Pichardo Clinches Maiden Olympic Gold in Men’s Triple Jump
Portugal’s Pedro Pichardo Dominates in Tokyo
With reigning two-time champion Christian Taylor sidelined due to injury, Portugal’s Pedro Pichardo seized the opportunity to cement his status as the world’s premier male triple jumper. Pichardo set the tone with an opening leap of 17.61 meters and further improved to a national record 17.98m on his third attempt, clinching his maiden global gold medal in commanding fashion on Thursday at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
China’s Zhu Yaming surprised the field by claiming silver with a personal-best effort of 17.57m. Hugues Fabrice Zango secured bronze, earning Burkina Faso’s first-ever Olympic medal in athletics with a jump of 17.47m. The USA’s Will Claye, who had won silver behind Taylor at the past two Olympics, finished a disappointing fourth with 17.44m.
“It was always one of my dreams to win the Olympic gold,” Pichardo said. “This is what I have been doing since I was six years old. I feel a huge sense of happiness and I still have plenty of dreams ahead of me.”
Pichardo’s dominance was evident throughout the final. His opening 17.61m jump would have been enough to clinch gold, and he improved to a world-leading 17.98m on his third attempt to seal the victory. Zhu’s surprise silver-medal performance was a testament to his personal-best leap in the fifth round, which propelled him past Zango and into the runner-up position.
Despite being the world indoor record-holder, Zango had to settle for bronze, though his achievement marked a historic moment for Burkina Faso. “It’s not the medal I wanted, but it’s good for Burkina Faso, and it’s historic,” Zango said. “Everybody is happy. I think they will throw a great party when I go back.”
For Claye, the Tokyo Olympics represented a missed opportunity to finally claim the elusive Olympic gold medal after his back-to-back silver medals in London and Rio. With Taylor’s absence, the stage was set for Claye to shine, but he could only manage a fourth-place finish on the day.
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