By Lori Ewing
MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) – Early testing of take-off zones for measuring in long jump and triple jump has received positive feedback from many athletes and fans, World Athletics said on Friday.
The global federation announced a year ago that it planned to trial a take-off zone, with jumps measured from where the front foot takes off to where it lands in the pit, rather than the traditional board, to reduce the amount of foul jumps.
The innovation was part of the competition programme at the ISTAF Indoor Duesseldorf meet on February 9 and the ISTAF Indoor 2025 meet in Berlin five days later.
Twice women’s world long jump champion Malaika Mihambo, who won in Duesseldorf with a leap of 6.87 metres, said she “was pleasantly surprised to find that the difference wasn’t as significant as I had expected.
“This experience reinforced my understanding that long jump is about much more than just hitting the board,” the German said in a World Athletics statement.
“I appreciate the concept of utilising the entire board, as it enhances momentum and provides better feedback while allowing me to choose my own take-off point.
“However, this approach also makes it more challenging for both athletes and spectators to estimate distances.
“The key question remains: How can we make horizontal jumps safer for athletes while also making them more engaging for spectators, both in the stadium and at home?”
QUIT THREAT
However, the takeoff zone has been criticised by some jumpers.
Twice reigning Olympic men’s long jump champion Miltiadis Tentoglou threatened to quit the event if the sport implemented the rule change.
“I consider long jump to be one of the hardest events because of the board and the accuracy you need,” Greek Tentoglou said after winning last year’s world indoor title
“You need to run like a sprinter, to hit the board perfectly — this is the difficult part of the long jump. The jump itself is easy. The hard part is the run-up. So if they want to remove this, the long jump would be the easiest event,” he added.
“If that happens, I will not do long jump anymore.”
World Athletics said that while they are still compiling feedback, the take-off zone showed fouls dropped to 13% across both events from a historical average of 32%.
They also said early data suggested a 10-centimetre improvement in distances with the take-off zone.
“Tests like this will help to determine which potential innovations make it into further implementation, and they are a good opportunity to get feedback from athletes and fans, so we are pleased to be able to share this first round of updates,” said World Athletics CEO Jon Ridgeon.
Spectator surveys showed a preference for the new take-off zone, World Athletics said, but added there was a significant divide in opinions, with more than two-thirds of casual fans favouring the innovation, while those who are actively involved in the sport leaned strongly towards the traditional board.
The take-off zone is among several innovations World Athletics is testing in its four-year strategic business plan “Pioneering Change”, arguing that evolution is important to ensure the sport’s relevance, entertainment and excitement.
Other innovations include the launch of the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in 2026 and new events such as the mixed 4x100m relay and steeplechase mile.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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