personally like wooden boards better because they are bouncier — they give me more spring. At all the competitions I’ve been to, everyone had three attempts in preliminaries. If your mark managed to put you in the top 8 or 10 depending on the meet, then you had an additional three attempts for finals. It’s also important to consider the run-throughs taken before anyone attempts an official jump. This can drain your energy easily. Jumpers mark their starting point on the runway with tape then practice their run to make sure it aligns well with the board.

My coach told me that the run consists of three parts. I think most jumpers take 9 steps before take-off, at least I do. This number is important when breaking up the parts of the run. The first three steps are BIG. You enter into the run at about a 45-degree angle — sometimes even less. You take three big pushouts (so that you don't fall over from leaning at such an angle lol) then transition into the next phase. In steps 4, 5, and 6, your chest begins to come up and speed is building. I am still a little confused about this middle phase but I know the transition from being at an angle to being upright is the gist. The last three steps of the run should be right about your top speed: your chest is up and you are prepping for the jump. Horizontal force at a max. Basically, the run starts with a few medium-paced, big, energetic pushouts then transitions into an upright sprinting position at max speed.

The Hop, Skip, and the Jump

There are three phases to the actual jumping of this event. Imagine the hop as someone planting their foot on a box then stepping over it. Ever heard of the “invisible box challenge”? That’s about what it looks like. One leg acts as a “dead leg” by being initially positioned at a right angle while the other leg is pushing through the ground at take-off. Then the “dead leg” drops down without actually touching the ground. The leg that is planted on the board cycles underneath the jumper, then, the jumper comes back down onto that same leg.

The skip is also known as the bound. It looks similar to a lunge position but in midair. In the first phase, the jumper bounces either from their right leg back onto their right leg or from their left leg back onto their left leg. The landing leg switches with the bound. If the jumper cycles with their right leg, then their left leg will lead their bound. Some people bound with straighter legs than others, I think it all depends on what they are most comfortable with. I’ve gotten to a habit of forming a more “crunched” looking bound. I don't think this is a bad thing because I imagine my bound phase as a spring. After my first phase off of my right leg, I drive up my left leg and bend my back leg as if I were a spring being pressed. I hold this position as long as I can until I must extend my right leg out to begin my third phase.

The last phase is known as the jump because it's the final extension into the sand. This phase needs to transition from horizontal energy into a combination of horizontal and vertical. Some jumpers have different methods of positioning in the air before they hit the sand. I know there is the sail, the hang, and I believe the cycle. One position holds the drive with one leg up at a 90-degree angle while the other is driving through the ground. Another goes from the drive to their legs and arms being behind their body in an arched position. The cycle includes the cycling movement of both arms and legs in the air after the drive. All of these air positions should eventually become a pike. This is how I think a jumper can have the most effecting landing — holding a pike then scooping their feet out from under them and replacing where their feet were with their butt. It takes practice to get this part down but I believe it will give a jumper their furthest possible jump.

Things to Think About

This is my basic tutorial for how to triple jump but there are still important things that I think about while I’m prepping for my jump and during my jump. Here are some examples:

• chest up, chin up (helps me stay in the air as long as possible in my third phase)
• run off the board (helps with horizontal force)
• extend and push through each phase (you can’t just rely on the momentum from your run; gain more force throughout the entire triple jump)
• focus on each phase as it happens (sometimes I think about the landing before I even get there which is where I lose many inches on my jump)
• use my arms (they can help generate more force)
• attack the ground (another momentum helper)

I may not have been doing this sport for as long as others but I still feel so much passion for it. I was previously a gymnast and in gymnastics, each event is so technical so entering track I was already used to receiving and applying corrections. This has helped me learn throughout high school and hopefully even more throughout my college athletic career. Triple Jump is a hard event requiring lots of technique; it will have a special place in my heart for a long time!