Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics – Men's triple jump
| Men's triple jump at the Games of the I Olympiad | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 James B. Connolly won the triple jump and became the first Olympic Champion since the 4th century AD | ||||||||||
| Venue | Panathinaiko Stadium | |||||||||
| Dates | 6 April 1896 | |||||||||
| Competitors | 7 from 5 nations | |||||||||
| Winning distance | 13.71 OR | |||||||||
| Medalists | ||||||||||
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1900 → | ||||||||||
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The men's triple jump was one of four jumping events on the Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. There were 7 competitors from 5 nations in the triple jump, then known as the "hop, skip, and jump" despite the wide range of techniques used by the competitors. The event was held on 6 April, immediately after the first heats of the 100 metre race. Since there was only one round of the triple jump, the winner was crowned as the first modern Olympic champion.[1]
Background
This was the first appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. There were 11 entrants, but only 7 men actually started.[2][3]
Competition format
There was a single round of jumping. There were no rules on the jumps allowed. "The styles of the medalists were described in The Field as follows: Connolly took two hops on his right foot and then a jump; Tuffèri performed a hop, step and a jump in the standard English method; and Persakis used two steps and a jump."[2][3]
Records
There were no standing Olympic records (as this was the first Games) before the event.
| World record |  Matthew Roseingreue (IRL)* | 15.26 m (50 ft 3⁄4 in) | Gort | 15 August 1895[4] |
| Olympic record | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
* unofficial
The following record was established during the competition:
| Date | Event | Athlete | Nation | Distance (m) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 6 | Final | James Brendan Connolly |  United States | 13.71 | OR |
Schedule
The exact time of the contest is not known; it was the second event of the Games. The first day began with the arrival of the King and a brief opening ceremony at 3 p.m., followed by the first round of the 100 metres before the triple jump began.
| Date | Time | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gregorian | Julian | ||
| Monday, 6 April 1896 | Monday, 25 March 1896 | Final | |
Results
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Distance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | James Brendan Connolly | United States | 13.71 | OR |
 | Alexandre Tuffèri |  France | 12.70 | |
 | Ioannis Persakis |  Greece | 12.52 | |
| 4 | Alajos Szokolyi |  Hungary | 11.26 | |
| 5 | Carl Schuhmann |  Germany | Unknown | |
| 6–7 | Fritz Hofmann | Germany | Unknown | |
| Khristos Zoumis | Greece | Unknown | ||
| — | Alfred Flatow | Germany | DNS | |
| Adolphe Grisel | France | DNS | ||
| Pál Péthy | Hungary | DNS | ||
| Friedrich Traun | Germany | DNS |
References
- ^ "Athletics at the 1896 Athens Summer Games: Men's Triple Jump". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ a b "Triple Jump, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
- ^ a b Official Report, pp. 62–63.
- ^ "Track and Field Statistics". trackfield.brinkster.net. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
Sources
- Lampros, S.P.; Polites, N.G.; De Coubertin, Pierre; Philemon, P.J. & Anninos, C. (1897). The Olympic Games: BC 776 – AD 1896. Athens: Charles Beck. (Digitally available at la84foundation.org)
- Mallon, Bill & Widlund, Ture (1998). The 1896 Olympic Games. Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary. Jefferson: McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0379-9. (Excerpt available at la84foundation.org)
- Smith, Michael Llewellyn (2004). Olympics in Athens 1896. The Invention of the Modern Olympic Games. London: Profile Books. ISBN 1-86197-342-X.
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