Long jump champ Miltiadis Tentoglou – I’d quit if rules change

GLASGOW, Scotland — Miltiadis Tentoglou threatened to quit the long jump shortly after winning the world indoor title Saturday, saying he would change events if the sport implemented a rule change intended to eliminate jumping fouls.

The amendment proposed by World Athletics involves the introduction of a take-off zone where jumps would be measured from the take-off position to the athlete's landing position, thus eliminating false jumps to make the event more attractive to fans.

“I consider the long jump to be one of the most difficult events because of the board and the precision it requires,” Tentoglou told reporters. “You have to run like a sprinter, hit the board perfectly – that's the hard part of the long jump. The jump itself is easy. The hardest part is the run-up.

“So if they want to remove that, the long jump would be the easiest event,” he added. “If that happens, I won't do a long jump anymore. I'll be a triple jumper.”

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said Thursday at the World Cup opening news conference that changes, like the long jump, were needed to keep up with the evolving interests of viewers and sponsors.

The holy grail of every sport is to remain impactful, interesting and exciting for young people. We haven't been able to keep an ear out for them,” Coe said. “We need to recognize that the way people consume sports — the way they consume entertainment — is different than it was just three years ago.”

Tentoglou, 25, is also the reigning Olympic and world outdoor champion. He and Italian Mattia Furlani, 19, both jumped 8.22 meters (26.97 feet) in Glasgow, with the Greek jumper winning tie-break gold with his second-best, longest jump.

“It was very close. I hope everyone had fun today, at least it was exciting at the end,” Tentoglou said.

Furlani, whose silver was his first world medal, flew to what appeared to be the winning jump on his sixth and final attempt, but the red flag was raised for a foul because he exceeded the call board.

With the proposed rule amendment, he probably would have won the gold medal, but Furlani wasn't too disappointed.

“Wow, what a great day. I'm so excited because this is my first step on the world stage,” he said. “I have time now [in my career] to improve my speed and power. But I'm so excited to have done this.”

Carey McLeod of Jamaica took bronze with 8.21 meters.

A third of all jumps at the 2023 World Outdoor Championships were without jumps, prompting World Athletics to consider ways to change the rules.