The men's triple jump event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held from Thursday, August 19, 1920, to Saturday, August 21, 1920. Twenty-one triple jumpers from eight nations competed. No nation had more than four jumpers, suggesting the limit had been reduced from the 12 maximum in force in 1908 and 1912. The event was won by Vilho Tuulos of Finland, the nation's first medal in the triple jump. Sweden, which had swept the medals in 1912, took the next three places. Erik Almlöf became the third man to win two medals in the event, repeating his bronze performance from 1912.
The winning margin was 2.5 cm which as of 2023 remains the only time the men's triple jump was won by less than 4 cm at the Olympics.
Background
This was the sixth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Two jumpers from the pre-war 1912 Games returned: bronze medalist Erik Almlöf of Sweden and fourth-place finisher Erling Vinne of Norway.
Czechoslovakia made its first appearance in the event. The United States competed for the sixth time, having competed at each of the Games so far.
Competition format
The competition was described as two rounds at the time, but was more similar to the modern divided final. All athletes received three jumps initially. The top six after that received an additional three jumps to improve their distance, but the initial jumps would still count if no improvement was made.Official Report, p. 113.
Records
These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1920 Summer Olympics. Dan Ahearn set his world record while being a citizen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; at this Olympics he represented the United States, finishing in the sixth place.
No new world or Olympic records were set during the competition.
Schedule
Date Time Round Thursday, 19 August 1920 14:30 Qualifying Saturday, 21 August 1920 11:30 Final
Results
The best six triple jumpers qualified for the final.
Rank Athlete Nation 1 2 3 4 5 6 Distance 1 Vilho Tuulos 14.505 14.460 14.395 No improvement 14.505 2 Folke Jansson 14.160 13.700 14.160 14.480 14.480 3 Erik Almlöf 13.920 14.190 ? 14.270 14.270 4 Ivar Sahlin ? ? ? 14.175 14.175 5 Sherman Landers 13.865 ? ? 14.170 14.17 6 Dan Ahearn ? ? ? 14.080 14.080 7 Ossian Nylund 13.740 13.695 13.370 did not advance 13.740 8 Benjamin Howard Baker ? ? ? did not advance 13.675 9 Kaare Bache 12.890 13.640 13.000 did not advance 13.640 10 Sven Runström 13.630 13.350 13.550 did not advance 13.630 11 Erling Juul 12.800 13.590 13.480 did not advance 13.590 12 Kaufman Geist ? ? ? did not advance 13.520 13 Erling Vinne 13.290 ? ? did not advance 13.340 14 Charles Lively ? ? ? did not advance 13.150 15 Clarence Jaquith 12.600 ? ? did not advance 13.040 16 Etienne Proux ? ? ? did not advance 12.925 17 André Chilo ? ? ? did not advance 12.650 18 Menelaos Ponireas ? ? ? did not advance 12.600 19 Gustave Remouet ? ? ? did not advance 12.475 — František Šretr X X X did not advance No mark František Stejskal X X X did not advance No mark — Eugène Coulon Maxime Girard
References
Sources