Introduction
The Triple Jump comprise three phases: Hop, Step and Jump.
It is performed from a run-up into a sand-pit and there are
four optional take off points at 7, 9, 11 and 13 meters from the edge of the
pit. During an event, Officials will move the actual take-off board to the
take-off point that you choose, placing a "Blank" into the others so
that the run-up is continuous and smooth.
For safety, you should not attempt a competition unless you
have trained, at least once - otherwise you will not know your correct take-off
point and could injure yourself at the edge of the pit.
Starting Triple Jump
Triple Jump can exert enormous pressures on bones, joints,
muscles and tendons - it is estimated that up to 14 times your body weight is
exerted the bottom of the ankle at the landing point after the first
phase. This is obviously going to affect soft and growing bones as well as
tendons and muscles.
Thus, Boys start at U17 (minimum 15 years old) at Club
competitions and at U15 (minimum 13 years old) at Schools competitions and Girls
start at U20 (minimum 17 years old) at Club competitions and at U17 (minimum 15
years old) at Schools competitions.
You should have an experienced Jumps coach when starting or it
may affect your bones forever. Enough of the warnings - on to one of the
most enjoyable events.....
Training
Triple Jump training is up to you and your coach. Here
are some ideas that I use (after the appropriate warm-up and stretching, of
course):
Drills
Bounding: (on Grass). The Athlete takes ten consecutive
bounds from a five step run-up and the Coach marks the point of the tenth
bound. This is repeated until there is no improvement. Focus should
be placed on keeping an upright body to prevent forward rotation during the
jump, as well as improving bounding. A Variation on this is the Sprinting
Stick drills for Stride length.
Single leg Hops: (on Grass). The Athlete takes five
consecutive hops and uses the same drill rules as the bounds drill, above.
Don't forget - with hopping do an equal number of drills on each leg.
Bounding and Hopping: (on the run-up). A Marker is
placed 20 metres and 10 metres from the pit. The Athlete bounds from the
10 metre mark into the pit and the coach counts the number of bounds until the
pit is reached - same with the hops, except that they are from 10 metres.
This is best with 2 Athletes and you can add competition by getting them to
compete with the distance reached with the last jump.....if the do an equal
number of hops/bounds. Don't forget - with hopping do an equal number of
drills on each leg.
More to be added later.......
Any suggestions - email them to me at coach@boja.org
Link to Standards
Link to Records
