World Athletics briefly tried—and ditched—a wider long-jump zone
Long jumpers sprint an all-weather runway and leap from a 20-centimeter board into sand, pairing speed with spring. Wind help over two meters per second voids records. In 2025 officials tested a 40-centimeter takeoff zone, then abandoned the reform that December.
Athletes usually get three trials; top eight or nine earn three more. Distance is measured from the foul line to the nearest sand break—under the trial, from the exact toe-off point instead. Both scorings were logged so traditional marks still counted.
Grouped with the triple jump as horizontal jumps, the event rewards runway precision: a millimeter over the board fouls an otherwise great flight. World Athletics brought in the wider zone because about 30 percent of attempts had become fouls, hoping to make the event fairer and more exciting to watch.
Fouls used to be caught by a strip of plasticine set at a right angle just past the board, but elite meetings such as the Diamond League now use cameras and laser sensors. Jumpers may place two marks beside the runway to time their approach, and because distance is always measured from the foul line, taking off well behind it wastes length. Smaller meets may use a painted mark and allow only three or four attempts.
The event appeared in the ancient Olympic pentathlon, the only jump among its events, and it has been a modern Olympic event for men since 1896 and for women since 1948. At major championships a qualifying round in two groups trims the field to at least twelve finalists, and ties are broken by comparing the next-best jumps. At the 2025 World Championships the final used a new cut: after three rounds the top ten got a fourth jump, the top eight a fifth and the top six a sixth.
Source: Long jump
